Re: Dealing with Islamic terrorists, and with Afghanistan
Steve Furlong <sfurlong@acmenet.net> wrote :
mmotyka@lsil.com wrote:
Let's see, as far as the Taliban and probably other extremists are concerned, all of Islam is in a life and death battle against non-believers, non-Muslims, namely a bunch of atheist Americans.
The U.S., OTOH, is taking great pains to emphasize that we are not at war with Islam but rather with a relatively small group of extremists.
Here's tidbit regarding the handling of Muslim terrorists: in 1911, General "Blackjack" Pershing was dealing with terrorists in the Philippines. He caught a handful of them, made them dig their own graves, tied them to stakes near the graves, and brought up a bunch of pigs. He told them that the pigs would be slaughtered along with the terrorists, and they'd be buried together, thus not only denying them the benefits of heaven but sending them straight to hell forever. He let one of the terrorists "escape" to spread the word. There was no problem with terrorists the rest of the time Pershing was there. The question is, why shouldn't we do something like that now? It's obvious a significant part of the Moslem world will never love the US, so we should make sure they fear us instead. (Wes Pruden mentioned this in his Washington Times column recently. I haven't found it elsewhere on the Web, but have seen it in print.)
I know the story. That was the Moro tribe, right? There was also a story of a prisoner having been wrapped in a fresh pigskin and hanged. Shortly after 911 I suggested that the US publicize video clips of its forces dipping bullets in pig's blood and painting pigblood deathheads on cruise missiles and preparing boxcar-sized piggery and slaughterhouse runoff aerosol bombs. Rumors of pork-only meals in US prison camps. The whole dying unclean thing... It may or may not work - I don't know how serious these guys are about their religion. Should the leaders be more worldly they might struggle with their texts to devise a palatable philosophical out for their field soldiers. All in all it's a funny idea though. Mike
Interesting idea in the area of "psychological warfare" I guess, but one problem: There are Jews and Moslems in the US army who might have a lot of problems with this. But hey, I'm in favor of anything that can end this conflict with the minimum of human bloodshed. Didn't the US drop beer on the Ho Chi Minh trail at some point? Maybe we need a big beer delivery in Kabul. Perhaps a Britney Spears concert? One thing to keep in mind is the ordinary guys in Afghanistan are aching for anything American (or rather, anything American that doesn't go "bang"). When Titanic finally got circulated in Afghanistan on video tape (a few years after it came out in the West) guys were getting Leo Dicaprio hair cuts, and that pissed off the Taliban. Maybe the US could take advantage of its cultural, instead of military, might? Any other solution is better than killing if possible.
It may or may not work - I don't know how serious these guys are about their religion. Should the leaders be more worldly they might struggle with their texts to devise a palatable philosophical out for their field soldiers.
From what I can tell they don't take their religion seriously at all. First of all, Islam does not allow sucide attacks. Secondly, I just read that these guys were habitues of the Vegas stripclub scene. I guess that's a little luxury you can't find in Kabul. Allah will judge them.
"Dr. Evil" wrote:
Interesting idea in the area of "psychological warfare" I guess, but one problem: There are Jews and Moslems in the US army who might have a lot of problems with this.
<shrug> So they don't have to be the ones to slaughter the pigs. It's hard for me to see how anyone, regardless of faith, could object to treating a terrorist that way. By the way, terrorists are generally not considered soldiers for purposes of treatment when captured. They're criminals, with almost no rights. They might claim they're soldiers, but the lesson of Nueremburg is that the winners make the rules.
Perhaps a Britney Spears concert?
Hey, now, we don't want to be violating the Geneva and Stockholm accords ourselves. <g>
One thing to keep in mind is the ordinary guys in Afghanistan are aching for anything American (or rather, anything American that doesn't go "bang"). ... Maybe the US could take advantage of its cultural, instead of military, might? Any other solution is better than killing if possible.
Right, which is what I was saying about airdrops with consumer goods as well as food and guns. Medicines, too, just thought of that.
From what I can tell they don't take their religion seriously at all.
Probably some of them do, the Joe Talibans I mean, not the not-so-smart bombs. The problem is they probably haven't read the Koran too carefully and are relying on the misinterpretations of mullahs with agendas. Same thing happens with Christianity. Latin America had several preachers teaching "Revolutionary Christianity" or some such nonsense, telling the guerrillas that the sixth commandment allows the killing of enemies. The preachers could get away with this because the masses were mostly semi-literate and mostly uneducated. -- Steve Furlong Computer Condottiere Have GNU, Will Travel 617-670-3793 "Good people do not need laws to tell them to act responsibly while bad people will find a way around the laws." -- Plato
Perhaps a Britney Spears concert?
Hey, now, we don't want to be violating the Geneva and Stockholm accords ourselves. <g>
Hey there's nothing wrong with Britney except for her music, right?
Probably some of them do, the Joe Talibans I mean, not the not-so-smart bombs. The problem is they probably haven't read the Koran too carefully and are relying on the misinterpretations of mullahs with agendas. Same thing happens with Christianity. Latin America had several preachers teaching "Revolutionary Christianity" or some such nonsense, telling the guerrillas that the sixth commandment allows the killing of enemies. The preachers could get away with this because the masses were mostly semi-literate and mostly uneducated.
That's a good way to look at it. Anyway, the Koran is written in Arabic, and Joe Taliban speaks some Persian dialect, and he may not be literate in that, much less literate in Koranic Arabic, so they basically can't read it themselves, and have to rely on the mullahs, who, as you point out, have agendas. I guess it's the same situation with the Catholic church in the middle ages. The situation is the same everywhere. In the US there are some people who don't believe that the 2nd Amendment means that people have the right to bear arms.
YOu need to understand that terrorism has its own ideology, which has nothing to do with whatever the terrorist du jour espouses publicly. All that the actions proposed below would do is infuriate REAL Muslims, who are not yet our enemies and need not be. Marc de Piolenc mmotyka@lsil.com wrote:
Steve Furlong <sfurlong@acmenet.net> wrote :
mmotyka@lsil.com wrote:
Shortly after 911 I suggested that the US publicize video clips of its forces dipping bullets in pig's blood and painting pigblood deathheads on cruise missiles and preparing boxcar-sized piggery and slaughterhouse runoff aerosol bombs. Rumors of pork-only meals in US prison camps. The whole dying unclean thing...
It may or may not work - I don't know how serious these guys are about their religion. Should the leaders be more worldly they might struggle with their texts to devise a palatable philosophical out for their field soldiers.
participants (4)
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Dr. Evil -
F. Marc de Piolenc -
mmotyka＠lsil.com -
Steve Furlong