August 20, 2003
ALL TOGETHER NOW
Ralph Peters in the NY Post:
We've taken the War Against Terror to our enemies. It's far better to draw the terrorists out of their holes in the Middle East, where we don't have to read them their rights, than to wait for them to show up in Manhattan again.
In Iraq, we can just kill the bastards. And we're doing it with gusto.
He’s right. The terrorist Woodstock in Iraq -- folks arriving from Syria, Saudi Arabia, Jordan! -- is bringing all the Islamoid frag buddies together in one place. This scenario was foretold by Miranda Devine, way back during the war’s celebrated quagmire week in April:
Posted by Tim Blair at August 20, 2003 10:52 PMIf war against militant Islamic terrorists didn't happen in Iraq now, it was going to have to happen somewhere, sooner or later. September 11 and Bali are proof enough.
Better to bring it on now, at a time of our choosing, with all the cockroaches gathered for a showdown out in the open in Iraq, rather than cower at home, our economies shrinking, our civilians picked off, our enemies growing stronger, until we finally wake up to the fact that fighting is necessary, and find it's too late and we are too weak.
Yeah, funny how The Bastards seem to be thinking exactly like Ralph Peters.
Posted by: Monkeytypist at August 20, 2003 at 11:22 PMPeters is his usual clearsighted self. There's a tail-chasing, fool-arse debate going on over at LGF about why the UN's presence was truckbombed, but a bit of paring with Ralphie's Razor yields the correct answer: Why did they bomb the UN? Because they can, they don't know one infidel from the next, and they don't care to learn.
Meanwhile all hail the Devine Ms. M for her prescience. And just to show you some of us in the GWN still have a clue, see also David Warren's column, "Flypaper," of 5 July:
http://www.davidwarrenonline.com/Comment/Jul03/index150.shtml
Posted by: Jim Whyte at August 20, 2003 at 11:51 PMThis is Miranda Lomborg we're talking about here, right?
Posted by: LD at August 21, 2003 at 01:08 AMYou mean that the Baathists, al Qaeda, and the various other jihadist moths heading toward the flame aren't really multilateral internationalists who believe in the legitimacy of the UN? Who knew?
Maybe those who think that post-war Iraq would be Switzerland if only the UN were running things will now be knocked upside the head with a clue stick. Naw.
Posted by: Randy R. at August 21, 2003 at 01:10 AMThe Islamo-loonies have very little marketing skill. If they were serious about cultivating western opinion, they would have blown up the WTO, bombed Congress, or whatever. Unfortunately for their friends in the universities, they have a habit of letting fly on the "innocents" such as the UN, or the oppressed East Timorese, thus shattering their potential mates in the Left who were expecting a far more coherant "oppression theory" than mindlessly killing all non-Muslims.
Posted by: Steve Edwards at August 21, 2003 at 01:15 AMAmen Brothers and Sisters. We should call it The Crusades Part 2.
Posted by: Full Auto at August 21, 2003 at 02:24 AMThe flypaper idea is good as far as it goes. But the flypaper is a Darwinian filter working on the Islamofascists: it's catching a lot of dumb and enthusiastic ones. That's very good, and some will interpret jihadi losses as Allah telling them to stay home.
There are others who will watch and learn, and head back to Manhattan, or some similar place. They tried to kill about 50 thousand in '93 at the WTC, they tried to kill 200 thousand on 9/11. Their attempt next time will be still more ambitious. By all means prosecute the change in Iraq, but hold no illusions that fighting in Iraq is wholly protecting Manhattan.
We will need to be prepared to fight everywhere, until they are defeated. We'll even need to redefine the terms of victory and defeat, since there will be no one to sign a peace treaty with.
We'll be on the real path to victory when the moderate Muslims are working to suppress the radicals, in order to save their own religion.
Posted by: cliff at August 21, 2003 at 03:05 AMMaybe they just can't spell? "US, UN, whatever."
Posted by: Angus Jung at August 21, 2003 at 05:11 AMA jihadi playground hmmm?
Like in Afghanistan?
Didn't they win their guerilla war against the Soviet Union, and aren't they currently resurgent? Along with the biggest ever opium harvest - "poisoning the veins of our youth", to quote Tony Blair excusing the invasion of that country, back when it had virtually no opium production.
On the other hand perhaps the blitzkrieg/invasion/occupation of Iraq was the best possible recruitment drive for budding "martyrs", across the world.
Very clever.
Posted by: Analogue Voter at August 21, 2003 at 05:55 AMThe Miranda Devine quote is a nice paraphrase of this.
