why sudden silence?

[Jim Baldauf]

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Roger does here almost as good as Noam Chomsky did recently in =
deconstructing (obliterating) a similar rant by Hitchens. Chomsky =
prefaces his remarks by saying that young Hitchens couldn't "really =
believe what he was saying" and that it was a shame because Hitchens had =
once shown some promise as a humor writer. I'm afraid that Hitchens (or =
"Snitchens", as some have called him based on his society gossip work =
for Vanity Fair) is following in the shameful footsteps of David =
Horowitz who, it seems, has moved over the years from the Black Panther =
Party to something like the KKK. Snitchens apparently got a taste for =
the good life when he joined the lynch mob dogging Clinton, which earned =
him talking-head/pundit status on Fox and other right-wing media =
outlets. It is a shame how some folks abandon principle and move =
steadily to the right over the years.
jb
  ----- Original Message -----=20
  From: Roger Baker=20
  To: austin-ghetto-list@pairlist.net=20
  Sent: Thursday, November 15, 2001 4:50 PM
  Subject: Re: why sudden silence?


  On Thursday, November 15, 2001, at 08:14 AM, telebob x wrote:


    Gee, what has happened to the usual drumbeat of defeat from Roger, =
Jon, et al ? Shocking!=20
    The USA did something right again. And not for the wrong reasons =
either.

    tele



  OK already. You can't bomb your way to security in the modern world. =
What we have done=20
  in the case of Afghanistan is to create a malignant tumor of misery =
that may well topple the=20
  really big dominos of Pakistan, where the population is ten times the =
size of Afghanistan, or=20
  Saudi Arabia, from whence the terrorists and oil come.=20

  I also reply to Hitchens at the bottom, whose journalistic skirts =
teleboob is hiding behind,=20
  rather than expressing a sound opinion of his own.=20

  But first, the following bit of sensible perspective on the big =
picture from Z mag. -- Roger


