From: Neil Blanch (neilb@nswcc.org.au)
Date: Wed Jan 02 2002 - 21:54:30 MST
V6#364 Aid for Afghanistan Brian D Williams wrote a whole buncha stuff:
First things first: Your comment regarding "Glass Houses" - I couldn't agree
more that Australia is far from acting responsibly in some areas: our
treatment of refugees, our continued support for the government of Indonesia
despite it's appalling human rights record, our favoured nation status with
China, our failure to support the Kyoto accords, the treatment of indigenous
Australians - these are all areas that Australia needs to work on & work on
urgently. For my part, I am doing what I can within my country's political
system to effect change on these issues. No nation on earth is perfect. What
I am suggesting is that the US has a chance to offer real leadership in key
areas, a chance to lead by example rather than ride roughshod over the rest
of the world. I suggest that a policy that would promote friendship with the
US rather than hatred is in your own best interests.
& now to other issues:
"Nonsense. The Taliban did not even exist when we funded rebel
groups in Afghanistan to oppose the Soviet invasion."
I believe ample evidence of US involvement in this issue was given earlier
in v6#363-4 including the direct funding of Bin Laaden by the US government.
ME: "There are people in this world who hate America & America has given
them plenty of good reasons to have that hate."
YOU "A matter of opinion, an opinion we don't share."
Been to Bhopal? Seen what the US government has done in South America?
Remember Vietnam? Laos? Cambodia? Indonesia? The Balkans? Shit - remember
the nuclear tests in Utah on your own citizens?
YOU: "You're claiming the Soviets were the legitimately elected government
of Afghanistan?"
Absolutely not! I do think it is irresponsible to just abandon a country
like Afghanistan once your immediate objectives have been obtained. Leaving
behind a power vacuum in Afghanistan has lead to years of war, opportunism
by fundamentalist elements from other nations (eg Pakistan) and all the
misery & suffering has surprise, surprise turned around & bitten you on the
arse.
YOU: "America is the freeist and most just country on the planet."
Which is why you have such a large prison population and why your justice
system (the envy of lawyers everywhere! ka-ching!) largely seems to depend
on what legal counsel you can afford or who you are connected with (remember
OJ, Iran/Contra?) - and yes, I do know that it is only slightly better here
in Oz.
Oh & the side bets seem like a good investment to me, given "fuck you buddy"
attitudes like yours & the ease with which terrorist operations can be
carried out by folks with a high school level knowledge of chemistry & a
mobile phone.
This all getting a little silly. Much as I enjoy the cut & thrust of a good
argument (and I admit have been given much to think on), I doubt that many
of us are here for sessions of moral finger pointing. Perhaps it would be
best for the list itself to let these issues lie & return to debates that
are a bit more on-topic.
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