Posted on 10/08/2001 8:54:39 AM PDT by Lizavetta
The Middle East is tough, but not undoable
AUSTIN - Operating on the theory that what we owe our country in time of crisis is, among other things, our best thinking, let's continue to think about what America can usefully do now.
We have a bad national habit of playing the blame game when something goes wrong. This first thing we ask is, "Whose fault is this?" We've already got congressional committees trying to figure out who was asleep at the wheel, who should have known, what should have been done, etc. Many of our more thoughtful citizens are exhuming years of American policy in the Arab world, much of which, in retrospect, seems to have been unwise.
Brian Urquhart, the great British diplomat, once suggested that the Israelis and the Palestinians (and practically everyone in the Middle East) should just blame the British for everything. In the first place, there's some historic merit to the argument, and in the second place, there's nothing like a common enemy to unite warring parties. Tony Blair for bad guy.
Unfortunately, the United States seems to have replaced Britain as a unifying force there (always keeping in mind that the Arab world is not unified). It is important to understand the why of this, the roots of it - but I think but it's more important to figure out what to do now.
George Mitchell discovered when he was working on peace for Northern Ireland that it was first necessary to let each side vent the several hundred years of frustration, hatred, anger and "they did it first" that had built up. It took a long time. Then they talked.
Likewise, Israel and Palestine. This is a do-able deal, as we say in Texas. Get the settlers off the West Bank, and go from there. The New York Times reports in a sad postscript that, before Sept. 11, the United States was on the verge of announcing support for a Palestinian state. That's on temporary hold, but it is still an exceptional step. Then we get the rich Arab countries to cough up a Marshall Plan for Palestine, and that's one down.
Iraq may be even harder. One thing for sure is that we're breeding another generation of terrorists with our sanctions there. Those who have seen it universally testify that the effects of American sanctions are horrendous. According to a UNICEF report in 2000, between 5,000 and 6,000 children a month are dying because of the sanctions.
I have yet to find anyone with a good idea on what to do about Saddam Hussein - several presidents haven't been able to figure it out - but causing his people to starve is no help at all. Let's bomb them with butter, too. Or at least take off the sanctions.
As I wrote in a column on July 9, the Clinton administration had been leading an international charge to get control of money-laundering - the means by which terrorists, drug dealers, tax evaders, arms traffickers and kleptomaniac dictators hide their ill-gotten loot. The Bush administration had backed off from these efforts and opposed legislation to deter international money-laundering, apparently on the theory that banking regulation in general is a bad idea. (Sen. Phil Gramm also helped kill the proposal.)
I bring this up not to find fault but to suggest that we hop right back aboard that bandwagon and get it rolling good. As you have read, following the money trail is proving to be our best tool in tracing the terrorists.
Also in the area of legislation, we could try not to do dumb things just because we've been attacked. That airline bailout bill is one of the worst pieces of legislation I've seen in years. It makes no distinctions between healthy and unhealthy companies and asks for nothing in return. (We got warrants for stock in the Chrysler bailout that turned into a windfall.)
Laurence Zuckerman of The New York Times reports that United Airlines, while pleading for emergency bailout loans, was wiring $11.25 million to France to pay for luxury business jets at the same time it announced that it was laying off 20,000 workers. Both American and Northwest airlines were fixing to deny severance benefits to the thousands of workers they are laying off until the unions raised cain.
The House Republicans refused to put anything into the bill to help laid-off workers (our boys Tom DeLay and Dick Armey nixed that idea). But naturally, most CEOs take no pay cut. The airlines got $5 billion in cash to cover immediate losses and $10 billion in loan guarantees to cover insurance costs for 180 days and pay for the cost of new security measures. So now every other affected industry is lining up for a handout. Being actively stupid helps nothing.
Molly Ivins writes for Creators Syndicate. 5777 W. Century Blvd., Suite 700, Los Angeles, CA 90045
I have seen this figure a hundred times but I have NEVER seen the numbers backing it up. How do these deaths break down by cause of death, and how are these causes of death attributable to the sanctions?
I have also NEVER seen any attempt by supporters of the sanctions to rebut this number. Why not?
"Lets Roll"
Horsesh!t.
They're dying because the lunatic in charge is spending money on palaces and weapons.
Molly Ivins: prime candidate for the clymer award.
...apparently Molly can't help herself when it comes to bad habits. She dove right in, placing blame on every Republican within sight.
What Ivins is suggesting is usually called "ethnic cleansing". Why is it OK on the West Bank, but it is considered a war crime elsewhere?
that cupcake is closer to a chicken pot pie
I think you oould randomly pick ten people off the street and find seven of them with more writing ability and common sense than poor Molly.
Skirt???? Molly wears a tent that could shelter half of Afghanistan.
This article is one more example that Ivins' relationship with reality is that of a flat stone skipping over a pond. She touches reality from time to time, but never gets involved. The events of 911 have gotten a lot of bone-headed Americans over their political prejudices. Ivins, apparently, is not one of those who is willing or able to learn anything.
She obviously has learned nothing from 911 -- example, using the Clinton-sponosred efforts in Nothern Ireland and Palestine as good examples to expand on, rather than dumb-*ssed failures to avoid. Ivins is simply a waste of DNA as a human being, and a waste of print or electrons depending on how she is published. Sad, but true.
The (More er Less) Honorable Billybob,
cyberCongressman from Western Carolina
Let's see, Molly thinks:p 1. we shouldn't review our national intelligence/security programs to determine where things went wrong;
2. the USA is the root of all hatred in the Middle East;
3. we should force Israelis off the West Bank, recognize an Arafat-led state, and solve all other problems with money;
4. end the sanctions against Iraq, give them lots of goodies, but don't do anything else to get rid of Saddam;
And of course, when it comes to the airline bailout, Molly can't help sprinkling in a good measure of the liberals favorite stock in trade: class envy.
Gephardt, Kerrey or whoever the Dem candidate is in '04, I think you just found yourself a platform! Please do run on it!
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