[Rhodes22-list] Politics: Goering on Going to War

[Rik Sandberg]

Bill,

you wrote
"Getting rid of a dictator does not necessarily mean that what follows will
be better"

That is certainly a valid point. BUT, does this then make it right to just 
do nothing? There is one sure bet here. Whoever replaces Saddam Hussein 
would have to work very hard to be a worse example of humanity. There is 
virtually no chance for a positive change as long as this man is in power.

I think that these things are happening a long ways from home and are 
pretty easy to ignore. Would you feel the same if they sent you a video 
tape of the gang rape of your wife to punish you for speaking out against 
our government policies?? If you were dragged off in the night to be 
electrically shocked and beaten with metal rods, maybe sodomized with a 
stick, would you not pray that there was someone in the world with enough 
guts to offer you some help??? Or, would you still side with the folks that 
want to continue trading oil for weapons?

There is a cliche that goes; the definition of insanity is doing the same 
thing over and over again while expecting a different result. It's time to 
change the pattern here.

Rik

On Wed, 26 Mar 2003 10:24:56 -0500, Bill Berner <bberner@optonline.net> 
wrote:

> To use a metaphor - Cutting off someones head is not necessarily an
> effective cure for brain cancer.
>
> Getting rid of a dictator does not necessarily mean that what follows 
> will
> be better, and there is no indication that there is a plan for who to 
> build
> a new Iraq that will hold together the Kurds, Shiites, and Sunni's in a 
> way
> that doesn't just as brutally repress one or more of those groups.  I 
> repeat
> myself, but the US doesn't have a great record when it comes to sustained
> follow through at nation building, and in Iraq we will be trying to do it 
> in
> a place where we are, to put it kindly, not trusted by the populace,
> especially because of our abandoning the Kurds in the north and Shiites 
> (I
> think) in the South when they regbelled against Hussein after the last 
> war.
>
>
> Bill Berner
> 191 South Broadway
> Hastings on Hudson, NY  10706
> v 914 478 2896
> f 914 478 3856
> e BBerner@optonline.net
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: rhodes22-list-bounces@rhodes22.org
> [mailto:rhodes22-list-bounces@rhodes22.org] On Behalf Of Rik Sandberg
> Sent: Wednesday, March 26, 2003 8:35 AM
> To: The Rhodes 22 mail list
> Subject: Re: [Rhodes22-list] Politics: Goering on Going to War
>
> Sorry Bill,
>
> But I'm not quite that wishy washy. Some things are just plain wrong and
> need to get "cured". It seems that the US is the only country in the 
> world that
> is willing to spearhead the effort. Most of the rest are willing to 
> overlook Saddam's atrosities for the sake of the profits they are making 
> by trading him weapons and such for his oil. Again, where are our 
> priorities here??? Saddam Hussein is about as good an example of wrong as 
> I have seen in a long
>
> time, I truly can't believe that he has lived this long.
>
> Rik
>
>
> On Wednesday 26 March 2003 08:58 am, you wrote:
>> "Naturally, the common people don't want war, but after all, it is the
>> leaders of a country who determine the policy, and it is always a simple
>> matter to drag people along whether it is a democracy, or a fascist
>> dictatorship, or a parliament, or a communist dictatorship.  Voice or no
>> voice, the people can always be brought to the bidding of the leaders. 
>> This is easy.  All you have to do is tell them they are being attacked,
> and
>> denounce the pacifists for lack of patriotism and exposing the country 
>> to
>> danger.  It works the same in every country."
>>
>> Hermann Goering
>> Hitler's Reich-Marshall
>> At the Nuremberg Trials
>> _________________________________________________
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>
>



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