  *****************************************************

  http://www.zmag.org/ZNET.htm

  The Irish Times
  November 14, 2001
  =20
  Kabul's fall is no mark of US success
  By Vincent Browne
  =20
  =20
  The "success" in replacing the Taliban with the Northern Alliance in =
Kabul, even if followed by the capture of Osama bin Laden and his al =
Queda associates, almost certainly will make no difference to the =
security threat to the US and the West from terrorism. It may do the =
reverse.
  =20
  The scale of the threat to America and its allies is documented again =
and again in a multitude of reports from official US commissions and =
organizations over the last few years. These reports describe the nature =
of the terrorist organizations that pose these threats - the absence of =
hierarchical structures, the loose connections between them, the spread =
of these organizations throughout the world and within America, the =
lessening of reliance on state sponsors, and the danger that one or more =
of these groups may acquire nuclear or biological weapons. They also =
emphasize the vulnerability of the US to attack from these =
organizations.
  =20
  In Countering the Changing Threat of International Terrorism, a report =
by the National Commission on Terrorism, published in June of last year, =
the following observation is made: "If al Queda and Osama bin Laden were =
to disappear tomorrow, the United States would still have potential =
terrorist threats from a growing number of groups opposed to perceived =
American hegemony."
  =20
  The same report stated: "Because groups based on ideological or =
religious motives may lack a specific political or nationalistic agenda, =
they have less need for a hierarchical structure". It says these groups =
"operate in the United States as well as abroad. Their funding and =
logistical networks cross borders, are less dependent on state sponsors =
and are harder to disrupt with economic sanctions. Their objectives are =
more deadly (than terrorist groups of a decade or two ago)".
  =20
  The US Commission on National Security, co-chaired by former US =
senator and presidential candidate, Gary Hart, stated in a report =
published on February 15th of this year: "Attacks on American citizens =
on American soil, possibly causing heavy casualties, are likely over the =
next quarter century. These attacks may involve weapons of mass =
destruction and weapons of mass disruption."
  =20
  A report in January of this year on the US Department of Energy's =
non-proliferation programmes with Russia, chaired by former US senator =
Howard Baker, and former presidential counsellor, Lloyd Cutler, is the =
most alarming. It says the old Soviet Union had a nuclear arsenal of =
40,000 weapons, over a thousand metric tons of nuclear materials, vast =
quantities of chemical and biological materials and thousands of =
missiles. The quantity of remaining highly enriched uranium (HEU) is =
enough to make more than 4,000 additional nuclear weapons.
  =20
  The US and Russian governments engaged in what is known as the =
"contract of the century" to destroy a great deal of this material and =
to bring the remainder under secure control. But a great proportion =
remains in insecure conditions. Worse, those "guarding" this material =
are given a strong incentive to give some of it to terrorists because of =
inadequate pay - often no pay at all for months on end - and chaotic =
military control arrangements. The report records a number of scarifying =
episodes:
  =20
  In late 1998, conspirators at a Ministry of Autonomic Energy facility =
in Chelyabinsk were caught attempting to steal fissile material of a =
quantity just short of that needed for one nuclear device.
  =20
  In early 1998, the mayor of Krasnoyarsk-45, a closed nuclear city that =
stores enough HEU for hundreds of nuclear weapons, wrote to the governor =
of Krasnoyarsk warning that a social explosion in the city was =
unavoidable unless urgent action was taken to pay nuclear scientists and =
other workers, who had been unpaid for several months.
  =20
  In December 1998, an employee of Russia's premier nuclear weapons =
laboratory in Sarov was arrested for espionage and charged with =
attempting to sell documents on nuclear weapons designs to agents of =
Iraq and Afghanistan for $3 million.
  =20
  Former US Senator Sam Nunn, who is co-chair of the Nuclear Threat =
Initiative, told the US Senate Committee on Foreign Relations on =
September 5th this year: "I am convinced the threat of a biological =
weapons attack on the Untied States in as urgent as it is real." He =
pointed out that the former Soviet Union engaged in a massive programme =
of biological weapons manufacture, at one time employing 870,000 =
scientists. They manufactured 22 tons of smallpox, a tiny fraction of =
which, if unleashed on the United States, would have devastating =
effects.
  =20
  A report by the advisory panel to assess domestic response to =
capabilities for terrorism involving weapons of mass destruction, says: =
"The United States has no coherent, functional national strategy for =
combating terrorism."
  =20
  Aside from a single sentence in the Gary Hart report, there is no =
attempt in any of these documents to decipher why terrorists might want =
to attack America and what America might do to address the reasons for =
the hostility. This seems all the more surprising given the scale of the =
threat and the vulnerability of America to terrorist attack.
  =20
  And the reasons appear straightforward: the presence of American =
troops in the Muslim holy land of Saudi Arabia; the historic injustice =
perpetrated on the Palestinian people, an injustice reinforced daily =
with the might of American arms; the sanctions on Iraq and the frequent =
bombings of that country; and above all, the perception that America is =
at war with the Islamic world. That perception will have been reinforced =
hugely by the bombardment of Afghanistan. Even after the fall of Kabul, =
America seems more vulnerable.
  =20
    *************************************************
  =20



    Ha ha ha
    by
    Christopher Hitchens
    Wednesday November 14, 2001
    The Guardian

    There was a time in my life when I did a fair bit of
    work for the tempestuous Lucretia Stewart, then editor
    of the American Express travel magazine, Departures.
    Together, we evolved a harmless satire of the slightly
    drivelling style employed by the journalists of
    tourism. "Land of Contrasts" was our shorthand for it.
    ("Jerusalem: an enthralling blend of old and new."
    "South Africa: a harmony in black and white."
    "Belfast, where ancient meets modern.") It was as you
    can see, no difficult task. I began to notice a few
    weeks ago that my enemies in the "peace" movement had
    decided to borrow from this tattered style book. The
    mantra, especially in the letters to this newspaper,
    was: "Afghanistan, where the world's richest country
    rains bombs on the world's poorest country."



  Isn't this true?=20



    Poor fools. They should never have tried to beat me at
    this game. What about, "Afghanistan, where the world's
    most open society confronts the world's most closed
    one"?=20


  Bush is eliminating civil rights at an appalling rate in the name=20
  of fighting terrorism, is he not? Here are some recent marching=20
  orders for a newspaper:
  =20
  " 'Don't Put Civilian Casualties on Page One'
  =20
  Per Hal's order, DO NOT USE photos on Page 1A showing civilian=20
  casualties from the U.S. war on Afghanistan. [Note: "Hal" is News=20
  Herald executive editor Hal Foster.] Our sister paper in Fort Walton=20
  Beach has done so and received hundreds and hundreds of threatening=20
  e-mails and the like.

