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No worries. I figured as much.
I’ll just take it is as a compliment, as you obviously saw my amazing empathy, keen wit and unselfish caring that is usually only found in the female population.
Naaaah, I just think you have a girly nickname (I was going to say “girly handle,” just to prove I’m down wit’ all this computer lingo, but I felt it sounded too much like some kind of rude body-part).
Give It One More Try Before War
http://www.brook.edu/dybdocroot/webcache/www.brook.edu-80/p35/a0010635.2820.htm
Wolf is right on. It’s all about Bush Jr. finishing what Daddy started and OIL.
I can’t believe we are going to get sucked into it all over agian. “Weapons of mass destruction, means and motive for using them.” What is all this crap? It’s all just smoke and mirrors, smoke and mirrors. The Bushes have one agenda and one only CONTROL THE OIL at all costs. The US is paying for voting the Bushes back into power.
The best alternative for US foreign policy would be to develop positive relations with some of these countries instead of trying to stuff them over at every opportunity. Don’t try and tell me otherwise look at all your accounting scandals; not even your CEO’s can help themselves. Stuff’em over get what you can and get it now!
Let’s see ---- India and Pakistan have fought three wars since partition (you can thank the Brits for that great solution). At least Bangladesh got out of the quagmire with just one war.
Contrary to the previous posting deriding India’s democracy I believe it is actually a great example to the developing world. It doesn’t try and turn everyone into the Clone army like China or my boss at work.
The Indian leaders do have a disturbing habit of exiting political life with a bullet unfortunately. However the issue about Kashmir is a real festering boil and India and Pakistan are maintaining a low intensity war there as we speak for years. The fact is the more people with their hands on nuclear weapons the worse it is for the world at large. I haven’t even talked about what a complete mess Pakistan is!! Regularly voted the most corrupt nation on earth.
North Korea is like Communism turned into a Disneyland theme park except people die from starvation everyday instead of taking fun rides.
The world was NOT safer when the US and the Soviets faced off with each other.
Cuban Missile crisis dopey…
If that had triggered I wouldn’t be here right now probably. At least if one the above nations go nuclear they should only affect a billion people or so directly but most of us should still be around.
So I’m right to be worried about those states. Pakistan hasn’t got a conventional army big enough to oppose India. If India wanted to take it it could but would definitely trigger a few nuclear blasts (there are those in the Indian military who are prepared to accept this eventuality if you read the news reports).
i couldnt agree more with the assessment that the sanctions against iraq are hurting the people of iraq and doing little but further entrench saddam’s government…
yet to end them would mean certain death to thousands upon thousands of people…
i chat with some educated iraqis who now live in the UAE and my goodness they hate america with such passion…but who is gonna help their countrymen…who is gonna step up and face the political heat for trying to “fix” the problem of the suffering iraq people? not EVEN to mention the whole dictator with WMD issue… who will be responisble for feeding clothing and educating what may be the next generation of anti-US terorirsts in the world?
ironicaly, the answer is the US…with the knowledge that the dog may bite the hand that feeds it…
so either the US is terminally stupid or incredibly compassionate, to the point of putting itself into harm’s way
IMHO if the US is really going to start nation building or forcing the evolution of a nation, i hope to god they have their own best interest in mind…because without the US in the world what chaos we would have…
@Sandman: I meant Litte Iron was wrong with the assumption that everyone needs to have the perfect solution for something we object / dislike:
quote:
Surely people aren't saying everything the US is doing is wrong, without knowing what would be right...?Or am I wrong?
quote:
Originally posted by Rascal: Point taken as I mentioned it was "flawed" but then again shouldn't you show a good example first before telling the rest of the world what's best?So which is it, Rascal?
This was taken out of context …
quote[quote]So Rascal, you say LittleIron is wrong in her assumption, meaning that you do indeed know the right thing to do. I ask you, then, what would be "the right thing."[/quote]I do not have the “perfect solution” (actually none) for the Iraq case as I said before.
That doesn’t however make the current situation right or excusable or prohibit me from expressing my opinion - IMHO.At least I think I am doing this in a friendly and hopefully constructive (?) manner without resulting to bashing or insults.
If someone thinks this is not true please feel free to highlight this as it was not intentionally.quote[quote]... but I do get a little tired of reading that the American way is the wrong way, from people with absolutely no ideas of how else the problem can be approached.[/quote]What they should do in this case is NOT to attack the Iraq.
What other things they should do instead I can’t answer.quote[quote]this is interesting, in that you suggest that many people believe the US does not have the moral authority to "police" the world, but that by restricting guns in american ,we would somehow GAIN the moral authority to be the world's policeman? heh?[/quote]I didn’t say that this is the only thing you should do and everything will be ok, in fact it was only an example (one of many I guess) to highlight the double standards the US applies - i.e. in this case telling other countries what to do and what weapons they can have while yourself have a very liberal gun control and if someone wants to implement stricter laws you will hear an outcry all over America saying “No way”.
But once more, it was only an example and not one which is directly related to the issue.
Only by applying a stricter gun control you surely would not gain the moral authority, it takes more than that.
Actually I don’t see anything you could do to justify such an (offensive) attack.quote[quote]I don't see how this shows I'm so 'ignorant' of others' opinions (do you mean the whole world, or just every person on this forum?) [/quote]I mean all those who say people criticizing the US are “bashing” because they are Anti-American and thus reject any concerns or arguments by that.
What I would like to see that the US is more open to critical voices and other opinions instead of taking the “brute force” route and saying “You are either with us or against us”.
