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August 23, 2005

Is Bush Preaching to the Choir on Afghanistan and Iraq?

As opposition to the war in Iraq becomes more visible, U.S. President George W. Bush has embarked on a public relations campaign to ensure that his support base continues to accept that their loved ones dying in far off places such as Iraq and Afghanistan is for a "noble cause. For example, on August 22, 2005, he told the Veterans of Foreign Wars National Convention underway at the Salt Palace Convention Center in Salt Lake City, Utah:

Vast oceans and friendly neighbors are not enough to protect us. A policy of retreat and isolation will not bring us safety. The only way to defend our citizens where we live is to go after the terrorists where they live. (Applause.)

So the second part of our strategy is to take the fight to the terrorists abroad before they can attack us here at home. This is the most difficult and dangerous mission in the war on terror. And like generations before them, our soldiers and sailors and airmen and Marines have stepped forward to accept the mission. They've damaged the al Qaeda network across the world and we're going to keep the terrorists on the run. From Afghanistan to Iraq, to the Horn of Africa, our men and women in uniform are bringing our enemies to justice and bringing justice to our enemies.
He added: Our goal is clear: to secure a more peaceful world for our children and grandchildren. We will accept nothing less than total victory over the terrorists and their hateful ideology. (Applause.)

While such statements make an audience feel good, reality suggests that there will be no total victory and the world will not be safer. It will become more dangerous as more Muslims join what many perceive as a "defensive jihad" against the U.S. and its allies, who are establishing more military bases in Muslim countries and helping their Muslim allies all over the world arrest or kill Muslims who challenge local authority and repressive, pro-West policies. This includes using Muslim resources more for the benefit of the West than Muslims.

For total victory over Muslim fighters, the U.S. and the West would have to destroy the global Islamic community. And that is not going to happen without a global fight. Many Muslims born in the West would even join this fight on the side of the Ummah, while others will back the West. This could conceivably lead to a Muslim civl war in the West.

By the way, Mr. Bush was right when he said the current struggle between the U.S. and the global "defensive Jihad" movement has World War proportions. This is explained very well by Michael Scheuer in his excellent book Imperial Hubris: Why The West Is Losing The War On Terror.

Here is the White House transcript of Mr. Bush's August 22, 2005 address.

Posted by Munir Umrani at August 23, 2005 07:34 AM

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