# Why ain't the US government doing these things? **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [September 17, 2001, 2:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-aint-the-us-government-doing-these-things/82070 "2001-09-17T02:55:39Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 7\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Major\_Feelgud](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/3be4f8/32.png) [@Major\_Feelgud](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Major_Feelgud)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2001, 2:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-aint-the-us-government-doing-these-things/82070/1 "2001-09-17T02:55:39Z")
IMHO, the most pressing problem now is trying to avoid getting jihaded by all the other Mid-East countries when attacking OBL and the Taliban. Since there is a rebel Afghani group, why don’t we airlift one of those guys out and use him as a spokesman for Afghanistan? I.e. Have him say that they are the true Afghani government and that they are against terrorism so that they will support the US attack. And have him appeal the OIC (Org of Islamic countries?) that they should all support this attack against terrorism etc. For that matter, since we have 6 million Muslims in this country, and since they are Americans, why can’t they hold rallies to support an attack against OBL and terrorism etc? Two can play at this propaganda game. I hope we have already started funneling $ and weapons to those guys if we haven’t been doing so already. ---
**Author:** ![erislover](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/71e660/32.png) [@erislover](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/erislover)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2001, 3:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-aint-the-us-government-doing-these-things/82070/2 "2001-09-17T03:15:48Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Major Feelgud \* > Two can play at this propaganda game. One can play at the propaganda game because only one side has televisions, free press, and widespread literacy. Our message won’t make it there. ☹ ---
**Author:** ![Major\_Feelgud](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/3be4f8/32.png) [@Major\_Feelgud](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Major_Feelgud)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2001, 3:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-aint-the-us-government-doing-these-things/82070/3 "2001-09-17T03:17:46Z")
You don’t think they have CNN? Those Palestinians who were cheering, where do you think they got their news from? ---
**Author:** ![David\_B](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/51bf81/32.png) [@David\_B](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/David_B)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2001, 3:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-aint-the-us-government-doing-these-things/82070/4 "2001-09-17T03:23:19Z")
Those Palestinians who were cheering – what makes you think they care what American Muslims think? Islam is not a single religion any more than Christianity is. Just as different brands of Christians are busily killing each other in Northern Ireland, so are different brands of Muslims killing each other in the Middle East. ---
**Author:** ![erislover](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/71e660/32.png) [@erislover](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/erislover)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2001, 3:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-aint-the-us-government-doing-these-things/82070/5 "2001-09-17T03:28:52Z")
## I thought we were talking about Afghanistan and the Taliban faction. They are dirt poor and are lucky to have food. They will starve this winter if there is no food aid. Television is farther away than literacy for the bulk of them. I do not think Palestine has a free press, but I’m sure Arafat can watch CNN all he wants. How much he shares with his citizens I don’t know. Actually, I believe they watch television from Israel… ironic. I heard that from a poster here, however, and have no cite of my own. No one questioned it when that poster said it. Damn, what thread was that in? I’ll look for a cite… that is, if we are switching from talking about Afghanistan to Palestinians. ---
**Author:** ![Major\_Feelgud](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/3be4f8/32.png) [@Major\_Feelgud](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Major_Feelgud)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2001, 4:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-aint-the-us-government-doing-these-things/82070/6 "2001-09-17T04:16:30Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by David B \* > \*\*Islam is not a single religion any more than Christianity is. Just as different brands of Christians are busily killing each other in Northern Ireland, so are different brands of Muslims killing each other in the Middle East. \*\* In that case, I guess we don’t need to care about the Taliban calling for a holy war then. They are trying to make this a religous war. I’m saying that we should try to prevent them from doing that. > [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by David B \* > \*\*Those Palestinians who were cheering – what makes you think they care what American Muslims think? > \*\* Because these American Muslims are people just like them. Some of them are Palestinians who just immigrated to the US. Maybe they don’t know there are 6 million Muslims in the US and maybe it will tell them it isn’t a war against Islam but against terrorists. ---
**Author:** ![Major\_Feelgud](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/3be4f8/32.png) [@Major\_Feelgud](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Major_Feelgud)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2001, 4:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-aint-the-us-government-doing-these-things/82070/7 "2001-09-17T04:19:20Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by erislover \* > \*\*I thought we were talking about Afghanistan and the Taliban faction. They are dirt poor and are lucky to have food. They will starve this winter if there is no food aid. Television is farther away than literacy for the bulk of them. > \*\* So all these people leaving Kabul, they are leaving because they know of impending US attacks from ? Anyway, this whole thread is about not getting duped into fighting a religous war.