American Restraint 31 May 2001

http://www.tzemach.org/fyi/docs/winston/may31-01.htm

Clearly, the conviction of four Muslims employed by Osama bin Laden is unfair and excessive. Why couldn’t the American State Department send a special envoy to Bin Laden to appeal for cessation of violence? After all, they only blew up two American Embassies in Nairobi, Kenya and Dar es Salaam, Tanzania on August 7, 1998, killing 224 people, including 12 Americans, wounding 5000 others. Bin Laden is also suspected of being the mastermind behind the October 12th bombing of the U.S.S. Cole in Yemen in which 17 American sailors died. Clearly, that was a political statement representing a Muslim point of view and should not be considered a terrorist act. All Bin Laden wishes from America is for all American troops to withdraw from Saudi Arabia — among other Arab nations. In addition, Bin Laden has demanded that America cease her support of Israel. And he has demanded that America call off sanctions against Iraq.

There are, of course, other demands but, all in all, if America agrees to be coerced into accepting Bin Laden’s demands, he will still continue his attacks against The Great Satan (that’s America). Why does that sound familiar?

Now, what Bin Laden asks for is reasonable, according to prevailing U.S. State Department policy. There is no reason for America to pursue him merely because he blew up several American embassies with several hundred dead and thousands wounded. America has a lot more Americans to spare, so what’s a few dozen, hundred, thousand Americans when it comes to meeting the terms of Osama Bin Laden. He has proven he can fulfill his promises of more terror and, therefore, there is no reason not to accommodate him. He is, after all, a radical Muslim fundamentalist, following the dictates of the Koran and fulfilling Islamic destiny. How can we question his motives which stem from his honest convictions and pursuit of his faith? Doesn’t America stands for freedom of thought and religion?

Bombings and assassinations are clearly trivial matters for the U.S. State Department and the American business/military/industrial sectors. We Americans must show "restraint" and not engage in useless reprisals which offend the Arab world.

Islam is on the rise. There are or soon will be 6 million Muslims in America. (Most of them are not radical or terrorists.) We Americans must show understanding and respect — even if they do engage in a bit of terrorism (or at least fund-raising for ‘legitimate’ terror organizations). It is important that we allow them to mature and shed their 7th Century thinking. We must be prepared to accept our losses gracefully. After all, if Bill and Hillary Clinton can invite terrorist fund-raisers into the White House in a glamorous show of friendly ‘restraint’, who are we Americans to disagree?

Suicide bombers, sniper fire, car bombs aimed at our embassies and World Trade Center are merely a passing phase. In a few years the Muslims all over the world will settle down and cease attacking non-Muslims. Above all, we must show "restraint" as recommended by Colin Powell, Kofi Annan, Jacques Chirac, Hosni Mubarak, King Hussein, Shimon Peres, the U.N., the E.U. and, most especially, the U.S. State Department.

The four convicted Muslim bombers should be set free — magnanimously. After all, they showed initiative, conviction and their bombings of the two American embassies were merely a political statement expressing their justifiable frustration and rage.

Recall that after the Syrian-backed terrorists blew up the Marine Barracks in Lebanon in 1984, killing 241 Marines, America through Secretary of Defense Caspar Weinberger showed "restraint". America didn’t hit Syria even countermanding President Ronald Reagan’s orders to do so. Even after the Syrian-backed terrorists blew up the American and French embassies in Lebanon, we Americans showed admirable "restraint". Instead, we huffed and puffed, promising justice (not revenge — too uncivilized), but we never hunted down the perpetrators, demonstrating our magnanimous gestures of understanding and "restraint".

When the Iranians under the Ayatollah Khomeini took over our American Embassy, holding hostages for more than a year, we never struck back. When Marine Col. Higgins was captured and tortured to death by known Muslim terrorists, (they were kind enough to send us a videotape of his torture), we did not hunt them down, we Americans showed "restraint".

When the American Jew in the wheelchair on the Achille Lauro, Leon Klinghoffer, was thrown overboard by Abu Abbas (Yassir Arafat’s lieutenant), we made no move even to issue a warrant for his arrest.

More than 12 Americans have been killed in Israel since Clinton signed the Oslo Accords on the White House lawn. Janet Reno of the Clinton Justice Department was importuned time and again to issue warrants for the Palestinian terrorists who were known to have killed these American Jews but she, in keeping with the Clinton policy of "restraint", refused to do so.

When Yassir Arafat issued a (tape-recorded) phone order to his Force 17 in Khartoum, Sudan to execute our American Ambassador Cleo Noél, Jr., the American aide George Moore and the French Charges des Affaires Guy Eid, we pretended we didn’t have the tape given to us by the Israelis. We have excellent political judgement and "restraint" ‘par excellence’.

Yes, we even advise our ally, Israel to show "restraint" and not to use force to defend herself. Bush, Jr.’s Secretary of State, Gen. Colin Powell has advised Israel to show "restraint" in the face of vicious ramping up of Palestinian terror attacks. This must be good advice because Prime Minister Ariel Sharon is following it, as ordered. I wonder if the word "restraint" could be put to music so we could all follow a marching band and thrill to such stirring words as "into the valley of death rode the 600".

As the Wall Street Journal editorial of May 22nd said: "The 80 odd Jewish deaths [now closer to 95] Israel has sustained during the past eight months of violence might seem comparatively trivial by American standards. Yet, given Israel’s tiny population, it is the equivalent of 25 [!!] Oklahoma City bombings." (1)

Every democratic country should be expected to tolerate this level of violence against her citizens.

While following the American State Department orders of "restraint", most of the Media [justifiably] uses false statistics every time they describe the casualty counts in Israel. They begin with the war Arafat declared on Rosh HaShanah 2000, September 29, 2000 instead of from the signing of Oslo September 13, 1993. Since Oslo almost 600 Israeli Jews, including more than 18 Americans, thousands injured, some maimed for life and hundreds of children orphaned. So what! Like Americans, Israelis must show "restraint" and gracefully accept these modest losses in good spirits.

So what if the Media invariably lists the casualties only for the past 8 months and obscenely mixes the innocent civilians and soldiers killed by terrorist attackers with those Palestinians Arafat has thrown into the front of his shooters as canon fodder. Arafat has every right to sacrifice children (Arab and Jewish) to his cause to eliminate the Jewish State.

Wisely, such men as Shimon Peres, Yossi Beilin, Shlomo Ben Ami, Yossi Sarid, among others, have accepted Arafat’s needs and his point of view.

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1. "Securing Peace" Wall Street Journal editorial May 22, 2001

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Emanuel A. Winston is the Freeman Center's Middle East analyst. He has published over 2,500 articles and given hundreds of radio and television interviews. He has also been a major supporter of Israeli institutions of higher learning for over two decades.

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-- (peacetoall@peace.mom), September 13, 2001

Answers

"canon fodder"

A classic Freudian slip.....?

-- Sam (Wtrmkr52@aol.com), September 14, 2001.

a sharp eye, Sam

-- (lars@indy.net), September 14, 2001.

kiss a rattlesnake huh??

-- al-d. (dogs@zianet.com), September 14, 2001.

Kabul might make a passable parking lot after we're finished with it.

-- Enough Restraint (It's @ss.kickin.time), September 14, 2001.

Well, at least we won't feel guilty about destroying their ancient statues...

-- (@ .), September 14, 2001.

I hope our leaders will choose to be merciful to these people.

-- (Catherine__Linton@hotmail.com), September 14, 2001.

We will show mercy and send them to their god soon!

-- Stop their hatred (before@they.destroy.us), September 14, 2001.