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Pastimes : Kosovo -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: greenspirit who wrote (9587)	5/23/1999 9:43:00 PM
From: Dayuhan	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 17770

There is no doubt that Milosovic was a murderer and political thug. But on the question of systematic genocide until the Serbs contolled all of Yugoslavia? I'm no where near convinced. He received the benefit of the doubt in Bosnia, where he essentially got his way while paying a minimal price. Kosovo was next. If someone takes two bites, it is not unreasonable to assume that a third will follow. And the rhetoric that accompanied both the Bosnian and Kosovo moves did indicate certain territorial ambitions, and a distinct contempt for non-Serbian residents of what was Yugoslavia (I don't see much point in calling it that now, except for the sake of convenience). I understand you have nothing to suggest, however if given the choice tomorrow would you continue the bombing efforts? Are they justified considering the civilian death toll inflicted daily? Not to mention the fact that we are destroying the Yugoslovian peoples homes and factories. I don't think I would have started the bombing. The extended air war against Iraq and the Iraqi forces occupying Kuwait was successful because it was an integral part of a larger campaign. Starting with air power in a case where there was no will to use ground forces seems a dubious move. The Serbian military assets in Kosovo are also much less vulnerable to air attack than the Iraqi forces in Kuwait were; they do not need tanks and artillery to suppress rebellion in Kosovo or to drive out the Albanian Kosovars. What would I have done? I don't know; it was fortunately not my decision. If it had been my decision, I would presumably have studied all available data, thought hard, consulted abundantly, and taken the course that seemed best at the time. One assumes, or hopes at least, that this is what the people making the decision did; if air war seemed the best option, the others must have looked grim indeed.