Something worth reading...

[joe4speed]

No matter what your views on President Bush's statement of upcoming war,
this, from an English journalist, is very interesting. For those of you not
familiar with the UK's Daily Mirror, this is a notoriously left-wing daily that
is normally not supportive of the Colonials across the Atlantic.
Joe

Tony Parsons Daily Mirror September 11, 2002

ONE year ago, the world witnessed a unique kind of broadcasting the mass murder of thousands, live on television. As a lesson in the pitiless cruelty of the human race, September 11 was up there, with Pol Pot's mountain of skulls in Cambodia, or the skeletal bodies stacked like garbage in the Nazi concentration camps. An unspeakable act so cruel, so calculated and so utterly merciless that surely the world could agree on one thing - nobody deserves this fate. Surely there could be consensus: the victims were truly innocent, the perpetrators truly evil.

But to the world's eternal shame, 9/11/01 is increasingly seen as America's comeuppance. Incredibly, anti-Americanism has increased over the last year.

There has always been a simmering resentment to the USA in this country - too loud, too rich, too full of themselves, and so much happier than Europeans - but it has become an epidemic. And it seems incredible to me. More than that, it turns my stomach.

America is this country's greatest friend and our staunchest ally. We are bonded to the US by culture, language and blood. A little over half a century ago, around half a million Americans died for our freedoms, as well as their own.

Have we forgotten so soon? And exactly a year ago, thousands of ordinary men, women and children - not just Americans, but from dozens of countries - were butchered by a small group of religious fanatics. Are we so quick to betray them?

What touched the heart about those who died in the twin towers and on the planes was that we recognized them. Young fathers and mothers, somebody's son and somebody's daughter, husbands and wives, and children, some unborn.

And these people brought it on themselves? And their nation is to blame for their meticulously planned slaughter?

These days you don't have to be some dust-encrusted nut job in Kabul or Karachi or Finsbury Park to see America as the Great Satan. The anti-American alliance is made up of self-loathing liberals who blame the Americans for every ill in the Third World, and conservatives suffering from power-envy, bitter that the world's only superpower can do what it likes without having to ask permission.

The truth is that America has behaved with enormous restraint since September 11.

Remember, remember!

Remember the gut-wrenching tapes of weeping men phoning their wives to say, "I love you," before they were burned alive.

Remember those people leaping to their deaths from the top of burning skyscrapers.

Remember the hundreds of firemen buried alive.

Remember the smiling face of that beautiful little girl who was on one of the planes with her mum.

Remember, remember - and realize that America has never retaliated for 9/11 in anything like the way it could have.

So a few al-Qaeda tourists got locked without a trial in Camp X-ray?
So some Afghan wedding receptions were shot up after they merrily fired
their semi-automatics in a sky full of American planes? A shame, but maybe
next time they should stick to confetti.

AMERICA could have turned a large chunk of the world into a parking lot.

That it didn't is a sign of strength. American voices are already being raised against attacking Iraq - that's what a democracy is for. How many in the Islamic world will have a minute's silence for the slaughtered innocents of 9/11? How many Islamic leaders will have the guts to say that the mass murder of 9/11 was an abomination?

When the news of 9/11 broke on the West Bank, those freedom-loving
Palestinians were dancing in the street. America watched all of that and
didn't push the button. We should thank the stars that America is the most powerful nation in the world. I still find it incredible that 9/11 did not provoke all-out war. Not a "war on terrorism." A real war.

The fundamentalist dudes are talking about "opening the gates of hell," if America attacks Iraq. Well, America could have opened the gates of hell like you wouldn't believe.

The US is the most militarily powerful nation that ever strode the face of the earth. The campaign in Afghanistan may have been less than perfect and the planned war on Iraq may be misconceived.

But don't blame America for not bringing peace and light to these wretched countries. How many democracies are there in the Middle East, or in the Muslim world? You can count them on the fingers of one hand-assuming you haven't had any chopped off for minor shoplifting.

I love America, yet America is hated. I guess that makes me Bush's poodle. But I would rather be a dog in New York City than a Prince in Riyadh. Above all, America is hated because it is what every country wants to be - rich, free, strong, open, optimistic. Not ground down by the past, or religion, or some caste system. America is the best friend this country ever had and we should start remembering that.

Or do you really think the USA is the root of all evil? Tell it to the loved ones of the men and women who leaped to their death from the burning towers.

Tell it to the nursing mothers whose husbands died on one of the hijacked planes, or were ripped apart in a collapsing skyscraper. And tell it to the hundreds of young widows whose husbands worked for the New York Fire Department.

