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The invasion of Iraq has been labelled part of the "War on Terrorism" which is, of course, jingoistic spin since a war is
A state of open, armed, often prolonged conflict carried on between nations, states, or parties.
and terrorism is not a nation or a state or even a collection of individuals, it is a military strategy usually adopted where other military options are unavailable.
Incidents of terrorism are documented in the wars fought by Alexander The Great in 300BC. The French and Italian resistance fighters used it against the Nazis in World War II and were later hailed as heros. The bombing of Dresden in Germany by the English in World War II could be described as terrorism since it was not a military target. Like other military strategies, it is deemed to be "evil" when the other side uses it and "justified" when we use it.
If you want to accept the spin and say a "War on Terrorism" is possible then it can never be won. Like any other military strategy terrorism will be continued to be used into the future, particularly by people who have no other means of resistance to military force. Reading the implications behind comments on my post on Gun Deaths in USA and elsewhere we see that a significant percentage of Americans would happily resort to terrorism if their country was invaded and they had to defend themselves against an occupying force. Should GWB declare war on them as well?
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or read the most recent entries here.Well, I don't agree that the capture of Saddam will bring any peace. I believe that the Shiite have been waiting for us (the USA) to catch him before they stretch out and claim their majority status. The showdown with the Grand Ayatollah Sistani over elections is already becomimg strained. Already I hear the Iraqi people claimimg the right to try Saddam. No appointed IRC has the legitimacy to try him. The urge for legitamate retribution should put even more pressure on to an Iraq free from the USA.
Frankly, I am surprised the USA took him alive, what with he could say : we sold him the gas used on Iran and the Kurds; we let him massacre the Shiite, etc. I don't trust my current government one bit, but I expect them to screw up anything and everything. So Saddam alive is par for the course.
The joint should be jumping by July, just in time for our elections. You know that every Iraqi knows about that!
Perhaps it was just optimism on my part.
Posted by: greenman at December 15, 2003 01:43 PM
Stumble It!