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Politics : Idea Of The Day -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: HH who wrote (40844)	10/3/2001 2:04:14 PM
From: Proton	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 50167

Mark Helprin put it succinctly (from the WSJ Opinion Journal site): Using careful and appropriate strategy, the United States can remove the Taliban from power and deny al Qaeda an effective base in Afghanistan. But, no matter how successful, this will have been a useless exercise unless it is merely the preamble to greater initiatives supported by greater power. Of these further initiatives and the immense military buildup to make them credible, there has been up until now not even a hint. That is rather alarming, for the United States must excise weapons of mass destruction -- its most clear and present danger -- from the unstable, terrorist-linked dictatorships that may loose them against us. Whatever happens in Afghanistan, this is the pre-eminent imperative. I agree with Mr. Helprin. Eliminate the capability of these states to deploy WMD, whatever it takes. Create a layered domestic defense, from missile defense down to immigration policy. Remind the rest of the world that American has lost patience with its various petty sensitivities and grudges. Nation building in Afghanistan is like the liberation of Kuwait: it is important, but it cannot be the ultimate outcome of our efforts. The son can ill afford his father's inaction. P.