Yes, blackascoal, I did miss your response to the "3 questions", but I will FIND it, and gladly do battle with you(in a Political-Debate kinda way), but before I do that, I want to say, I saw something that you wrote, in answer to your "Apologize" post.
I, too, have a daughter. Thankfully, she is too young, for Military Service, but Almost ALL of my "Insane Rants", to quote some of your colleagues here, are dedicated to the premise that I FEAR for MY daughter's safety, as well as yours, and all the other children of concerned parents, Left and Right. I wish to THANK your daughter, and I hope and pray for her safe return to you. But I fear that the World of Tomorrow will be a Very Scary Place, indeed, for ALL of us, children and Grand-children, if we DON'T draw a Line in the Sand, and say, "NO Further". I'm ALL FOR holding hands, and singing Kum-ba-ya, and saying, "Hello, Mr. Enemy, who chants, "Death to America". We want to be your freinds, we DON'T want to FIGHT you."
But WHAT HAPPENS, when, as History SHOWS, our Enemies, WHEREVER they are from, take that "Hand of Freindship", shake it, smile, then Behind our Backs, plot to DESTROY us, or at Least, to Test Better Weapons, because they saw that "Hand of Freindship" as a SIGN OF WEAKNESS, as a MESSAGE OF COWARDICE?
You see, as many Historians, Sociologists, or Psychologists have said, a Big problem in America is Believing that the REST of the World thinks like WE do. The General Populations may have common goals and desires. But some of the LEADERSHIP, some of these Men in POWER, are NOT the same. A "Hand of Freindship", here in America, is at first, though of as a sign of Peace, a sign that the Other Party has GOOD Intentions.
But as History has SHOWN, TIME AND TIME AGAIN, in Many Cultures other than our OWN, "Appeasement, Freindship and Negotiation" is seen as WEAKNESS, seen as FEAR.
Freindship and Negotiation are FINE, but they have to be BACKED UP WITH STRENGTH, with CONDITIONS and PENALTIES, if the "deal" is BROKEN. I think we have seen ENOUGH countries PROMISE us PEACE, such as the Germans, the Japanese, the Soviets, the Palestinians, the Iranians, the Iraqis(under Saddam),the Syrians, the North Koreans.
The list is VERY long, of "deals" we got SCREWED on. or LIED to. I'm just saying, in today's world, where Plutonium, Uranium, and the TECHNOLOGY are AVAILABLE, for anyone with enough MONEY, and some good engineers, that we have to PROTECT OURSELVES. We CAN'T just go around WISHING that other World Leader's INTENTIONS are the same as OURS. Because Common Sense tells us they are NOT. Many people in charge of nations, in 2008 want POWER, much MORE POWER, than they currently HAVE. Add THAT, to the fact that many of these SAME Power-Seekers have a HATRED, or "Strong Dislike" for America, (do the words "Great Satan" ring a bell?), and you have a Recipe for our Betrayal, if we ALLOW it.
Reagan had a great saying: "Trust but VERIFY". Another was "Peace through Strength".
But what I started out saying, blackascoal, was that I UNDERSTAND your concern, for the safety of your daughter. She will be in my prayers, that she will be safely reunited with you and your family. I too, believe it is time for the Iraqis to start standing on their own, and to handle their own security. We have done enough, there.
I, too, have a daughter. Thankfully, she is too young, for Military Service, but Almost ALL of my "Insane Rants", to quote some of your colleagues here, are dedicated to the premise that I FEAR for MY daughter's safety, as well as yours, and all the other children of concerned parents, Left and Right. I wish to THANK your daughter, and I hope and pray for her safe return to you. But I fear that the World of Tomorrow will be a Very Scary Place, indeed, for ALL of us, children and Grand-children, if we DON'T draw a Line in the Sand, and say, "NO Further". I'm ALL FOR holding hands, and singing Kum-ba-ya, and saying, "Hello, Mr. Enemy, who chants, "Death to America". We want to be your freinds, we DON'T want to FIGHT you."
But WHAT HAPPENS, when, as History SHOWS, our Enemies, WHEREVER they are from, take that "Hand of Freindship", shake it, smile, then Behind our Backs, plot to DESTROY us, or at Least, to Test Better Weapons, because they saw that "Hand of Freindship" as a SIGN OF WEAKNESS, as a MESSAGE OF COWARDICE?
You see, as many Historians, Sociologists, or Psychologists have said, a Big problem in America is Believing that the REST of the World thinks like WE do. The General Populations may have common goals and desires. But some of the LEADERSHIP, some of these Men in POWER, are NOT the same. A "Hand of Freindship", here in America, is at first, though of as a sign of Peace, a sign that the Other Party has GOOD Intentions.
But as History has SHOWN, TIME AND TIME AGAIN, in Many Cultures other than our OWN, "Appeasement, Freindship and Negotiation" is seen as WEAKNESS, seen as FEAR.
Freindship and Negotiation are FINE, but they have to be BACKED UP WITH STRENGTH, with CONDITIONS and PENALTIES, if the "deal" is BROKEN. I think we have seen ENOUGH countries PROMISE us PEACE, such as the Germans, the Japanese, the Soviets, the Palestinians, the Iranians, the Iraqis(under Saddam),the Syrians, the North Koreans.
The list is VERY long, of "deals" we got SCREWED on. or LIED to. I'm just saying, in today's world, where Plutonium, Uranium, and the TECHNOLOGY are AVAILABLE, for anyone with enough MONEY, and some good engineers, that we have to PROTECT OURSELVES. We CAN'T just go around WISHING that other World Leader's INTENTIONS are the same as OURS. Because Common Sense tells us they are NOT. Many people in charge of nations, in 2008 want POWER, much MORE POWER, than they currently HAVE. Add THAT, to the fact that many of these SAME Power-Seekers have a HATRED, or "Strong Dislike" for America, (do the words "Great Satan" ring a bell?), and you have a Recipe for our Betrayal, if we ALLOW it.
Reagan had a great saying: "Trust but VERIFY". Another was "Peace through Strength".
But what I started out saying, blackascoal, was that I UNDERSTAND your concern, for the safety of your daughter. She will be in my prayers, that she will be safely reunited with you and your family. I too, believe it is time for the Iraqis to start standing on their own, and to handle their own security. We have done enough, there.
