The Italian Job
New Sisyphus
By NewSisyphus
You would think that the number of Americans buried in Europe and Africa killed by Italian Fascists would lead the average Italian to approach the accidental death of an Italian patriot by American forces with some caution. But the time has long since passed since we Americans expect tact, grace or thoughtfulness from Europeans, even those who are our nominal allies.
We had thought to refrain from commenting on the Abu-Ghraib-du-jour that is the Guiliana Sgrena story. When we saw the item come across the wire our instincts told us that it would be the lead story in the European press in about 3 nano-seconds, and, further, that it would be the focus of that press for days. We guess we can take some cold comfort in knowing our instincts are still working properly.
But the recent absurd heights to which the story has risen has forced our hand. Really, we're not sure which is funnier: that an Italian Communist would think that she is significant enough to warrant our attention, let alone an assassination order, or the spectacle of a full state funeral for a fallen state security officer.
We mean no disrespect to the dead, but, somehow, we get the feeling the poor man's funeral would have been a bit less grand had he merely been beheaded by the usual suspects.
The incident shows the depths of the pathology that is Western anti-Americanism and offers, yet again, another cautionary and exemplary tale for Americans: until and unless we begin to decline to act as the world's superpower, the world's economic engine, the world's policeman, the world's lender of last resort in all instances, the Western pathology will grow. Like the over-spoiled adolescents of Orange County we grew up with, the nations of Europe and the wider West will continue with infantile temper tantrums and faux-rebellious posing, in one long hissy fit against "Daddy," putting at risk all that is of value in our Western Civilization.
Many have commented that yesterday's editorial in the Wall St. Journal put the case against Italy in this affair in too harsh a light. After all, Italy's government has been a stalwart ally at a time when we needed them.
We profoundly disagree. By paying jihadis millions of euros in ransom--twice--and then using the obviously accidental death of one of their security personnel as a whip to beat the Italian mob into an anti-American frenzy, the Italians have done nothing less than aid and abet terrorism. As the WSJ so aptly put it:
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Arguably far more reckless was Italy's decision to pay ransom--reportedly of $6 million or more--to secure her release. Italy is also believed to have paid ransom for the release of two aid workers taken captive last year. The Italians know the U.S. opposes the policy, which may be why Ms. Sgrena's transfer to the airport was not sufficiently coordinated with U.S. forces.
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Not only does paying ransom encourage more kidnapping--of Italians especially--it also puts money in the hands of the enemy in a country where $40 buys an automatic rifle and $200 an attack on U.S. forces. The shooting of a speeding car at a military checkpoint in a war zone is an unintentional tragedy, but the paying of ransom amounts to a policy of deliberately aiding terrorists.
We had thought when the President made the fateful decision to go to the U.N. to make the case for war against Iraq that he was making a profound mistake. The grounds for an American declaration of war, if only on broken cease fire terms, were rock-solid. Since then, however, we have become more convinced that the need to introduce real world responsibility into the body politic of the European Union and Canada was even more important for our long-term security, however painful such an exercise may be in the short term.
The bottom line here is that this episode shows both the limits and uses of multi-lateral war in the Age of Terrorism. On the one hand, we had the support of a European government which was then forced by events to patiently explain to its dangerously out-of-touch populace the stakes and why war was necessary. On the other, even after months of pointless slaughter, the open declaration of war against democracy loudly announced by the jihadis, the mass murders, the beheadings, the whipping of women who dare to speak, the execution of homosexuals because of who they are, the suicide bombings using the instruments of mercy, most Europeans still fear and loathe G.I. Joe more than Al-Zaqarwi.
We have no choice but to carry on fighting the good fight and hoping Europe and Canada will wake from its slumber.
At the same time, though, it's well past time for us to remove the safeguards that allow them to sleep in safety. Only until they live in our world will they understand it.
Let the boys from Turin defend South Korea. Let the girls from Madrid patrol Kosovo. Let the lads from St. John's patrol the Indonesian Straits. A gradual withdrawal from our over-powerful role will be painful, on all sides. But until and unless the man on the street in Europe and Canada feels the weight of responsibility, we will continue to witness these circuses.
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