  Also per Hal's order, DO NOT USE wire stories which lead with civilian =

  casualties from the U.S. war on Afghanistan. They should be mentioned=20
  further down in the story. If the story needs rewriting to play down =
the=20
  civilian casualties, DO IT."



    "Where American women pilots kill the men who
    enslave women." "Where the world's most indiscriminate
    bombers are bombed by the world's most accurate ones."
    "Where the largest number of poor people applaud the
    bombing of their own regime." I could go on. (I think
    number four may need a little work.) But there are
    some suggested contrasts for the "doves" to paste into
    their scrapbook. Incidentally, when they look at their
    scrapbooks they will be able to re-read themselves
    saying things like, "The bombing of Kosovo is driving
    the Serbs into the arms of Milosevic."

    If the silly policy of a Ramadan pause had been
    adopted, the citizens of Kabul would have still been
    under a regime of medieval cruelty, and their
    oppresssors would have been busily regrouping, not
    praying. Anyhow, what a damn-fool proposal to start
    with. I don't stop insulting the Christian coalition
    at Eastertime. Come Yom Kippur I tend to step up my
    scornful remarks about Zionism. Whatever happened to
    the robust secularism that used to help characterise
    the left? And why is it suddenly only the injured
    feelings of Muslims that count?=20


  Starvation in northern Afghanistan should be a primary issue for=20
  those who value human life. Will we now deliver the needed aid on the=20
  needed scale to prevent mass starvation or do we primarily care=20
  about American lives like Bush?



    A couple of years ago,
    the same people were striking pompous attitudes about
    the need to avoid offending Serbian and therefore
    Russian Orthodox sensitivities. Except that those
    sensitive people, or their leaders, were engaged in
    putting the Muslims of Europe to the sword...



  We are indeed the avenging angels of the world, but is our might used =
to=20
  promote justice or for expansionist corporate greed? When and where =
does
  the CIA intervene?



    There's no pleasing some people, but as a charter
    supporter of CND I can remember a time when the peace
    movement was not an auxiliary to dictators and
    aggressors in trouble. Looking at some of the
    mind-rotting tripe that comes my way from much of
    today's left, I get the impression that they go to bed
    saying: what have I done for Saddam Hussein or good
    old Slobodan or the Taliban today?



  Is terrorism a symptom of deeper problems -- or is it the primary
  problem for which bombs are the appropriate cure?




    Well, ha ha ha, and yah, boo. It was obvious from the
    very start that the United States had no alternative
    but to do what it has done. It was also obvious that
    defeat was impossible. The Taliban will soon be
    history. Al-Qaida will take longer. There will be
    other mutants to fight.=20


  By bombing enough innocent civilians for it to become known=20
  through the world of Islam and putting the Northern Alliance
  in power, we have set the stage for later problems. Do we walk=20
  away from the mess and tell the United Nations to clean it up?

  The points of potential vulnerabilty multiply in complex societies,
  and these weak points become targets for the disaffected when
  the narrow economic interests of the (corporate) empire undermine=20
  the possibility of legitimate democratic opposition (like Bush is=20
  trying to do here).=20



    But if, as the peaceniks like
    to moan, more Bin Ladens will spring up to take his
    place, I can offer this assurance: should that be the
    case, there are many many more who will also spring up
    to kill him all over again. And there are more of us
    and we are both smarter and nicer, as well as
    surprisingly insistent that our culture demands
    respect, too.


  We're good and rich and wise and individualistic while Muslims=20
  with their adamant moral principles are poor and bad? Do we=20
  enough nukes to back that point of view over the long run?=20



    ? Christopher Hitchens is a columnist for Vanity Fair.



  Which is a much better source than, say, da Newyawkah.




