Re: OT: Military Ranks/Computers : WAS Re: newbie question on cobol syntax

On Mon, 30 Apr 2007 20:50:31 -0600, LX-i <lxi0007@xxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:

Alistair wrote:
On 30 Apr, 01:53, LX-i <lxi0...@xxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
And, I find it really strange that Pelosi and company didn't have time
for the President of this country (who offered to meet with them to
discuss foreign policy), and the didn't have time to meet with General
Petraeus, the new US commander in Iraq. However, she *did* have time to
go meet with Bahar Assad, the president of Syria (a state sponsor of
terrorism)

<blood boiling mode>

And I presume that the good-ole US of A has not ever nor does it now
sponsor terrorism? Need I remind you of arms to Iran or of the
Contras? How about the continued support for the IRA and the
inconsistent support for the NI peace process ?

</blood boiling mode>

Yes - we also supported the Taliban against the Russian-controlled
Afghanistan government, for the same reason we supported the Contras -
they fight against Communism. We can only fight so many battles at a
time, and have traditionally relied on diplomacy and the diplomacy of
others to handle regional disputes.

I looked and didn't find anything describing US support of the IRA or
the Northern Ireland peace process. Maybe we screwed up - it certainly
wouldn't be a first for our nation. But the failures of the past are
*no* excuse for continued failure. Failure only stays failure if you
fail to learn - and I'd like to think that we're learning as we go
along. (In Afghanistan, we knew what kind of weapons the Taliban had,
because we had probably sold it to them!)

And, to the best of my knowledge, the IRA hasn't threatened our national
security. Though it makes for entertaining cinema, we're *not* the
world police.

And a final point about Pelosi's trip - Syria harbors terrorists, is
sympathetic to them, and is even letting them cross into Iraq to fight
our (US) soldiers! Why go see Assad? Was Satan unavailable?

Then why did the US send Canadian citizens of Syrian birth to Syria
instead of allowing them to continue on to Canada? Was Syria going to
be used to torture information out of them why the US issued pious
denials? The hypocrisy in this case stinks. I also believe that the
Bush rules of engagement endanger US citizens everywhere by making
renditions legitimate.
.

Relevant Pages