Saturday, October 08, 2005
Terror Reminders, and selective memory
[HUGE Update:] Why isn't anyone talking about this failed suicide bombing outside the Oklahoma football game? Home grown Islamic terror? This is huge! More to come, but read below, as this only strengthens my point.
Reminders of the importance of the fight in Iraq are popping up all over, especially in the last few days, where we have seen both a foiled terror plot in New York, and an intercepted letter from high level Al Qaida operative Ayman al-Zawahri to Abu Musab al-Zarqawi regarding the nature and purpose of the conflict.
Meanwhile, this sort of nonsense makes me more than a little sick and frankly enraged. In an op-ed entitled "Shared Fantasies of Bush and al Qaida?," WaPo columnist William M. Arkin writes:
How can an ideology that seeks to eradicate the American way of life, regardless of how many lives must be lost, be they Arab or otherwise, not be called evil? This is a group that claims to typify the result of American policy on the Middle East, yet will openly risk and expend the lives of the people it claims to represent. Somewhere in the strange argument espoused above, the author loses sight of the fact that regardless of any perceived US involvement in all manner of atrocities, the US did not fly planes into buildings, nor did it plant bombs in the London underground, or try to smuggle bombs into the New York Subway in baby carriages. A shared fantasy, indeed, but one that is shared only by those who would seek to do us harm and those who cannot seem to understand why.
Its funny sometimes to think that the enemy may get it better than we do. The main stream media, which continues to ignore successes in Iraq and blame the US for terrorism while bemoaning the lengthy coalition timeline in Iraq, cannot seem to fathom that not only is our continued presence in Iraq imperative to the success of the fledgling democracy, but it weighs heavily on the security of the United States and our allies in the middle east. Al Qaida continues to fight the US and coalition forces because the success or failure of there long term agenda depends on it. If they fail, and the US succeeds in not only liberating the Iraqi people from tyranny but also in rooting out terror from Iraq, there will be nothing left but retreat and defeat for Al Qaida. When it becomes clear that democracy, equality and freedom are not something unique to New England liberals, but an inherent and inalienable right possessed by all people, there can be no more tolerance for oppressive regimes and terror roots across Syria, Iran and elsewhere. More than simply securing Iraq, and the United States, against terror, this operation is fundamentally reshaping the politics and make-up of the Middle East. And, as the President called attention to, the war on terror is not confined to Iraq. We have to continue to be vigilant here and elsewhere, let we forget that it was not a President, a Party or a People that was attacked four years ago, it was an idea. The ideal and way of life that can only be called American cannot thrive and cannot be called true freedom in a world where terror is left unchecked, and tyrants traffic fear in the night. The freedom and prosperity of the US is not self-sustaining, and we cannot allow ourselves to believe otherwise.
Reminders of the importance of the fight in Iraq are popping up all over, especially in the last few days, where we have seen both a foiled terror plot in New York, and an intercepted letter from high level Al Qaida operative Ayman al-Zawahri to Abu Musab al-Zarqawi regarding the nature and purpose of the conflict.
Whitman said the letter demonstrates "that there is this detailed planning and intent on the part of the insurgents in Iraq to one day control that country and to really try to extend their extremism to neighboring countries. It demonstrates to me they clearly understand the importance and significance of the battle in Iraq right now."
Meanwhile, this sort of nonsense makes me more than a little sick and frankly enraged. In an op-ed entitled "Shared Fantasies of Bush and al Qaida?," WaPo columnist William M. Arkin writes:
That's it? Ten plots, 3,000 terrorists, more than one-half the leadership? I know these numbers are intended to convey that the war on terrorism has been a success. To me though, it just conveys how stuck the Bush administration is in a go-nowhere-fight-forever-kill-the-terrorists-one-at-a-time strategy.
...
The White House and much of Washington continues to be stuck in a post 9/11 nightmare where I believe the groupthink imagines a monumental threat to the United States and western society that just doesn't exist.
Yes, President Bush, extremism will exist after Iraq. It is made all the more potent and rewarding as we bumble about labeling it "evil" and ignoring what it feeds on.
How can an ideology that seeks to eradicate the American way of life, regardless of how many lives must be lost, be they Arab or otherwise, not be called evil? This is a group that claims to typify the result of American policy on the Middle East, yet will openly risk and expend the lives of the people it claims to represent. Somewhere in the strange argument espoused above, the author loses sight of the fact that regardless of any perceived US involvement in all manner of atrocities, the US did not fly planes into buildings, nor did it plant bombs in the London underground, or try to smuggle bombs into the New York Subway in baby carriages. A shared fantasy, indeed, but one that is shared only by those who would seek to do us harm and those who cannot seem to understand why.
Its funny sometimes to think that the enemy may get it better than we do. The main stream media, which continues to ignore successes in Iraq and blame the US for terrorism while bemoaning the lengthy coalition timeline in Iraq, cannot seem to fathom that not only is our continued presence in Iraq imperative to the success of the fledgling democracy, but it weighs heavily on the security of the United States and our allies in the middle east. Al Qaida continues to fight the US and coalition forces because the success or failure of there long term agenda depends on it. If they fail, and the US succeeds in not only liberating the Iraqi people from tyranny but also in rooting out terror from Iraq, there will be nothing left but retreat and defeat for Al Qaida. When it becomes clear that democracy, equality and freedom are not something unique to New England liberals, but an inherent and inalienable right possessed by all people, there can be no more tolerance for oppressive regimes and terror roots across Syria, Iran and elsewhere. More than simply securing Iraq, and the United States, against terror, this operation is fundamentally reshaping the politics and make-up of the Middle East. And, as the President called attention to, the war on terror is not confined to Iraq. We have to continue to be vigilant here and elsewhere, let we forget that it was not a President, a Party or a People that was attacked four years ago, it was an idea. The ideal and way of life that can only be called American cannot thrive and cannot be called true freedom in a world where terror is left unchecked, and tyrants traffic fear in the night. The freedom and prosperity of the US is not self-sustaining, and we cannot allow ourselves to believe otherwise.
Comments:
How can an ideology that seeks to eradicate the American way of life ... not be called evil?
Wow. You are sadly mis-informed if you truly believe that is their goal.
Post a Comment
Wow. You are sadly mis-informed if you truly believe that is their goal.
# posted by 
: 2:09 PM
: 2:09 PM
