The
terrorist attacks against America comprise a horrible tragedy. But
they shouldn't be a surprise.
It is well known that in war,
the first casualty is truth – that during any war truth is
forsaken for propaganda. But sanity was a prior casualty: it was
the loss of sanity that led to war in the first place.
Our foreign policy has been
insane for decades. It was only a matter of time until Americans
would have to suffer personally for it. It is a terrible tragedy
of life that the innocent so often have to suffer for the sins of
the guilty.
When we will learn that we
can't allow our politicians to bully the world without someone
bullying back eventually?
President Bush has authorized
continued bombing of innocent people in Iraq. President Clinton
bombed innocent people in the Sudan, Afghanistan, Iraq, and
Serbia. President Bush Senior invaded Iraq and Panama. President
Reagan bombed innocent people in Libya and invaded Grenada. And on
and on it goes.
Did we think the people who
lost their families and friends and property in all that
destruction would love America for what happened?
When will we learn that
violence always begets violence?
Teaching Lessons
Supposedly,
Reagan bombed Libya to teach Muammar al-Qaddafi a lesson about
terrorism. But shortly thereafter a TWA plane was destroyed over
Scotland, and our government is convinced it was Libyans who did
it.
When will we learn that
"teaching someone a lesson" never teaches anything but resentment
– that it only inspires the recipient to greater acts of defiance.
How many times on Tuesday did
we hear someone describe the terrorist attacks as "cowardly acts"?
But as misguided and despicable as they were, they were anything
but cowardly. The people who committed them knowingly gave their
lives for whatever stupid beliefs they held.
But what about the American
Presidents who order bombings of innocent people – while the
Presidents remain completely insulated from any danger? What would
you call their acts?
When will we learn that
forsaking truth and reason in the heat of battle almost always
assures that we will lose the battle?
Losing our Last
Freedoms
And
now, as sure as night follows day, we will be told we must give up
more of our freedoms to avenge what never should have happened in
the first place.
When will we learn that it
makes no sense to give up our freedoms in the name of freedom?
What to Do
What
should be done?
First of all, stop the
hysteria. Stand back and ask how this could have happened. Ask how
a prosperous country isolated by two oceans could have so
embroiled itself in other people's business that someone would
want to do us harm. Even sitting in the middle of Europe,
Switzerland isn't beset by terrorist attacks, because the Swiss
mind their own business.
Second, resolve that we won't
let our leaders use this occasion to commit their own terrorist
acts upon more innocent people, foreign and domestic, that will
inspire more terrorist attacks in the future.
Third, find a way, with
enforceable constitutional limits, to prevent our leaders from
ever again provoking this kind of anger against America.
Patriotism?
There
are those who will say this article is unpatriotic and un-American
– that this is not a time to question our country or our leaders.
When will we learn that without
freedom and sanity, there is no reason to be patriotic?
