Trick and Treat & President Bush
Osama Bin Laden is waging a personal type of Islamic religious war on all fronts. To his fellow Middle Eastern cohorts he is now a hero. To others he is a fiend, and to me he is neither. He is simply a fanatic with his beliefs and methods. Bin Laden wants to turn the clock back.
When President Bush addressed the nation and mentioned words of waging a "crusade" he awakened old hatreds and associations. He galvanized the Islamic people to dream of settling the score between the Islamic and Christian crusaders of old.
Terrorism is today's monster. The idea of terrorism decreasing is becoming a dream of the past. The new world alliance that includes countries like Syria, a haven for terrorism, boggles the mind. To think that Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat is being courted, patronized and promised rewards of unbelievable proportions for his cooperation is demented. Imagine admitting a warrior carrying a smoking stick of dynamite to a special club that deals with world perspective on peace.
With Halloween just around the corner I think about my childhood neighbors masquerading and the words "trick or treat." The masqueraders ask for a treat or they will pull a trick. That's what the holiday is supposed to mean. Most of the time the children end up with the candy.
The U.S. policy of bombing Afghanistan and simultaneously dropping food is absurd. It gives a mixed message, something like the Halloween message, except the recipient gets both the trick and the treat.
Does anyone in their right mind think that the bombed out Afghanistan homeless are going to be nice to America after being bombed and then rewarded with goody bags? The contradictory actions make matters worse.
If America feels that it needs to feed the enemy then the enemy's resolve gets stronger. They feel that America has feelings of guilt and is frightened.
We must remember that a country that harbors terrorism and kills and maims thousands of people indiscriminately, does not understand humanitarian gestures.
After reviewing this incongruent policy I have come to understand why America is accused of being the big bad Satan. After all, they reason, only a Satan would perform a trick and treat at the same time!
Has there ever been a war where we have bombed and fed the enemy at the same time. Did we drop food on Japan or Germany during World War II?
No, we bombed them to submission. When the enemy saw complete destruction of their land they overturned their tyrants, surrendered and made peace. That's the way to get our hands on the terrorists. I cry for my country's leadership that can't find a way to control terrorism. Who would believe our dear capital city is now hostage to fear?
The message to our people is to stand up united and fight fire with fire before we have an uncontrolled crisis. It is time to do what is right and it should be done with a vengeance. Waving flags and making grand speeches will get us nowhere real fast.