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<DIV>Roger does here almost as good as Noam Chomsky did recently in=20
deconstructing (obliterating) a similar rant by Hitchens. Chomsky =
prefaces his=20
remarks by saying that young Hitchens couldn't "really believe what he =
was=20
saying" and that it was a shame because Hitchens had once shown some =
promise as=20
a humor writer. I'm afraid that Hitchens (or "Snitchens", as some have =
called=20
him based on his society gossip work for Vanity Fair) is following in =
the=20
shameful footsteps of David Horowitz who, it seems, has moved over the =
years=20
from the Black Panther Party&nbsp;to something like the KKK. Snitchens=20
apparently got a taste for the good life when he joined the lynch mob =
dogging=20
Clinton, which earned him talking-head/pundit status on Fox and other =
right-wing=20
media outlets. It is a shame how some folks abandon principle and move =
steadily=20
to the right over the years.</DIV>
<DIV>jb</DIV>
<BLOCKQUOTE=20
style=3D"BORDER-LEFT: #000000 2px solid; MARGIN-LEFT: 5px; MARGIN-RIGHT: =
0px; PADDING-LEFT: 5px; PADDING-RIGHT: 0px">
  <DIV style=3D"FONT: 10pt arial">----- Original Message ----- </DIV>
  <DIV=20
  style=3D"BACKGROUND: #e4e4e4; FONT: 10pt arial; font-color: =
black"><B>From:</B>=20
  <A href=3D"mailto:rcbaker@eden.infohwy.com" =
title=3Drcbaker@eden.infohwy.com>Roger=20
  Baker</A> </DIV>
  <DIV style=3D"FONT: 10pt arial"><B>To:</B> <A=20
  href=3D"mailto:austin-ghetto-list@pairlist.net"=20
  =
title=3Daustin-ghetto-list@pairlist.net>austin-ghetto-list@pairlist.net</=
A>=20
  </DIV>
  <DIV style=3D"FONT: 10pt arial"><B>Sent:</B> Thursday, November 15, =
2001 4:50=20
  PM</DIV>
  <DIV style=3D"FONT: 10pt arial"><B>Subject:</B> Re: why sudden =
silence?</DIV>
  <DIV><BR></DIV>On Thursday, November 15, 2001, at 08:14 AM, telebob x=20
  wrote:<BR><BR>
  <BLOCKQUOTE>Gee, what has happened to the usual drumbeat of defeat =
from=20
    Roger, Jon, et al ? Shocking! <BR>The USA did something right again. =
And not=20
    for the wrong reasons either.<BR><BR>tele<BR><BR></BLOCKQUOTE><BR>OK =
already.=20
  You can't bomb your way to security in the modern world. What we have =
done=20
  <BR>in the case of Afghanistan is to create a malignant tumor of =
misery that=20
  may well topple the <BR>really big dominos of Pakistan, where the =
population=20
  is ten times the size of Afghanistan, or <BR>Saudi Arabia, from whence =
the=20
  terrorists and oil come. <BR><BR>I also reply to Hitchens at the =
bottom, whose=20
  journalistic skirts teleboob is hiding behind, <BR>rather than =
expressing a=20
  sound opinion of his own. <BR><BR>But first, the following bit of =
sensible=20
  perspective on the big picture from Z mag. --=20
  =
Roger<BR><BR><BR>*****************************************************<BR=
><BR>http://www.zmag.org/ZNET.htm<BR><BR><?fontfamily><?param Geneva>The =

  Irish Times<BR>November 14, 2001<BR>&nbsp;<BR>Kabul's fall is no mark =
of US=20
  success<BR>By Vincent Browne<BR>&nbsp;<BR>&nbsp;<BR>The "success" in =
replacing=20
  the Taliban with the Northern Alliance in Kabul, even if followed by =
the=20
  capture of Osama bin Laden and his al Queda associates, almost =
certainly will=20
  make no difference to the security threat to the US and the West from=20
  terrorism. It may do the reverse.<BR>&nbsp;<BR>The scale of the threat =
to=20
  America and its allies is documented again and again in a multitude of =
reports=20
  from official US commissions and organizations over the last few =
years. These=20
  reports describe the nature of the terrorist organizations that pose =
these=20
  threats - the absence of hierarchical structures, the loose =
connections=20
  between them, the spread of these organizations throughout the world =
and=20
  within America, the lessening of reliance on state sponsors, and the =
danger=20
  that one or more of these groups may acquire nuclear or biological =
weapons.=20
  They also emphasize the vulnerability of the US to attack from these=20
  organizations.<BR>&nbsp;<BR>In Countering the Changing Threat of =
International=20
  Terrorism, a report by the National Commission on Terrorism, published =
in June=20
  of last year, the following observation is made: "If al Queda and =
Osama bin=20
  Laden were to disappear tomorrow, the United States would still have =
potential=20
  terrorist threats from a growing number of groups opposed to perceived =

