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Missile Defense

Russian military leaders have expressed concern about US plans for a national missile defense system. Will defense technology be limited by possibilities for a strategic imbalance? Is this just SDI all over again?

lunarchick - 05:43am Sep 18, 2001 EST (#9330 of 9336)
lunarchick@www.com

Life and work of Mevlana Jalaluddin Rumi is what you are reacting to Gisterme - not Lunarchick.

ledzeppelin - 05:48am Sep 18, 2001 EST (#9331 of 9336)

rshowalter - #9304

You say "If Bin Laden can save six million lives by giving himself up, why shouldn't he do it?"

The west can not afford to let OBL turn himself into a God....The West should send to Kabul the evedence it has on OBL now; so if the Taliban DOES tomorrow give him up! its because his guilt was shown! Not he did so to save millions of Muslim lives that the west are destrying by cutting off their food aid!

You say "Why can't he be a monster and a hero at once, in different aspects of his relation to life, and at different times?" Because to enable him to do that you give his teachings credability? Give his teachings credability and you create 1000's of more radical Osama bin Ladens.... Do you really want that?

Indeed there is said to be a battle amongst the clerics now, you have the deputity Taliban Council Chief Mullah Mohammed Hasan Akhond responding to Pres., Bush's 'crusade' speach with the Mullah saying "Our Jihad will be formally resuming against the USA" he went on to say the " US and its supporters intending to destroy islamic order....." To the clerics the 'crusades' are 'Christian Holy Wars. re the 11,12 & 13th Century christian 'Holy Wars' to regain the Holy Land from the Muslims as a Jihad is a Holy War against anyone who threatens Islamic Order! Who writes Pres Bush's speeches!

It is further said that the moderate clerics are saying bin Laden should be given up as that is to their advantage to do so? With the more politically powerful radical clerics under Mullah Omer saying no way, its now a Holy War that the US declared first against us and Islam?

OBL will have to await tonights majlis apparently as will also the West!

Given this extra time why oh why? Can not the evedence held to date be put together and sent to Kabul to head of the Osama bin Laden PR coup turning him into St.OBL!

To mitigate terrorism you have to also win hearts and minds but the west has not grasped that consept to its great cost. Lets learn and not from our mistakes.

rshowalter - 06:11am Sep 18, 2001 EST (#9332 of 9336)
Robert Showalter showalte@macc.wisc.edu

almarst-2001 9/17/01 11:09pm . . . that's not the choice. We're doing worse than that, in some ways, but also doing differently. We have (and Russia has, and other nations have) no choice but to be a global policeman . There are requirements for order, and they are very practical.

We have no choice but to be a pluralistic democracy , either - - because that is what we've been, in many aspects of our being, for many years. We couldn't change that. We could corrupt it - - and have. Most ideals get compromised and corrupted, in spots, but the extent of the corruption is a serious question.

If America's military thought as perceptively as a lot of American cops do (cops who live in real communities) a lot of things might be safer and more sensible.

The things that Eisenhower warned against in his Farewell Adress have happened. FAREWELL ADDRESS of President Dwight D. Eisenhower January 17, 1961.

There's plenty of reason to be concerned. There are corruptions, now of very longstanding, that make us worse as global policemen, and worse as a pluralistic democracy than we should be, in our own interest, as a country that must live in the world, and in the interest of the safety and comfort of the world.

MD742 rshowalter 2/21/01 4:02pm

MD816 rshowalter 3/1/01 4:25pm

MD862 rshowalter 3/7/01 6:48pm ... MD863 rshowalter 3/7/01 6:57pm
MD864 rshowalter 3/7/01 7:18pm ...

MD920 rshowalter 3/11/01 7:44am ... MD922 rshowalter 3/11/01 8:08am

MD970 rshowalter 3/13/01 4:05pm ... MD971 almarst-2001 3/13/01 4:30pm
MD972 rshowalter 3/13/01 4:48pm ... MD973 rshowalter 3/13/01 4:58pm

rshowalter - 06:14am Sep 18, 2001 EST (#9333 of 9336)
Robert Showalter showalte@macc.wisc.edu

ledzeppelin 9/18/01 5:48am What can actually be done?

The United States has to move in ways that make the situation better, not make them worse, and denying people's humanity, dealing with them with contempt, doesn't help.

We've done too much of that already.

I wish that Bin Laden had been captured yesterday.

He hasn't been.

He is already popular with many millions of people.

rshowalter - 06:16am Sep 18, 2001 EST (#9334 of 9336)
Robert Showalter showalte@macc.wisc.edu

For some ugly reasons.

But popular still.

It doesn't help for us to dehumanize millions of people, and then ask for their cooperation, love, and good will.

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