To our shame, George Bush gets a worse press than Saddam Hussein.
Once we were told that Saddam gassed the Kurds, tortured his own people and
set up rape-camps in Kuwait. Now we are told he likes Quality Street.
Save me the orange center, oh mighty one! Remember, remember, September 11.

One of the greatest atrocities in human history was committed against America.

No, do more than remember. Never forget.

[Dark_5.0]

Amen to that, This is just the silence before the storm. I have a feeling that when we do attack Iraq there wont be anything left of it.

Thank god there is a republican Texan in office.

Years from now they will be saying how do you tell a syrian and an Iraqi apart?

Answer: The Iraqi glows in the dark.

The U.S. is about to bring da pain baby!

[302 LX Eric]

Joe - Excellent post.

This anti-Americanism crap has me very disturbed.

We help third world countries with valuable food and economic aid, thousands of America lives have been sacrificed to save others on foreign soil (WWI, WWII ring a bell to anyone?), we've promoted freedom to all people, we've tried to do much, much good in this world and now we're critized for being the world's bully. Hell, even the Kuwaiti's have so quickly forgotten who came to their aid when Saddam came knocking. Amazing.

No one has any balls anymore to stand up to people - except America. Here's an idea, /in my most sarcastic tone/ let's give the inspectors 50 more years to do their "inspections". Inspections that aren't going to accomplish diddly. Iraq won't allow spy planes to aid in the inspecitions, they won't allow scientists to be interviewed in private or in a neutral locale w/their families, they delay just about every inspection and have lookouts to radio ahead so that Iraq can move and hide weapons of mass destruction. The time for politics and peaceful resolution have passed - at the fatal choice of Iraq.

I'll tell you this, if America invades and that POS uses even one biological or nerve agent, there better not be one UN member that opposes the war because the proof will be in the pudding. And, the pain that Iraq inflicts on our soldiers will be felt ten-fold upon them.

The full force and might of the United States military will prevail.

God Bless the United States of America.

E

[HotRoddin]

Originally posted by 302 LX Eric
Joe - Excellent post.

This anti-Americanism crap has me very disturbed.

we've tried to do much, much good in this world and now we're critized for being the world's bully.

A men to that Eric ! Lets remember a very important thing .... At this point in time we have the power to easily conquer and enslave any country on this planet. If we are so evil, and our intentions are so self serving, why haven't we ???? What kind of world do think this would be if Sadam held the power we hold ?? Likely we would be in chains, while he sat in one of his 100 palaces eating cracked crab on ice and watching video tapes of peoples execution and torture ... kinda like he does now. These lunatics would like nothing better than to kill my family in the most grusome fashion. We aren't like that, and the reason i'm so sure of that is because if we wanted to kill their family members, there would be millions of them laying dead right now. With a push of a button North Korea's nuclear program would be blown back into the stone age, its powerful Army wiped from the face of the planet. A gallon of gas would be about a quarter, because all of the oil fields of the middle east would belong to us ! Instead, we send money and aid ... even to the people that threaten to destroy us. The evil Americans, I'm getting really tired of hearing that !! We have lost hundreds of thousands of young men standing up for the Europeans and the only thing we get in return is their self rightious criticisim. We get verbally trounced by the French for being bullies .... this from the country who for centuries had half the world colonized ... thats how they used power when they had it. Germany ... they are chanting in the streets about how brutal we are .... they started not one but two world wars !! Then we have the more beneign criticism like 1969Mach1's "I just believe there is a better way to solve some of our issues than war" What does that mean ?????? don't just talk to feel your jaw move ?? Give us some answers ?? what ways ??? You want to critisize but you have no answers ? not even an opinion ? I'm at the point where i just don't give a flying **** anymore ... We have something nasty that needs to be done ... you can stand bside us the way we have for you a dozen times, or get the **** out of the way, because frankly Scarlett we don't give a dam.

[87BOSS351C]

Step number 1: stop all foreign (finacial) aid to all countries

Step 2: Call in all loans to all foreign Governments, and stop forgiving them!

Step 3: Make an example of Iraq in such a way that North Korea begs to become friends with us in order to avoid a similar fate!!!

It is time to show the world what happens when you awaken the sleeping giant that is America.

[95mustanggt]

As a Canadian, Americans have my full support! Let's stop Terrorists, let them kill themselves, not us "Westerners".

