I’ll be more than happy to let my refutations of your points be the final word, my favorite luscious veggie. 
All right, you win. You’re right and I’m wrong. Thank you, O wise one, for setting me on the path to righteousness.
None of this - either issue - is simple enough to encapsulate in an analogy like this. One of the big problems I see happening in our country now is the rageful desire to oversimplify this situation into black and white.
btw, I heard a radio show the other day discussing whether we should use “profiling” to prevent further terrorist attacks. And what are the profiles we should be looking for? Middle Eastern men, or men who fit the profile of the previous worst American terrorist - Timothy McVeigh?
There’s a girl.
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The U.S. paid and trained people to hijack American airliners and crash them into American buildings and kill thousands of American citizens?
Holy fuck, have I got to start paying better attention to the State of the Union addresses!
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No. Simply pay more attention to history and less to canned speeches.
The U.S. paid and trained Osama bin Laden specifically and his ilk to be terrorists. The U.S. supported the rise of radical islamic extremists earlier than that as a political force against the government of a secular Egyptian government.
The problem of doing this and having it bite you in the ass later on is so common, the CIA has an institutional word for it: blowback.
Nor did she give him the knife that he used against her.
Milo-do you honestly NOT see what the problem is with training people to be terrorists?
Perhaps a better analogy would be Manuel Noriega
No we trained him to be a guerrilla fighter. We trained him to engage military forces using hit and run tactics. We never trained him to hijack airliners, use car bombs, or convince nitwits to strap explosives onto a small boat and blow themselves up.
I’d like to see more info on the US support of radical Islamic extremists in Egypt.
We know that the Buffalo Bills have sheltered O.J. in the past, but attacks on the organization will not solve anything. The franchise is already in such a sorry state that it can not compete with the rest of the league and additional actions may only exacerbate the problem. Reforms and development are needed. Let us remember that the enemy is not the innocent Bills fans, only murderous Heisman Trophy winners.
We do share some blame for O.J., however. O.J developed the athletic prowess he used to kill Nicole in America’s University system. In the future, the NCAA and NFL need better oversight in handling suspected Heisman Trophy winners. If either organization had offered O.J. anger management classes, the tragedy might have been averted. Additionally, if O.J. had been prevented from making the Naked Gun movies, he would not have had the fame and resources to mount an effective defense after the tragedy or even come in contact with Ms. Nicole Brown in the first place.
[sub]before you flame me, I just want to say that I have no idea what the point of the above is[/sub]
If the turban don’t fit…you must acquit!
Well, you guys can laugh all the hell you want, but I’ll stand firm and say that yes, part of the solution that I believe in is figuring out why sick fucks like OJ start abusing. Research what happens to them in their childhoods or as adored and adulated athletes to find out what makes them think this is acceptable. And then work hard to prevent that from happening to other potential wife beaters. Similarly, I support figuring out the dynamics of abusive relationships and why some women stay. And what we can do to make it safer when these women decide to get out, since that’s when it’s most dangerous.
No, this doesn’t really have jack shit to do with terrorism. But I believe that with domestic abuse as with terrorism, it’s not enough (although it’s a fucking good start) to just punish the motherfuckers who perpetrate it. Call me goofy, but I think we have something to learn from the root causes. And I think that you can advocate changed behavior on everyone’s part–not just the wifebeaters, not just the terrorists–to cure the problem.
If you have a problem with that, well, okay. I can tolerate being laughed at, sneered at, etc over something like this. Because frankly, I believe that this is the approach that will work in the long run. I think that refusing to examine any of the motivations, contributing factors, unexpected causes, or tangential justifications for these reprehensible actions is shortsighted.
Erm, could I have sounded any more sanctimonious in my last post? Sorry about that. Domestic violence is a pet cause of mine. The sentiment remains the same, but take out some of the martyred, self-righteous tone, and you’ll have the post I should have written.
Ever notice how EVERY essay that begins with the words “I certainly don’t CONDONE this-that-the other-thing” invariably goes on to justify this-that-the-other-thing?
Awwww…Milossarian I clicked on this thread with great expectations but it’s just this old same tarantella again. I thought you were going to start channeling Chris Rock for us … “but I understand”.
Hey, I liked it! I was gonna start quoting it over beers and pretend it came from me. But domestic violence is your pet thing? You need to take up other, healthier hobbies, like gardening, soccer and birdwatching. Just my 2 cents.
Ever notice how some people think that punishing the perpetrators and refusing to examine any of the motivations, contributing factors, unexpected causes, or tangential justifications are mutually exclusive?
Jill
Ever notice how many people on every side of every issue are overusing the “Ever notice” intro for their posts?
Fenris
Ever notice how Fenris and I use terms like this to mock others who use them?
(ps - that’s the FIRST TIME I’ve ever used the term “just my 2 cents,” though.)
Is that so? My understanding was that the U.S. was training and equipping people to engage in armed combat against a military force - the Soviet army in Afgahnistan. That isn’t “terrorism,” it’s war, and there’s a very dramatic difference.