|
[replying to juju] I think that particular spin is coming from the public, not public officials or even the media. Every time Bush has talked about terrorism, it has constituted a very long term war, the dead-or-alive retrieval of bin Laden only being one aspect of it.
But since getting their butts kicked seems to be a historically effective approach to terrorists, let us go and kick some butts. Besides, since intelligence is now paying attention, any upsetting the apple cart may cause more of the network to be exposed.
And from a psychological point of view, it should hurt recruitment if nothing else. There's no fun joining a gang when that gang is getting its ass kicked.
And from the sounds of things, not everyone in this organization is driven by religious fanaticism. What was one of the last stops before 9/11? A strip bar, where there was booze drunk and brags laid down. Not model Muslims. Furthermore, there is some evidence that not all the hijackers believed they were on suicide missions.
BTW on those 500,000 Iranian kids who've apparently died - so says the UN - I thought that was the result of diplomatic efforts to stop the possible production of chemical and biological weapons?
When you're dealing with the leadership of a nation, and that leadership does absolutely reprehensible things, what are you going to do? You hate to hurt the people not responsible, but we've only seen MORE trouble from assassinating the two-bit dictators who wreak havoc. If Hussein cared more about 500,000 kids than we did, he would make an effort to re-join the civilized world where diplomacy is how things are done.
Lastly, bin Laden is not really concerned about those kids either. He just wants to bring Persians into the fold by claiming they have complaints and should be warring against the west with him.
|