"The world is beginning to doubt the moral basis of our fight against terrorism" (Article, convention)

[MidnightBlue]

Originally Posted by Sunstone

Does anyone disagree with Powell that the world is beginning to doubt the moral basis of America's fight against terrorism?

I think Powell was being very diplomatic about it. If the world is just beginning to doubt the moral basis of America's fight against terrorism, the world is pretty damned slow on the uptake.

[Djamila]

I agree, Midnight. For me, that moment came with the invasion of Iraq. It was just so obviously counter-productive to any 'war on terror' that it revealed other objectives, in my mind.

Iraq had no connection to terrorism, it was a secular dictatorship in the Middle East that was a actually an ideological target for terrorist groups. This was so obvious to the rest of the world, but the American government - and indeed many of its people - still pressed on, against all reason.

And now, sadly, the rest of the world has been proven right. Osama bin Laden is still free, not that anyone is making a really honest attempt to capture him. Iraq is a bloody mess, and taking the focus off Afghanistan has allowed even that invasion - which most of the world supported - to fail.

Now the Americans are talking about legalizing torture... my God, my God. I've never seen a country fall so far, so fast.

[Feathers in Hair]

Originally Posted by Sunstone

Does anyone disagree with Powell that the world is beginning to doubt the moral basis of America's fight against terrorism?

As others have said, I think he was decidedly polite in using 'beginning'. I feel like a country that I enjoy being a citizen of is now attempting to be taken from the hands of its occupants in a direction that not many want to go, and that doing so will endanger U.S. citizens and the rest of the world in the long-and-short run. It amazes me that it's gone on this long, and I only hope that peaceful protests and the like will be enough to help the nation get back on track.

[Djamila]

I'm sure it will, Feathers. The most important thing for Americans to understand, in my opinion, and for others in the world to express better is that this has very little to do with anti-Americanism or any such thing.

There are people who will read my above post and say: well, she hates America. But that's just a primitive, dismissive, baseless response.

What, I think, Americans need to realize is that we debate their government's policies as though they were our own. There's no attempt to be polite, or to speak lightly - we speak the same we would if we were talking about our own government. This, I think, is simply because in many ways the American government is our government. Decisions made in Washington have a much greater effect on my life than decisions made in Sarajevo, especially in terms of economics.

I just think there's this streak in all people where criticism coming from outside makes people feel they're under attack, and in those circumstances they'll support just about anything 'their side' does.

[Sunstone]

Originally Posted by Djamila

Now the Americans are talking about legalizing torture... my God, my God. I've never seen a country fall so far, so fast.

One way or another the US will recover. Folks always predict we won't and we always do anyway. It's just sad and frustrating that we have to recover from this administration in the first place.

[Buttercup]

Originally Posted by Djamila

I just think there's this streak in all people where criticism coming from outside makes people feel they're under attack, and in those circumstances they'll support just about anything 'their side' does.

This is way too much of an over generalization. You make it sound as though any rebuttals to criticisms are unwarranted. It's just not true.

[Sunstone]

Are my eyes deceiving me or did Midnight Blue just change his avatar to a photo of our glorious president caught in either a moment of profound constipation or perhaps while attempting to give birth to a thought?