Posted on 12/13/2001 7:11:51 AM PST by Oldeconomybuyer
The U. S. government released today a copy of a videotape of Osama bin Laden obtained by U.S. forces in Jalalabad, Afghanistan in late November.
The video was filmed by unknown persons.
"There was no doubt of bin Laden's responsibility for the September 11 attacks before the tape was discovered," said Secretary of Defense Donald H. Rumsfeld.
The release of the tape was made after balancing the concerns about any additional pain that could be caused by its release against the value of having the world fully appreciate what we are up against in the war against terrorism.
The tape was released with an English translation and English subtitling, prepared independently by George Michael, translator, Diplomatic Language Services; and Dr. Kassem M. Wahba, Arabic language program coordinator, School of Advanced International Studies, Johns Hopkins University. They collaborated on their translation and compared it with translations done by the U.S. government for consistency. There were no inconsistencies in the translations.
The English translation is on the Web at http://www.defenselink.mil/news/Dec2001/d20011213ubl.pdf
The best way to end war and ensure peace is to kill the enemy.
With the passage of each day, this is getting harder to believe. Of note though, is that even the non-Freeper types ain't buying it.
This is war, dummy. And the coaltion is kicking Muslie ass.
There won't be a jury for binLaden, either. He's a dead man walking.
This isn't a smoking gun - it's a smoking arsenal!!
Dead men talking...
I want to state that I do want Bin Laden taken. I honestly hope we get him alive so he can't claim martyrdom. Anyone who believes violence can get them what they want should not be allowed to walk free.
That said, after reading the transcript, I can't say that he was, himself, behind the attacks on 9/11. This didn't prove anything to me beyond the facts that he knew about the attacks in advance, that he gave advice concerning the attacks, and that is enough for me to stand behind our government in bringing him to justice. However, I think it's wrong for people to believe that he was the equivalent of a puppet master (which is the way he is being portrayed by those reporting the news). It's obvious after reading the transcript that this guy is only one of many who wish to see America destroyed. The people who hijacked those planes...every one of them...knew they were on a martyrdom mission according to the transcript. They didn't know specifics, but they knew they would die. That says a lot about how some people feel about the U.S. in the Middle East.
Finally, the last thing that struck me was how overjoyed these people were about the attacks. I heard somewhere that "evil is the lack of empathy" (perhaps someone can give the source). Seems to fit here.
BTW, only read the transcript, didn't see the video.
the fact remains, the u.s. and nato still support islamic terrorists in the balkans!
bush has until 2004 to get the job done there likewise or he will not get my support!
Does this imply more attacks were planned during Ramadan?
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