I think there is a real divide in outlook between those who believed that September 11th showed a new, dangerous and permanent category of threat, and those who believe that September 11th was a one-off, which has caused America to go beserk in response.
The false dichotomy is always a popular argumentative technique here. But there are many problems with the above formulation. For starters, bin Laden and al Qaeda didn't magically appear out of nowhere on 9/11 . The actual event could well end up being singular, I sort of doubt anybody is going to crash airliners into tall buildings in the US again. Then there's one of the many problems with the current war marketing campaign, the extremely dubious evidence that's been presented to show Iraq had anything to do with 9/11 or Al Qaeda or bin Laden. Unless, of course, you're of the school that believes bin Laden uses "infidel" as a term of endearment. Even if you want to broaden the problem to militant Islamism, you have the issue that most of the noxious mideast regimes, excepting Iran and most definitely including Iraq, have historically been pretty secular and repressive toward the Islamists, and despite lip service mostly remain so today.
I certainly wouldn't claim the US is going berserk. But there are evidently people who have had a burning desire to go into Iraq for a long, long time. The fact that they've seized upon 9/11 as the ultimate justification for pursuing the object of their desire doesn't make the alleged 9/11 - Iraq connection any stronger. |
