I am sorry, but I cannot ignore this comment. I think it makes us feel better, but it is a senseless argument. You cannot make an argument like that without declaring war against billions of otherwise moderate muslims. I know, I know, I have seen it a hundred times on these forums these statements that "there are no moderate muslims". Well, events on the ground in Iraq are putting the lie to that in rather dramatic fashion. Muslims fighting right alongside us and dying in much greater numbers that we are in trying to get al Qaeda operatives killed or driven out of their neighborhoods. There is a moderate muslim community but it just had not revealed any motivation or capacity for revulsion of the extremist -- until now. So, the moment a Tom Tancredo or someone like him gets into a position of power makes a statement like this, how do you think that might strike our moderate muslim allies we have worked so hard for four years to develop?
Not only do I agree, but destroying a city with no military objectives, indeed with cultural and religious items in it, is a direct violation of the laws of war. Americans don’t do that.
“So, the moment a Tom Tancredo or someone like him gets into a position of power makes a statement like this, how do you think that might strike our moderate muslim allies we have worked so hard for four years to develop?”
I think it might strike them that they’d better do something to control the extremists. Their religion mandates pilgrimages to Mecca, so they would have a strong incentive to make sure that their holy city stays safe.