Posted by: Jay Manifold at August 21, 2003 at 08:46 AMInnocent people dying every day, and you lot think it's a playground? That this is a good thing?
Posted by: Nemesis at August 21, 2003 at 10:38 AMBesides, I thought you had fled here shrieking that we were mean to you.
Posted by: Andrea Harris at August 21, 2003 at 11:04 AMMaybe is referring to Detroit. I read the newspapers here, and innocent are indeed dying every day. Probably if we pulled the US troops out it would return to the paradise it was previously.
Posted by: JorgXMcKie at August 21, 2003 at 11:18 AMDear, dear Andrea - I fled and returned (ages ago). I missed the laughs. It is not my responsibility to make you think. Indeed, I suspect it is not even possible - but that's your problem.
Us: Bring 'em on.
Them: Sure.
Marvellous.
Posted by: Nemesis at August 21, 2003 at 12:59 PMWell, Nemo, I hadn't noticed your return; guess I missed the parade. By the way, the "ooh, you're stupid, you stupid!" insult is so... grade school. Are you ten years old? And if so, do your parents know you are visiting websites full of adult talk?
Posted by: Andrea Harris at August 21, 2003 at 02:07 PMNemesis: you could try setting us an example.
Posted by: J.M. Heinrichs at August 21, 2003 at 02:10 PMNaw, he's not in grade school, his grammar's a bit too good for that. Judging by the sentence structure, I'd say he's a very well read idiot, probably with a Doctorate in some completely and utterly worthless subject.
Posted by: Eichra Oren at August 21, 2003 at 02:20 PMAndrea, that's pretty rich when in the comments section belonging to the very post below, you've said
"Jonesy: no one cares what you have to say, that's why."
I vaguely recall that attempt at repartee being used in grade 1, maybe 2... then we grew out of it.
Posted by: LD at August 21, 2003 at 04:26 PMI was only answering jonesy's plaintive question. I noticed that no one had responded to his/her, um, "provocative" trolling, and came to what I thought was the most logical conclusion. As for your "hah hah, you do the same thing too!" retort, I'm so glad you kept that witticism from grade 3.
Posted by: Andrea Harris at August 21, 2003 at 09:53 PMit stuck because he repeated 3rd grade a few times ;)
Posted by: Mr. Bingley at August 22, 2003 at 12:45 AMNemesis, go be a human shiels in Iraq, stop those war mongering jihadists from blowing up water and electic lines. What about the children they are killing as a result? WHAT ABOUT THE CHILDREN?
go, stand with you sign "No MORE WAR" in front of a power station, I'm sure they will stop.
Posted by: Barry Houston at August 22, 2003 at 02:13 AMThis flypaper idea is so right. Make all the terrorists die. After all there can't be too many of them left, and no more are being made. Besides grenades and RPGs and explosives are too expensive so I'm sure they'll run out soon and have to attack our kevlar soldiers with box cutters. Plus any that are left after the Iraq War is over, sorry I mean after the Iraq Peace is over, well I'm sure they will just go and blow themselves up on buses over in Israel and that will be the last of them.
Posted by: baker_b at August 22, 2003 at 03:00 AMScrew talking with or about the Islamofascists. Hands up those who care if the entire Middle East is turned into a radioactive wasteland.
Posted by: ZsaZsa at August 22, 2003 at 03:46 AMZsaZsa said:
Screw talking with or about the Islamofascists. Hands up those who care if the entire Middle East is turned into a radioactive wasteland.
(holding a hand up high) Me. Plus God and every good, well-informed and sober-level-headed human being.
We're fighting a war of good against evil. (Anyone who thinks those terms are too simple and radical to apply to the current war needs to refresh themselves as to the utter bastardry that our opponents get up to regularly.) So we should try to be good.
When George W. Bush is asked what people who aren't in uniform can do to help win the war, he advocates charity, kindness, prayer and so on. I don't know of any better answer. Kind speech isn't much, but at least it's consistent with the agenda.
If anyone who mattered asked me my opinion on the flypaper theory, though, I'd say: "Great, kill all comers. But bear in mind that Iraq must be rebuilt, soon. If the only way to get enough clear space in the calendar for American forces to do some needed rebuilding is to lean on Syria, Iran etc. to turn off their terrorist taps for a while, do it. We'll just have to hunt the crazies down later, if they lose focus for a while and wander off while we rebuild Iraq enough to keep Iraqi kiddies safe and get the country moving in the right direction."
Morality requires reasonable efforts to protect innocent noncombatants, and reshaping Iraq is the practical bottom line. The flypaper effect is wonderful, but it is neither the main game nor a moral trump.
Posted by: David Blue at August 24, 2003 at 12:08 AM