We need to talk about this

[nycwriters]

.

[amanda]

U.S. Intellgence concludes that bombing of Afghanistan probably INCRESASED the threat by scattering the al-Qaeda network and spawning others like it.
-New York Times, June 16, 2002


To add more salt to the wound, it is only "believed" that the plan was hatched in Afghanistan by US intelligence.

If we would like to see evidence of US intelligence doing their jobs effectively, let's look at the case of mistaken identity of a British national in South Africa- jailed for three weeks before finding out that they had the wrong man. The case could have been solved, if they had bothered to take fingerprints.

The underlying attitude of this behavior is indicative of what America has become, more so now than ever. We are shooting from the hip and we are missing the target EVERY SINGLE TIME.

But what has been done by our forces has been done. And that's not what you asked.

Our rhetoric is not aligned with our actions. We've installed proxy forces to help keep the peace in Afghanistan, but our resolve to bring about lasting stablity is weakening as our attention wanes from the area. Hamid Karzai knows it. His life depends on our attention and aid.

Rebuliding a nation that has been through hell for over 20 years is going to see some setbacks. It needs consistant financial and diplomatic support. But most of all, it's going to need TIME.

And we are an impatient pack of wolves, still hungry for blood.

Unfortunately, Karzai and North Korea are asking for our helping hands while we are busy buliding a war machine. And we have since proven that we cannot build and chew gum at the same time, both of them will have to go to the back of the line.

I really don't want to see what it will take to get our attention this time.

[Red Princess]

what mr. karzai says sounds like blackmail to me. i wish that when the USA decided to 'help' rebuild a country it would let that country make their own decisions about how that would happen. i think we forget who these countries belong to and who has to live there, we do not own the world and when we try to impose our values on people unlike ourselves we get in trouble. we are blinded by our own vision of what should be and deaf to the voices of others.

[amanda]

Being that we are big, loud, nosey bastards that can't seem to keep our hands to ourselves, we have already chosen not to accept the route of allowing citizens of soverign nations govern for themselves.

Karzai is only playing the cards he's been dealt. Same with North Korea.

[Red Princess]

agreed and understood, but then we must know why many parts of the world hate us even though they will take the money and not be so surprised when the hand gets bitten

[noxxville]

Strikes me as odd that we plan to invade a country, overthrow it's leadership and install a democracy.

A government of the people, for the people, by....um.....the United States. Maybe we can sponser the new government and everything!

Welcome to Iraq!
Brought to you by the United States

[amanda]

because the world is made up of myrid of moving parts, actors and beliefs that play out to a stage.

a whispered hate word from a trusted friend can become a firestorm in another country.

just like butterfly wings flapping, only not as pretty.

[Red Princess]

and whatever happened to that guy we were looking for? what was his name, osama something or other? did we find him yet? have we blwon him to bits yet? was it on the news and i missed it and that's why we want to get saddam now? unfinished business...
how can we believe that those sneaky bastards in the cia have not found mr osama yet?

[Red Princess]

let him have his missles, get him a bag of rocks to throw when they blow up his own people.

[Red Princess]

faulty logic, it only indicates that he never takes out his trash.if there are more dangerous things there i say give the inspectors time to find them, if they just keep looking, and if the weapons are there and saddam has to keep moving them to keep them hidden then he can't really use them can he? maybe the whole mess can be stalled long enough to let the sabre rattling die down

[Red Princess]

i am getting this visual of the keystone cops (the u. n. inspectors) chasing missles all over iraq with all the hijinks that go along with that , maybe they will all start laughing at how silly the whole mess really is and not be able to shoot anyone, and here's george dubbya over here saying 'abbba abbba abbba, but they started it!' which of course will cause even more laughter and then everyone will sit down and have a drink together

[Arif-ul Haq]

d

[Arif-ul Haq]

d

[Red Princess]

on the front page of our local paper today the headline said Hussein must be removed to avert war. what's next? why don't they add conversion to christianity to make the crusade analogy complete. it really is looking like it is a personal thing with george dubya and saddam, maybe he promised his daddy that he would finish what the first bush started. phooey.

[Red Princess]

a long time ago i worked in social services. at that time the only agencies with religious affiliations that recieved public funds were ones that did not require sitting through a service, the services could be offered but if they were required to get help there was no public money. seemed fair to me. it surprised me however, how many desperately poor needy indidviduals would refuse to go to those agencies that were religious.
i was happy when the pope apologised for the crusades, albeit about 800 years late, too bad the crusader mentality is still around.