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| Afghanistan |
| Diana West: "Losing" Our Way to Victory |
| 2009-10-05 |
| ... It is not, as our presidents vaguely invoke, a war against "terrorism," "radicalism" or "extremism"; and it is not, as the current hearts-and-minds-obsessed Afghanistan commander calls it, "a struggle to gain the support of the (Afghan) people." It is something more specific than presidents describe, and it is something larger than the outlines of Iraq or Afghanistan. The war that has fallen to our generation is to halt the spread of Islamic law (Sharia) in the West, whether driven by the explosive belts of violent jihad, the morality-laundering of petro-dollars or decisive demographic shifts. ... But we would "lose face" in leaving Afghanistan, supporters say. News flash: We lose face every day in Afghanistan executing a costly, impotent policy based on massive state bribery, the public devaluation of American life ("population protection" trumps "force protection"), and deference to Islamic custom, as when women Marines are ordered to wind head scarves under their helmets for missions. And the point of this mass American supplication? To win a local popularity contest in which the only competition is the Taliban. Earth to military geniuses: The people are already with you, or they're against you. ... In other words, it's time to toss the policy of standing up Sharia states such as Iraq and Afghanistan onto that ash heap of history. It's time to shore up liberty in the West, which, while we are stretched and distracted by Eastern adventures, is currently contracting in its accommodations of Sharia, a legal system best described as sacralized totalitarianism. ... |
| Posted by:Thoting Grumble4938 |
| #5 |
| Posted by: phil_b 2009-10-05 20:21 |
| #4 |
| Posted by: liberalhawk 2009-10-05 16:50 |
| #3 |
| Posted by: Thoting Grumble4938 2009-10-05 15:25 |
| #2 |
| Posted by: liberalhawk 2009-10-05 14:38 |
| #1 |
| Posted by: g(r)omgoru 2009-10-05 14:27 |