Posted on 10/22/2001 3:29:25 AM PDT by Ada Coddington
Oh, because they're a bunch of worthless subhuman vermin, maybe?
Er...What is, validating terrorism as a means of influencing US foreign policy? Alex.
We should always be willing to question and reevaluate our foreign policy - except immediately after a terrorist act that is supposedly linked to that foreign policy. Once the terrorist act is committed the reevaluation must be halted, let the terrorist believe the act caused the reevaluation.
I might be about to buy my children ice cream. In that instance, one child might say, "If you don't buy us ice cream, I'll hold my breath until I turn blue!" There goes any plan to buy the ice cream. I would never have bought the ice cream because of the threat. But I can not let the child think he might have influenced my behavior with the threat. So I let him influence my behavior - away from what he wants. That's how you stop the threats from happening.
Shalom.
Because if we pull them out, the current SA government may be overthrown and one of our biggest oil sources be closed.
Are the troops really based on Islamic holy lands, and is that really an important religious issue for Muslims?
Yes, and yes.
It's comparable to a violation of our BoR's 3rd Amendment.
What would be the downside to immediately pulling U.S. troops out of Saudi Arabia?
Loss of oil supplies, with serious USA economic consequences.
(2) Has the embargo against Iraq succeeded in altering Saddam Hussein's cruel and brutal treatment of Iraqi citizens?
Its not in place to alter his treatment of his own people.
Has it prevented him from producing weapons of mass destruction,
Yes, in that he has far less money to work with.
and might there be a better way to address that problem?
Saddam's termination. Until 9/11, that was not considered a politically viable option.
Has the embargo really caused the deaths of hundreds of thousands of Iraqi children, as UN officials contend
Most likely.
and, if so, why doesn't that alone dictate its immediate termination?
The choice thousands dead or thousands dead. Your call.
What would be the downside to immediately ending the embargo against Iraq?
The immediate re-funding of Saddam's war machine.
(3) Why should the U.S. government continue giving economic and military aid to Israel?
Sometimes you have to help your friends.
Why shouldn't all foreign aid be privatized, which would mean that American citizens would no longer be taxed for the purpose of providing foreign aid to anyone but would be free to privately donate their own money to anyone they wish, including Israel?
I'll agree to that IF the same is done for domestic aid. See David Crockett's speech to Congress.
What would be the downside to depoliticizing foreign aid?
Losing foreign support. "Scratch my back, I'll scratch yours."
First, though, we should determine who "they" are.
The current rash of anthrax cases in the general population, given the rare occurences heretofore, if proven to be the work of a single person or group of people who does not take credit for it would suggest a desire to murder without any other motive. The same is true for the WTC mass killing. If these murderous actions were taken for political or ideological reasons, why not take responsibility for these acts and giving the reasons therefore?
One answer:
And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. For every one that doeth evil hateth the light, neither cometh to the light, lest his deeds should be reproved. - John 3:19-20
Darkness hates light.
Matthew 5;16 In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven.
Ephesians 5:14 for it is light that makes everything visible. This is why it is said: "Wake up, O sleeper, rise from the dead, and Christ will shine on you."
Here's a clue, you condescending pricker, many serial killers love their work ... just ask Carhardt or Tiller who do more than a thousand 'late-term' abortions a year.
[pricker \pri-ker\ n : briar; also : thorn / (C) 1995 Zane Publishing, Inc. The Merriam-Webster Dictionary (C) 1994 by Merriam-Webster, Incorporated]
Why did the Germans want to kill us, or the Japanese? If you can figure that out, you'll have the answer, plus you get a Gold Star in History.
Not difficult--the Japanese objected to our embargoing their oil and the Germans somehow felt obliged to honor a treaty obligation.
I really hate to say this but I don't think we qualify as the light of the world.
If you buy that, then we should be going after those who aided and abetted the destruction of the WTC, the Pentagon and the 4 airplanes. Instead we are going after the Afghanis who all admit had very little, if any, input into the process.
"Because if we pull them out, the current SA government may be overthrown and one of our biggest oil sources be closed."
Doesn't matter who runs Saudi Arabia. If they want to eat, they have to sell oil and we are their biggest customer. Its the Saudis who contributed more personnel and more training than any other country and, from what little we know, it was the Kingdom which was the staging area. They deserve our wrate more than Afghanistan does.
Most accounts show the attack being financed by Saudis and possibly a Pakistani general, at least nine of the hijackers being trained in Saudi Arabia which was the jumping off point and, if you believe the government's conspiracy theory, the only Afghan contribution was hosting the Muslim Karl Marx, Osama Bin Laden.
My statement stands: Darkness hates light.
"...bullsh!t it doesn't..."
In the United States today you would be sent to prison for murdering your wife's lover.
What would be the downside to immediately ending the embargo against Iraq?
"Conceding to terrorism encourages others."
Why so? Why doesn't looking the other way at Saudi complicity encourage terrorism?
What would be the downside to immediately pulling U.S. troops out of Saudi Arabia?
" Then we can't kick anybody's @$$ who decides we can't have our precious oil."
Its not exactly our oil. We only buy it from those who control the mineral rights. As whoever does control those rights has to sell their oil, we don't much care who it is.
Some light. . . some hill. We kill 125,000 Iraqi children a year. We deliberately bomb civilians in Serbia. We support corrupt regimes if we believe it is in our "national interest". We ignore scripture and have tossed God out of our schools and public square.
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