The world is not only black and white (no pun intended).I never said you or anyone in particular were bashing. There is no need to get so defensive.
You didn’t direct it at anyone but generalized that people who don’t offer an solution are just bashing while some are criticizing or expressing their opinion only. At least I do see a difference there.
Anyhow, no offense taken and I may have overreacted a bit (due to a similar discussion in another thread) so let’s forget about that, shall we?
quote:
Originally posted by Fox: The US is paying for voting the Bushes back into power.
Voting? Who said anything about voting? The US voted Gore into the White House, but things didn’t seem to work out that way.
You guys argue like any military mobilization contingency planners. Then group organizational planning gets thrown out the window and it is virtually every man for himself…heading north for Baghdad. Or south back to Riyahd in the case of one US truck driver whom threw his Kuwaiti sidekick out the door when he woke up from a snooze to see a sign of “Kuwait City – 16 km”. That was before the land invasion had started.
Hey Rascal, are you really Tony Bleuuurgh? He doesn’t seem to have much of a clue either! (Or at least according the King of Jordan).
This site is pretty interesting for some other viewpoints on the issue. Check it out.
Regarding Iraq, America and Europe:
“…that European legalism is based not on virtue but on weakness. Following the end of the cold war, European defence budgets fell below 2 per cent of gross domestic product, while US defence spending remained at 3 per cent. Europeans “lack the wherewithal to introduce and sustain a fighting force in hostile territory, even in Europe”, as shown in former Yugoslavia. They now “hope to rein in US power without wielding power themselves”. In other words, the EU is as unimpressive on diplomacy and the military front as it is in economics.”
Hey, everybody. It’s me. I’m back. My wife took my keyboard but I had another one hidden under the bed. I gotta be quick though.
My problem is she’s says I’m going to get the neighborhood carpet bombed if I keep sending our neighbors’ bombing coordinates to Washington with the message that they’re building weapons of mass destruction without a permit. She says she’s willing to give her life for the good old U.S. of A. but she needs proof that it’s really necessary. She wants me to prove that they’re really building WMD. I told her Richard Butler said it was so (I lied) but she said just saying so wasn’t proof.
Help me, guys. Especially you ones who are so sure Saddam has nukes. How’d you prove it? Do you have maps or pictures or hard evidence or anything? Maybe I could just borrow it for a few days to get my wife off my back until I can sneak over to my neighbors’ apartment and dig up something of my own. I know they’re up to no good though so they gotta be taken out quick.
Well, that’s an easy one. Just ask the UN weapons inspectors. Oh, wait… they were kicked out, weren’t they. Wonder why.
Sandman, you’re a genius. Thanks alot, man. I think I’ll be able to convince her now that we should take one up the tailpipe for the old red, white and blue because it’s our duty. Let me make sure I got it straight though so I don’t blow it:
Because they won’t let me over to their apartment to prove they’re not building WMD, that proves they are so we gotta take 'em out. Damn! I’m embarrassed I didn’t think of that.
Wish me luck, man. I hear her coming home.
I agree with Abracadabra on the US saying Iraq cannot have nuclear weapons while doing nothing about Pakistan, for example (who the US fawned over because they needed to use their driveway to play kick-the-Taliban, even though the president of Pakistan took over the country in a bloodless coup – democracy?).
If the US perceives that the policies of a nation are a threat (not necessarily to US soil) and that nation has nuclear weapons, then that country is open for attack, the reverse must be true – other nations have the same right as the US to attack a nation that it sees as a threat (populated by infidels, for starters) and has nukes (plenty in the case of the US).
What do people think Saddam would do with a nuke? Lob it at whom, exactly and to what end?
And watch the price of oil if the US goes ahead – I spent almost four years working for an oil and gas brokerage company and I predict good times for oilmen in the US – prices will soar.
And finally, if the US feels that it has some manifest destiny to punish and take over the baddies of the world, let them.
If Iraq goes smoothly, annex it. Then North Korea. Then, hmmm, who do we hate? Quadafi’s been quiet but you never know, better take him out to be sure.
New world order, George?
The US seems unstoppable, so let’s divide up the world with England (they speak English you know) and they are so, so…lapdogish.
If the US wants to impose its values on the peoples of the world, then why not go for world dominance?
Sandman. It didn’t work. She said all that proves is that don’t want me traipsing around their house looking into things like I own the place. I said, “But, honey, I’m an American citizen. I’m supposed to be able to go walking into other people’s houses looking to see if they’re up to no good because I’m preserving the peace.”
All she said was if other people could come into our house anytime they wanted to to see what I was up to I probably would have been in jail a long time ago.
She had me on that one. Any more ideas?
Boys, I’m really sorry. This is Ernie’s wife again. Ernie’s just not qualified to be surfing the cyberspace and spouting off about things because he can barely read and write – much less give a decent opinion about how to save the world.
You see, he’s just here in Taipay attending auto mechanic trade school because he couldn’t get accepted to any auto mechanic schools in the U.S.
I just want to get us back home in one piece.
God bless. I swear. He’s off this thing for good.
Does Mrs. Toots not know how to get her own name on Oriented or is Mr. Toots cross-dressing?
This is Ernie again. Come on, patriot boys. Help me out here. This is my last shot before Radio Free Ernie goes off the air for good. I’m out here on my balcony pecking away on the keyboard of a stolen PDA by the light of a cigar but I know my wife is on to me. I can see her staring daggers at me out the window.
Give me some way to prove that my neighbors are hatching a Saddam on us.
Over and out. I’m counting on you.