  American hegemony."<BR>&nbsp;<BR>The same report stated: "Because =
groups based=20
  on ideological or religious motives may lack a specific political or=20
  nationalistic agenda, they have less need for a hierarchical =
structure". It=20
  says these groups "operate in the United States as well as abroad. =
Their=20
  funding and logistical networks cross borders, are less dependent on =
state=20
  sponsors and are harder to disrupt with economic sanctions. Their =
objectives=20
  are more deadly (than terrorist groups of a decade or two=20
  ago)".<BR>&nbsp;<BR>The US Commission on National Security, co-chaired =
by=20
  former US senator and presidential candidate, Gary Hart, stated in a =
report=20
  published on February 15th of this year: "Attacks on American citizens =
on=20
  American soil, possibly causing heavy casualties, are likely over the =
next=20
  quarter century. These attacks may involve weapons of mass destruction =
and=20
  weapons of mass disruption."<BR>&nbsp;<BR>A report in January of this =
year on=20
  the US Department of Energy's non-proliferation programmes with =
Russia,=20
  chaired by former US senator Howard Baker, and former presidential =
counsellor,=20
  Lloyd Cutler, is the most alarming. It says the old Soviet Union had a =
nuclear=20
  arsenal of 40,000 weapons, over a thousand metric tons of nuclear =
materials,=20
  vast quantities of chemical and biological materials and thousands of=20
  missiles. The quantity of remaining highly enriched uranium (HEU) is =
enough to=20
  make more than 4,000 additional nuclear weapons.<BR>&nbsp;<BR>The US =
and=20
  Russian governments engaged in what is known as the "contract of the =
century"=20
  to destroy a great deal of this material and to bring the remainder =
under=20
  secure control. But a great proportion remains in insecure conditions. =
Worse,=20
  those "guarding" this material are given a strong incentive to give =
some of it=20
  to terrorists because of inadequate pay - often no pay at all for =
months on=20
  end - and chaotic military control arrangements. The report records a =
number=20
  of scarifying episodes:<BR>&nbsp;<BR>In late 1998, conspirators at a =
Ministry=20
  of Autonomic Energy facility in Chelyabinsk were caught attempting to =
steal=20
  fissile material of a quantity just short of that needed for one =
nuclear=20
  device.<BR>&nbsp;<BR>In early 1998, the mayor of Krasnoyarsk-45, a =
closed=20
  nuclear city that stores enough HEU for hundreds of nuclear weapons, =
wrote to=20
  the governor of Krasnoyarsk warning that a social explosion in the =
city was=20
  unavoidable unless urgent action was taken to pay nuclear scientists =
and other=20
  workers, who had been unpaid for several months.<BR>&nbsp;<BR>In =
December=20
  1998, an employee of Russia's premier nuclear weapons laboratory in =
Sarov was=20
  arrested for espionage and charged with attempting to sell documents =
on=20
  nuclear weapons designs to agents of Iraq and Afghanistan for $3=20
  million.<BR>&nbsp;<BR>Former US Senator Sam Nunn, who is co-chair of =
the=20
  Nuclear Threat Initiative, told the US Senate Committee on Foreign =
Relations=20
  on September 5th this year: "I am convinced the threat of a biological =
weapons=20
  attack on the Untied States in as urgent as it is real." He pointed =
out that=20
  the former Soviet Union engaged in a massive programme of biological =
weapons=20
  manufacture, at one time employing 870,000 scientists. They =
manufactured 22=20
  tons of smallpox, a tiny fraction of which, if unleashed on the United =
States,=20
  would have devastating effects.<BR>&nbsp;<BR>A report by the advisory =
panel to=20
  assess domestic response to capabilities for terrorism involving =
weapons of=20
  mass destruction, says: "The United States has no coherent, functional =

  national strategy for combating terrorism."<BR>&nbsp;<BR>Aside from a =
single=20
  sentence in the Gary Hart report, there is no attempt in any of these=20
  documents to decipher why terrorists might want to attack America and =
what=20
  America might do to address the reasons for the hostility. This seems =
all the=20
  more surprising given the scale of the threat and the vulnerability of =
America=20
  to terrorist attack.<BR>&nbsp;<BR>And the reasons appear =
straightforward: the=20
  presence of American troops in the Muslim holy land of Saudi Arabia; =
the=20
  historic injustice perpetrated on the Palestinian people, an injustice =

