I've been watching the back and forth for the last week over "what al Qaeda wants" out of the bombings in Spain and what they want in general
Did they want Aznar out? Do they want Bush over Kerry? Do they want a Palestinian state? It's nonsense an it really isn't worth our effort to argue over it.
The fact is, the only thing we know that al Qaeda wants is to kill Westerners.
In one sense, Bush is right. They hate us. Maybe it's because of our freedom. Maybe it's because they didn't like the new Outkast. Maybe it's because we've seen unveiled women.
They hate us and they want to kill us.
Arguing over their objectives is equally foolish. They wanted to kill lots of Americans on Sept. 11. They succeeded. They wanted to kill lots of Spaniards on March 11. They succeeded.
Worrying over whether or not Spain withdrawing from Iraq is a victory for al Qaeda, as this diary and several other have, is just as foolhardy.
The Spanish people did not want to be part of our coalition. Their government tried to force them in, and, tragically, have reaped the whirlwind.
Even arguing over whether John Kerry was right or wrong in asking Zapatero to remain in Iraq is a bit besides the point. Politically, it was smart. Because Spain withdrawing does not help our soldiers remain safe in Iraq. It will make them less safe. And Kerry is right to make this gesture on behalf of our troops, even if it was just a gesture.
My point, and yes you've finally reached it, is that it seems to be taken for granted that Spain withdrawing hurts the US position in Iraq in a pretty fundamental way. Maybe not as badly as Russia pulling out of WWI, but in a significant way.
When was the last time the United States built a coalition so weak, so fragile, so unsupported by the free peoples of the United States and Europe, that the withdrawl of the mighty Spanish armies did serious injury to our cause?
Hell, when was the last time Spain's lack of involvement hurt a military cause? The 16th Century?
At least for a moment, we need to put aside arguments over motives for al Qaeda and arguments over whether Spain is being principled or capitulating.
Instead, let us with one voice decry the fact that this administration has been so eager for blood, so reckless with our armed forces, so irresponsible in our foreign relations that the most powerful nation ever on the face of the earth is weakened by the absence of the Spanish military.
This president and this administration is careless, cavalier and ignorant. They have ignored the will of the people time and again, and instead of seeking a strong foundation for what has been a massive undertaking, they built castles in the sky.
We need to say it over and over. This is not leadership. This is a failure.