JT, It is a little different on this side of the pond.
As I indicated to MG, I was surprised by the "patriotic" messages on cars going up the road and flags flying at the university I visited this past weekend. Clearly, I tend to side with Andy Rooney who wrote in an op-ed piece in our local paper: "Wave the flag, but keep one eye on the enemy and the other on the government." Clearly, if any one cares to look at the facts, our "government" was the weakest link.
Nonetheless, the game has changed. Clearly, what Somalia and even what Vietnam showed was the absolute futility of allowing our military to be put under a political or UN flag. What Desert Storm demonstrated was that we learned from our mistakes, given the opportunity. Nonetheless, the game has changed. Folks have demonstrated that they have the will and ability to commit attrocities upon our homeland, and this just cannot be tolerated - be it a poor peasant or a Pakistani general.
Sorry, but I side with the brutal side of this issue. Load this one and click on Diplomacy - it will take a while, but, from my oldest, expresses a majority view on this side of the pond:
newgrounds.com
I once thought it was a problem that we produced low quality TV sets and high quality Tomahawk missiles. Maybe not.
Freedom just cannot be just another word.
Just a View from the Swamp
TB |
