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Politics : Stockman Scott's Political Debate Porch -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: MrLucky who wrote (29465)	10/3/2003 10:07:43 AM
From: TigerPaw	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 89467

George W. Bush also had the choice of finishing the job of getting Al Qaeda in Afganistan abd Pakistan. If even a fraction of the money and effort that is put into securing the oil fields in Iraq were put to stabilizing Central Asia then the terrorists would be killed or captured. It's obvious that Bush did not want a victory against terrorism, he wanted a long term issue. TP

To: MrLucky who wrote (29465)	10/4/2003 2:25:32 PM
From: T L Comiskey	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 89467

Elwood........ re the Marine Corps barracks bombing during Carter's reign.... Wrong Guy in the Oval Office...... Ron Reagan was President at that time... WASHINGTON DC(October 18, 2001) -- October 23 is the eighteenth anniversary of the terrorist attack in Beirut, Lebanon that killed 220 Marines and 21 other U.S. service members. General P.X. Kelley, who was Commandant of the Marine Corps at the time, recently characterized the attack as a "sucker punch." At 6:22 a.m. on what was a Sunday morning, a large Mercedes truck charged into the Marine compound at Beirut's airport and crashed into the first floor of the four-story concrete building where approximately 300 service members were quartered. The kamikaze driver immediately detonated explosives packing a punch equal to more than 12,000 tons of TNT. It was "the largest terrorist act in United States history," Gen. Kelley reflected. "That stood until Sept. 11." President Ronald Reagan had deployed the Marines to Beirut to provide a steadying presence. "We were guests of the government of Lebanon," Gen. Kelley notes. Indeed, the government of Lebanon felt the weight of many problems. Christians and Muslims in Beirut often found themselves at odds, and regional powers such as Israel, Syria, and the Palestine Liberation Organization viewed Beirut as something of a strategic prize. Against this backdrop of hostilities and suspicions, leathernecks from what was then known as the 24th Marine Amphibious Unit arrived in May to continue American efforts to provide a stabilizing influence. The mission was somewhat similar to those that Marines performed in the early 20th century in places such as Nicaragua, Haiti, and the Dominican Republic. "It really was a mission for the Marines," Gen. Kelley said. The Corps' ability to put combat Marines on land while drawing support from ships at sea fit the circumstances. "The Marines were not alone," Gen. Kelley added. A multi-national force was serving in Lebanon to help maintain order. This force included units from France, Italy and the United Kingdom. Indeed, French paratroopers serving in Beirut also suffered an attack from a suicide bomber. In what has become a trademark approach for terrorists, the explosion at the Marine barracks was part of a synchronized attack. At almost exactly the same instant as the Mercedes truck plowed into the Marine barracks, another suicide bomber in a pick-up truck full of explosives crashed into the nine-story building that was housing French paratroopers. The building was obliterated, and nearly 60 French soldiers died. The attacks underscored the difficulties of a peacekeeping mission. There had been a dual nature to the mission in the months before the bombing. On the one hand, Marines enjoyed warm relations with many of the locals. On the other hand, Marines occasionally found themselves in skirmishes with some of the region's combative characters. On April 18, 1983 - almost exactly six months before the attack on the Marine barracks - a suicide bomber drove a van with 2,000 pounds of explosives into the American embassy in Beirut, demolishing a portion of the building and killing 63 people. Seventeen Americans, including one Marine, were among those who died in that attack. When 220 Marines died on Oct. 23, 1983, the day became the Corps' bloodiest since February of 1945, when Marines fought to secure Iwo Jima. October 23, 1983 surpasses even the Corps' bloodiest days of the Vietnam and Korean wars. Camp Lejeune, N.C. was the home for the fallen men of First Battalion, 8th Marines. In 1986, on the third anniversary of the attack, Marines and relatives dedicated Camp Lejeune's Beirut Memorial. The inscription on the granite monument says, "They came in peace." -30-