"From: Christopher Biow (biow@ezmort.com)
Subject: Re: [OT] NYC - Give Blood
Newsgroups: news.admin.net-abuse.email
Date: 2001-09-11 14:21:07 PST
Wm James <wrjames@kudzucountry.com> wrote:
>Agreed. But we should take all the blood the victims need from Afghani >flesh. Afghanastan has been supporting the sleezebags for years. The >US should imediately demonstrate to the Afghan people just what mass >destruction means. [Note de JF: je n'ai pas lu ce message, qui a provoqué la réponse mais le peu qu'il en reste donne déjà une certaine nausée]
Irrational as that expression was, I'm not sure this is too far off the target. We may or may not identify or "punish" the perpetrators of this particular act. But that's a side-issue, of only temporary significance. It is our general approach to terrorism that needs a serious realignment.
The big result, I think, will be abandonment of the judicial model for counterterrorism. It was perhaps a good idea to see if the rule of law could be allowed to take over from brute force in that area of
international affairs. The experiment has failed; the hypothesis stands rejected. Giving aid and comfort to terrorists who have demonstrated intent to attack us will have to be equated with overt military attack.
The Taliban ambassador to Pakistan expressed his condolences to the American children and stated that Bin Laden had nothing to do with it. I won't try to tease apart the possible subtexts in such a message. Let's take it at face value and express our appreciation to Bin Laden for not having sponsored this particular act. Openly speculate that it might just as well have been his enemies, trying to pin blame on him.
Wait 72 hours for tempers to cool. Announce a new policy that we will no longer deal with terrorists and their sponsors with FBI agents, extradition papers, embargoes against cryptographic machinery, and grave expressions of concern by the State Department. Our new policy will be grossly disproportionate escalation. Hint that we might just draw the line short of nukes.
Then, as the first example of the new policy, presumptively thank the Taliban for their cooperation in delivering Bin Laden, bound and gagged, at a designated, convenient pickup point and time, based upon his past acts. That cooperation will spare the Taliban the loss of whatever it is they treasure most (Kabul?). Should that ultimatum be missed, strike and repeat with whatever remains they value next most highly.
Maybe I'll feel different in 72 hours. But I don't think so."