  reinforced daily with the might of American arms; the sanctions on =
Iraq and=20
  the frequent bombings of that country; and above all, the perception =
that=20
  America is at war with the Islamic world. That perception will have =
been=20
  reinforced hugely by the bombardment of Afghanistan. Even after the =
fall of=20
  Kabul, America seems more vulnerable.<BR>&nbsp;<BR>&nbsp;=20
  =
*************************************************<?/fontfamily><?fontfami=
ly><?param Times New =
Roman><?bigger><?bigger><BR><?/bigger><?/bigger><?/fontfamily><?fontfamil=
y><?param Arial><?color><?param =
0000,0000,6666><?bigger><?bigger>&nbsp;<?/bigger><?/bigger><?/color><?/fo=
ntfamily><?fontfamily><?param Times New =
Roman><?bigger><?bigger><BR><BR><?/bigger><?/bigger><?/fontfamily><BR>
  <BLOCKQUOTE>Ha ha ha<BR>by<BR>Christopher Hitchens<BR>Wednesday =
November 14,=20
    2001<BR>The Guardian<BR><BR>There was a time in my life when I did a =
fair=20
    bit of<BR>work for the tempestuous Lucretia Stewart, then =
editor<BR>of the=20
    American Express travel magazine, Departures.<BR>Together, we =
evolved a=20
    harmless satire of the slightly<BR>drivelling style employed by the=20
    journalists of<BR>tourism. "Land of Contrasts" was our shorthand for =

