Boots & Sabers: Our Policies & 9/11.
Over at Boots And Sabers Owens touched off a flame war (or nearly a flame war).
What touched it off was Owen quoting Robert McNamara
McNamara added that the threat of terrorists using a nuclear device could be reduced if the United States in particular tried to understand terrorists' anger and motivations.
Owens take is solid but some of his leftist readers take exception to it. The agree with McNamara it was our policies that brought on 9/11. Some people have defended McNamara on by tacking with "Know thine enemy" others agree (with McNamara) and others think the line "the terrorists hate our liberty and hit us on account of that" is simplistic and not accurate.
The truth of the matter is the terrorists hate of liberty is what causes them to hate our policies! That is our policies did bring on 9/11 but this is the same as noting the hit on a judge was caused by the judge sentencing a murderer to prison.
Pat Buchanan once noted that it was Roosevelt's interference in Asian conflicts that instigated the Japanese to attack us. Of course being who he is, he thought it wrong America stand up for China even in modern day light of the awful things that were happening in China. I stand on the side that says (again) this is like noting a judge got whacked for sentencing a Mafia don to prison. It is sad it happened but we can not let the actions of bad actors deter us from doing what is right and just! Once Japan attacked us it was clear Japan was not going to stop its conquest, rape and pillage on its own and had to be stopped. Of course more than a few claim Pearl Harbor was a result of Roosevelt's desire to get us into war with Germany but who could have divined Hitler (who was under no obligation to declare war on the USA) would have declared war on the USA?
Of course the leftists hit their litany of whines. Suppression of liberties, suppression of dissent etc etc etc. In fact one accused the President of accusing his opponents of not being patriotic etc. I asked for evidence he has done this. I know there are many instance of members of the left accusing their political opponents of being unpatriotic.
In summary it was our policies the terrorists lashed out at. The Iraqis, the Ukrainians, the Lebanese apparently like those policies and the likes of Zarqawi, Bin Laden, Al-Zawahiri etc do not. Murderers do not like our policies against murder, do we change our policies on murder?
What touched it off was Owen quoting Robert McNamara
McNamara added that the threat of terrorists using a nuclear device could be reduced if the United States in particular tried to understand terrorists' anger and motivations.
Owens take is solid but some of his leftist readers take exception to it. The agree with McNamara it was our policies that brought on 9/11. Some people have defended McNamara on by tacking with "Know thine enemy" others agree (with McNamara) and others think the line "the terrorists hate our liberty and hit us on account of that" is simplistic and not accurate.
The truth of the matter is the terrorists hate of liberty is what causes them to hate our policies! That is our policies did bring on 9/11 but this is the same as noting the hit on a judge was caused by the judge sentencing a murderer to prison.
Pat Buchanan once noted that it was Roosevelt's interference in Asian conflicts that instigated the Japanese to attack us. Of course being who he is, he thought it wrong America stand up for China even in modern day light of the awful things that were happening in China. I stand on the side that says (again) this is like noting a judge got whacked for sentencing a Mafia don to prison. It is sad it happened but we can not let the actions of bad actors deter us from doing what is right and just! Once Japan attacked us it was clear Japan was not going to stop its conquest, rape and pillage on its own and had to be stopped. Of course more than a few claim Pearl Harbor was a result of Roosevelt's desire to get us into war with Germany but who could have divined Hitler (who was under no obligation to declare war on the USA) would have declared war on the USA?
Of course the leftists hit their litany of whines. Suppression of liberties, suppression of dissent etc etc etc. In fact one accused the President of accusing his opponents of not being patriotic etc. I asked for evidence he has done this. I know there are many instance of members of the left accusing their political opponents of being unpatriotic.
In summary it was our policies the terrorists lashed out at. The Iraqis, the Ukrainians, the Lebanese apparently like those policies and the likes of Zarqawi, Bin Laden, Al-Zawahiri etc do not. Murderers do not like our policies against murder, do we change our policies on murder?
posted by Marcus Aurelius at 12:39 PM
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