[Mr 5 0]

I saw this piece (online) when it came out last September. It hits the nail on the head and is accurate in every respect. Heres my take:

Anti-Americanism is certainly on the rise worldwide and I expect it will continue to be so. Within the U. S. we have a large contingent of liberals that attack not only President Bush and his administration but most everything that makes America great, including simple patriotism, private property rights and the right to not be taxed into near-bankruptcy by an overbearing government bureaucracy that intrudes into every aspect of our lives...always for our own good, of course. This is seen by some foreigners as representing a large part of America, divided and disdainful of our own leaders. Why should they, who do not partake of the bounty that is America, feel warm toward us if our own people are opposed to their government? Not understanding our politics and freedoms, they see us as weakened and divided. Despite the liberals loud cries, we are not weak or divided when it comes to our national security.

Tony Parsons (the author of the piece referenced here) understands that Third World governments not suprisingly resent America's growing world supremacy while they sink ever further into debt and squalor following dictators and despots who build palaces and fill Swiss bank accounts for themselves while their people starve. Europe is also jealous of the Colonies acendance to world supremacy within the past 60 years without the benefit of rigidly class-based social structures and ancient palaces to gaze on while longing for a long-departed glorious past.

No, Americans are not perfect and we make mistakes in foreign policy but as Tony Parson notes, we've been a beacon of freedom in the world for a long time, we've been wildly successful materially and that material success is shared by the many, not the few. We are not bound by a theocracy or a history of monarchy. Our history is one of struggles and heroism along with slavery and even a civil war but most of all, of freedom and doing whats right. Europe, mired in socialism and a concept of foreign policy that is based mostly on appeasment of dictators and geo-bullies, is helpless in the face of real threats and, like a trained bear in a circus, hops up on it's stool and performs it's well-learned appeasment tricks on cue from Saddam and any other foreign thug with a title and an army.

They are embarrassed by a George W. Bush who stands at the podium in the United Nations, looks them in the eye and challenges them to back up their own resolutions and join us in confronting and facing down a Saddam Hussein. The U.S. President even offers to do all the military heavy lifting, but still, excepting Britian's Tony Blair (God bless the gutsy little liberal) they shirk and mutter about hegemony and needing even more time. They embarrass themselves and they know it. Thus, the bad-mouthing of the United States and it's president, who knows evil and a threat when he sees it and has the guts to deal with it, unlike toothless and supine Europe and the useless U.N. debating society.

With that background, I expect to see a lot more America-bashing both abroad and right here at home. Jennings, Brokaw and Rather are at it in their subtle way every chance they get and our home-grown anti-war, anti-Bush anti-America groups aren't going away any time soon. Mired in the empty and long outdated anti-establishment/pro-underdog mindset of the anti-war 1960's these groups soldier on, assuming a misplaced moral superiority as they help power-mad dictators like a Saddam Hussein stay in power and yet attack a decent man like President Bush who only seeks to protect both America and the world from the threat of mass death from chemical and biological agents in the hands of dictators.

To these groups, 'it's all about oil' and 'Bush's ego' and whatever other nonsensical reasons they attempt to contrive to support being against the elimination of a terrorist dictator with dangerous weapons he will use on his neighbors and sell to terrorists to use on Americans. Fortunately, a lot of support for that nonsense is gone now, following Secretary of State Colin Powell's brilliant and unassailable presentation to the United Nations Security Council outlining Iraq's weapons and non-compliance with U.N. Resolution 1441. Saddam's days are truly numbered at this point and we are that much closer to being safer from WMD coming out of Iraq.

Parsons made one other important point: That America, were we not the freedom loving and patient people we are, collectively, could have easily waged nuclear war on the mid-east Muslim nations that are all in some part helping terrorism - and 9/11 - succeed. Of course, we did not and our leadership never even considered such a move. Americans are not collective cold-blooded murderers or crazies with a war lust, as some of the 'peace-at-any-price' crowd always claim. That's an obvious lie and they know it.

Contrary to the 'rush to war' mantra the liberals were recently parroting, President Bush has been methodical and patient in his steady march against Iraq. He made his case to Congress and received their approval for military action. He made his case to the U.N. and received authorization for a possible military action against Iraq. He made his case to the American people and received high approval ratings. Colin Powell made his presentation to the Security Council and removed most doubt, there, as to the need for military action against Iraq. Saddam Hussein could - at long last - actually begin to disarm and destroy his chemical and biologival weapons, but refuses - while he plays hide-and-seek games with the U.N. inspectors. His choice for war, not ours. It's refeshing that Brits like Tony Parsons 'get it' when it comes to America and the War on Terrorism, which we didn't start, but we will win - and end.

[Crazy Horse GT]

great points, i just wish they had let us finish it in 91, i knew we would have to go there again, but i'm not, god bless our fighting people over there, been there, not going back, my time there is history now, god bless america.

[SlowMopar]

Joe thanks for that article. That was a damn good read and it's reasons like that I'm glad we have the friends we do across the pond.