Tragedy in America

a work in progress....

Intro: Horrible atrocity. Enormous tragedy. Loss of innocence for America.

Those guilty must be brought to justice. Loss of more innocent lives must be avoided.

Need for understanding, perspective, introspection, restraint.

Outline

Define "terrorism", note that state terrorism is the most destructive, cite examples in Chile, Pakistan, Indonesia, etc. that US has been associated with (see Ahmad's presentation below).
What are motivations of the terrorists
History of unsuccessful or embarassing previous retaliations: Sudan, Libya, Iran,
Likely effect of military response is to turn more Muslims towards the radical fringe, increasing the terrorist threat.
Military power vs criminal trial
Brzezinski and Casey brag of intentional US instigation of USSR invasion of Afganistan via support of mujahadin.
Note recent US support for the Taliban, yet another state engaged in internal terrorism.
Note extreme current poverty of nearly all Afganis.
Why must US remain in Saudi Arabia? Need for energy independence.
The Islamic world views the terrorism as horrible also [reference to story]
Importance of civil liberties (see Civil Rights sites below). E.g. encryption technology should not be restricted - it is critical for our own freedom and privacy in an increasingly-online world; it is important to combating human rights abuses by many terroristic states, and thus also for spreading democracy; it is critical to the robust and effective functioning of Internet infrastructure; and it couldn't be kept from criminals even if we made an all-out effort.

Terrorism: Theirs and Ours by Eqbal Ahmad (A Presentation at the University of Colorado, Boulder, October 12, 1998).
Osama Bin Laden: How the U.S. Helped Midwife a Terrorist
President Carter's National Security Advisor, Zbigniew Brzezinski was proud to say that he used covert aid to help "[give] the USSR its Vietnam war" in Afghanistan. Weren't we supposed to be opposing just this sort of Soviet aggression? Did we learn so little about the horrific consequences of our own Vietnam War for all concerned? Is a country of 24 million people really worth that little in the game of global politics? http://legalminds.lp.findlaw.com/list/cyberjournal/msg00658.html]
Find story (60 minutes) about evidence that Kissinger ordered assination in Chile that led to Pinochet and massive state terrorism. Would the US surrender Kissinger to chilean authorities?
Statement from UUs in Boulder [put online....]
Petition from Rocky Mountain Peace and Justice Center

Related issues

Last modified: Sat Feb 2 11:19:00 MST 2002