It's been said, most notably, and recently, by President Bush, that many of us on the left don't get it when it comes to fighting terrorism.
I get it.
Despite what I've said in other diaries and comments (go ahead and peruse my contributions here), I understand the threat from terrorism.
Unbeknownst to my audience of left-wing supporters, I have family members who fight terrorism. Every freakin' day.
Unbeknownst to many of you, I hold the SAME, if not stronger contempt for the religious fanatics and violent extremists who seek to kill our fellow Americans as I hold for the fascist, aristocratic pretenders who seek to exploit the activities of terrorists for their own economic and political gain.
Today I read this diary and I commend the diarist for bringing up something that's been nagging at me for a long time.
The American public doesn't know, really, what Osama Bin Laden and his gang of lunatics really WANTS. We don't know what the demands of the terrorists ARE. We get images of the latest Bin Laden tape, and we get the "two minutes of hate" from the MSM. The media doesn't air statements from Bin Laden and others. Instead, we are fed the "Islamofascists hate freedom" propaganda.
IMO, what we really need are uncensored, full expositions of al-queda tapes. Why? Because, 1) no reasonable person is going to be swayed to join global jihad by the likes of their offerings, and 2) we need to be aware of exactly what it is that the enemy is saying. ALL OF US.
If I had the means, I would open a salon where jihad tapes (and the offerings of others) could be viewed by any person who stops by.
Thinking about this inspired me to look for Bin Laden tapes.
Everyone should read this transcript of Bin Laden's Dec 11th, 2001 meeting with his supporters. It's the tape that is, supposedly, the smoking gun showing that Bin Laden was behind the 9/11 attacks. It's beyond belief that the FBI still, to this day, claims that they don't have concrete proof that Bin Laden is the perpetrator of 9/11 because they can't authenticate this tape. Check it out. The FBI doesn't say Bin Laden is wanted for 9/11.
Al-jezeera posted an english transcription of Bin Laden's latest tape. Have you read it? You should.
And a number of things will become apparent to you as you read it.
Let me give you my take.
First of all, Bin Laden is every bit the lying propagandist that Bush is. He claims that he was inspired to fight tyranny by the bombardment of Beruit by the Sixth Fleet in 1982. That didn't stop him from accepting support from the CIA a few years later, did it? Just one example.
Second, I get the impression that Bin Laden has some serious moral issues with 9/11. He knows damn well that the 9/11 attack is haram, and he makes excuses and claims that "Allah" blessed it.
Third, Bin Laden claims that bleeding America into bankruptcy is the aim of his jihad, and gives examples showing that it's working.
But here is the most important point. Bin Laden claims that self-determination is the aim of his jihad. He complains about military dictatorships and monarchies ruling the nations of the Middle East. REALLY? That's his chief complaint?
If we Americans are really over there to liberate people from tyranny and help establish self-rule and freedom for the people who live there, then what's the problem?
The problem is that we AREN'T over there for that reason.
If we were, then we would have an opportunity to completely deflate Bin Laden's appeal.
I can't believe, really, that Bin Laden is so difficult to apprehend. If we took him out of circulation and ACTUALLY liberated people, promoting self-determination instead of marketing self-determination while propping up yet another version of colonial domination, then we might have a shot at ending the terrorist threat.
Of course, we will have to deal with revenge impulses for another generation due to Bush's criminally incompetent, murderous policies, but at least we would be on the right track.
But make no mistake about it. Bin Laden and his jihadist crazies are a threat. Lefties don't oppose Bush because they don't get it. Lefties oppose Bush because his policies are making the problem worse, which we suspect is an attempt to create a perpetual protection racket for the enrichment of Bush's cronies, without solving the problem.
