Favorite Bush quote: "The American way of life is not negotiable". The
rest of the world may prove him wrong on that one...
robert luis rabello wrote:
[EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote:
Because "God Shed His Grace on [We]," as one of our anthems says?
Uh, I have a hard time believing that. With great power goes great
responsibility. Interesting times ahead.
As far as "God shed his grace", I've often wondered if those words
represent an invocation, an iteration of fact, or simply an excuse.
(After all, who are WE to tell God to do anything?) But the claim
rings false, as is evidenced by our collective behavior. We are no
better than the great nations that preceded us, though we often like
to think ourselves as qualitatively superior. (So did the Brits, so
did the Romans, so did the Helenes, and so forth . . . )
Whatever the US role in those sanctions, it has always seemed to me
that Saddam Hussein had the resources to address the basic
health/sanitation needs of his people but instead chose to spend it
on a lavish lifestyle for himself, his family, and supporters, and on
other nonessentials compared to basic needs. Yet, almost without
exception, the US gets blamed for this humanitarian disaster during
the sanctions. Why?
The U.S. gets blamed for a LOT of the world's woes. Some of this
is well deserved, some represents an oversimplification of complex
issues for which the most obvious target of rage happens to be the
biggest, easiest target. Saddam Hussein behaved in a deplorable
manner during the conflict he had with the United States, but I wonder
sometimes whether we are capable of fully understanding the cultural
context in which men like him arise to power. Could we have done
something different that would have attained our objective of getting
his troops out of Kuwait (though it's been argued here that the
Ambassador Gilaspie debacle sent Saddam the wrong signal about our
intentions), while allowing Saddam to save face?
It's hard to keep track of what is relevant when all of the
factors come up for discussion. We don't like to admit that our
duplicitous policy toward Israel enters into the mix. Energy use and
economic expansion rank among the most significant influences in our
foreign policy. We're driven by fear, whether of foreign influence,
communism, racism or Islam. We don't like to examine many years of
political blundering, but also, many people outside our country don't
really understand the complex religio-political milieu in the United
States, (which we have discussed many times) and how the apparent
impotence of our military after the Korean conflict plays into the
perceived need for effective projection of power.
We end up, then, at an impasse with many people in the world who
simply don't understand us, and for whom we have little sympathy. We
become defensive when exposed to criticism, deserved or otherwise, and
tend to attribute any disagreement with our foreign policy as
anti-Americanism. Even when overseas friends warn us that our ways
expose the cause of liberty and economic development to danger, we
choose to lumber onward, ignoring the torpedoes, "sowing dragon's
teeth" as Keith often writes.
Were the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki "terrorist" attacks?
Was the allied bombing of Dresden? What about Tokyo? What other
targets remained in Japan that HADN'T been heavily bombed prior to the
use of atomic weapons? Until very recently, bombing has not been a
terribly effective technique when it comes to destroying an enemy's
command / control infrastructure or his ability to support ongoing
warfare. But this issue has its root in earlier conflicts where the
concept of "total war" began. How do we define terrorism in the
context of warfare? When Grant invaded the southern states during the
Civil War, was his conduct terroristic? Some people think so, yet he
only had conventional artillery, willing troops and fire at his disposal.
Perhaps the best answer lies in addressing the root causes of
conflict. We need to limit our own desires and work cooperatively for
the benefit of everyone who lives in our world. Yet I see the seminal
cause of human conflict every time I look in the mirror. Until I can
deal with my own attitude, prejudices, rage and greed, I see little
hope in avoiding terror in the future.
robert luis rabello
"The Edge of Justice"
Adventure for Your Mind
http://www.newadventure.ca
Ranger Supercharger Project Page
http://www.members.shaw.ca/rabello/
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