    it.<BR>("Jerusalem: an enthralling blend of old and new."<BR>"South =
Africa:=20
    a harmony in black and white."<BR>"Belfast, where ancient meets =
modern.") It=20
    was as you<BR>can see, no difficult task. I began to notice a =
few<BR>weeks=20
    ago that my enemies in the "peace" movement had<BR>decided to borrow =
from=20
    this tattered style book. The<BR>mantra, especially in the letters =
to this=20
    newspaper,<BR>was: "Afghanistan, where the world's richest =
country<BR>rains=20
    bombs on the world's poorest country."<BR><BR></BLOCKQUOTE><BR>Isn't =
this=20
  true? <BR><BR><BR>
  <BLOCKQUOTE>Poor fools. They should never have tried to beat me =
at<BR>this=20
    game. What about, "Afghanistan, where the world's<BR>most open =
society=20
    confronts the world's most closed<BR>one"? <BR></BLOCKQUOTE><BR>Bush =
is=20
  eliminating civil rights at an appalling rate in the name <BR>of =
fighting=20
  terrorism, is he not? Here are some recent marching <BR>orders for a=20
newspaper:<?fontfamily><?param Geneva><?color><?param =
0000,0000,0000><BR>&nbsp;<BR><U>"=20
  'Don't Put Civilian Casualties on Page One'</U><BR>&nbsp;<BR>Per Hal's =
order,=20
  DO NOT USE photos on Page 1A showing civilian <BR>casualties from the =
U.S. war=20
  on Afghanistan. [Note: "Hal" is News <BR>Herald executive editor Hal =
Foster.]=20
  Our sister paper in Fort Walton <BR>Beach has done so and received =
hundreds=20
  and hundreds of threatening <BR>e-mails and the like.<BR><BR>Also per =
Hal's=20
  order, DO NOT USE wire stories which lead with civilian <BR>casualties =
from=20
  the U.S. war on Afghanistan. They should be mentioned <BR>further down =
in the=20
  story. If the story needs rewriting to play down the <BR>civilian =
casualties,=20
  DO IT."<BR><BR><?/color><?/fontfamily><BR>
  <BLOCKQUOTE>"Where American women pilots kill the men who<BR>enslave =
women."=20
    "Where the world's most indiscriminate<BR>bombers are bombed by the =
world's=20
    most accurate ones."<BR>"Where the largest number of poor people =
applaud=20
    the<BR>bombing of their own regime." I could go on. (I =
think<BR>number four=20
    may need a little work.) But there are<BR>some suggested contrasts =
for the=20
    "doves" to paste into<BR>their scrapbook. Incidentally, when they =
look at=20
    their<BR>scrapbooks they will be able to re-read =
themselves<BR>saying things=20
    like, "The bombing of Kosovo is driving<BR>the Serbs into the arms =
of=20
    Milosevic."<BR><BR>If the silly policy of a Ramadan pause had=20
    been<BR>adopted, the citizens of Kabul would have still =
been<BR>under a=20
    regime of medieval cruelty, and their<BR>oppresssors would have been =
busily=20
    regrouping, not<BR>praying. Anyhow, what a damn-fool proposal to=20
    start<BR>with. I don't stop insulting the Christian coalition<BR>at=20
    Eastertime. Come Yom Kippur I tend to step up my<BR>scornful remarks =
about=20
    Zionism. Whatever happened to<BR>the robust secularism that used to =
help=20
    characterise<BR>the left? And why is it suddenly only the=20
    injured<BR>feelings of Muslims that count? =
<BR></BLOCKQUOTE><BR>Starvation in=20
  northern Afghanistan should be a primary issue for <BR>those who value =
human=20
  life. Will we now deliver the needed aid on the <BR>needed scale to =
prevent=20
  mass starvation or do we primarily care <BR>about American lives like=20
  Bush?<BR><BR><BR>
  <BLOCKQUOTE>A couple of years ago,<BR>the same people were striking =
pompous=20
    attitudes about<BR>the need to avoid offending Serbian and=20
    therefore<BR>Russian Orthodox sensitivities. Except that =
those<BR>sensitive=20
    people, or their leaders, were engaged in<BR>putting the Muslims of =
Europe=20
    to the sword...<BR><BR></BLOCKQUOTE><BR>We are indeed the avenging =
angels of=20
  the world, but is our might used to <BR>promote justice or for =
expansionist=20
  corporate greed? When and where does<BR>the CIA intervene?<BR><BR><BR>
  <BLOCKQUOTE>There's no pleasing some people, but as a =
charter<BR>supporter=20
    of CND I can remember a time when the peace<BR>movement was not an =
auxiliary=20
    to dictators and<BR>aggressors in trouble. Looking at some of=20
    the<BR>mind-rotting tripe that comes my way from much of<BR>today's =
left, I=20
    get the impression that they go to bed<BR>saying: what have I done =
for=20
    Saddam Hussein or good<BR>old Slobodan or the Taliban=20
  today?<BR></BLOCKQUOTE><BR><BR>Is terrorism a symptom of deeper =
problems -- or=20
  is it the primary<BR>problem for which bombs are the appropriate=20
  cure?<BR><BR><BR>
  <BLOCKQUOTE><BR>Well, ha ha ha, and yah, boo. It was obvious from=20
    the<BR>very start that the United States had no alternative<BR>but =
to do=20
    what it has done. It was also obvious that<BR>defeat was impossible. =
The=20
    Taliban will soon be<BR>history. Al-Qaida will take longer. There =
will=20
    be<BR>other mutants to fight. <BR></BLOCKQUOTE><BR>By bombing enough =
innocent=20
  civilians for it to become known <BR>through the world of Islam and =
putting=20
  the Northern Alliance<BR>in power, we have set the stage for later =
problems.=20
  Do we walk <BR>away from the mess and tell the United Nations to clean =
it=20
  up?<BR><BR>The points of potential vulnerabilty multiply in complex=20
  societies,<BR>and these weak points become targets for the disaffected =

  when<BR>the narrow economic interests of the (corporate) empire =
undermine=20
  <BR>the possibility of legitimate democratic opposition (like Bush is=20
  <BR>trying to do here). <BR><BR><BR>
  <BLOCKQUOTE>But if, as the peaceniks like<BR>to moan, more Bin Ladens =
will=20
    spring up to take his<BR>place, I can offer this assurance: should =
that be=20
    the<BR>case, there are many many more who will also spring up<BR>to =
kill him=20
    all over again. And there are more of us<BR>and we are both smarter =
and=20
    nicer, as well as<BR>surprisingly insistent that our culture=20
    demands<BR>respect, too.<BR></BLOCKQUOTE><BR>We're good and rich and =
wise and=20
  individualistic while Muslims <BR>with their adamant moral principles =
are poor=20
  and bad? Do we <BR>enough nukes to back that point of view over the =
long run?=20
  <BR><BR>
  <BLOCKQUOTE><BR>? Christopher Hitchens is a columnist for Vanity=20
    Fair.<BR><BR></BLOCKQUOTE><BR>Which is a much better source than, =
say, da=20
  Newyawkah.<BR><BR><BR></BLOCKQUOTE></BODY></HTML>

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