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believers can be extremely dangerous. That's why, in reviewing immigration quo- tas and gathering intelligence, we must engage in the kind of “racial profiling” that is so politically incorrect these days. Our very survival may depend on it. Meanwhile, Muslim fanatics are counting on our Christian sensibilities to restrain us in our response to these atroci- ties. In order to deter further terrorism, we ‘would have to do something so brutal that it ‘would chill every Islamic bone to the mar- row—like dropping an H-bomb on Mecca or slaughtering all Palestinians on the West Bank. We won't—can’t—do any such thing, and therein lies our dilemma. Whose Fault? BY CHRISTOPHER M. SULLIVAN iit There has been a lot of talk about God in the last few weeks. In the immediate aftermath of the World Trade Center disas- ter, Americans great and small, rich and poor, confronted with the chimerical nature of life, bowed their heads and prayed. The incident of 9/11 was without doubt the largest catastrophe ever to befall the nation, While not the deadliest day in our history (that belongs to the Battle of Sharpsburg). it was without a doubt the most horrific in the shortest period of time. And President George Bush has strenuously avoided any indication that this might be a refigious war, even while calling the nation to prayer. He's right This is not a religious war the same way the Crusades were an attempt by Wester Christians to wrest control of Jerusalem from Muslims and Jews. From the U.S.A. perspective itis retribution pure and simple, Bin Laden's forces bombed New York and the Pentagon, and so the U.S. armed forces will bomb them until they are incapable of doing any more harm. A diffi- cult task, bat iis atleast easy to understand But the contrast in motives between the forces that attacked us on September 1 and the forces that are now arrayed against al Qaeda could not be more different. The United States is an open so ‘own detriment. You can be a Episcopalian to a witch without so much as cross word from the authorities. In Muslim countries the opposite is true. Just being a Christian is enough to make you the object of government scrutiny, while shar- ing your faith can be a capital offense. 18+ SOUTHERN No doubt, bin Laden is eager for an expansion of the war to all Muslims versus all non-Muslims. After all, the West is a Christian society in name only. While their Basten brothers speak the name of Jesus in fear of torture and marty dom, most Western Christians are terrified ‘of doing or saying anything that might be construed as the least bit offensive. To say that Jesus Christ isthe only way to heaven is tantamount to racism in America today. ‘The most outrageous example comes from the prayer service held at the National ‘Cathedral in Washington just days afier the attacks. The invocation was led by Bishop Jane Dixon. (We reported on Rev. Dixon in the Second Quarter of 2001 “An Unreasonable Belief” p. 23). Rev. Dixon stood in the pulpit of the National Cathedral and prayed “In the name of the God of Abraham, Muhammad, and the Father of Jesus Christ...” When a minister of a Christian faith eannot stand in the pulpit of a Christian church and pray t0 an exclusively Christian God, it is impossi- ble for that nation to engage in a holy war. ‘The outcome of this conflict is unpre- dictable, America certainly has the ability to destroy any other armed force on the face of the earth, While the current me tus of our military may preclude us from fighting a major land war, such as we faced Europe in 1941, we are more than capa ble of conducting extensive operations using air power and commands, ‘Assuming thatthe battle-plan involves no more than demilitarizing the Taliban, President Bush can have the troops home for a ticker-tape parade by the time Democratic candidates file for office. So whose fault is it that a primitive people in a faraway country hate us enough to commit such terrible acts? The U.S. Government defines terror ism 28 CFR Section 0.85 ())) as “the Unlawful use of fore and violence against persons or property to intimidate or coerce a govemment, the civilian population, or any Segment thereof, in furtherance of politcal or social objectives.” The attacks (on September 11 clearly fit that definition, What are the political or social objec- tives? There are several theories ‘The first one is that America is an empire and empires are always: despised and get what they deserve. While America may be all over the world, and American culture (e.g., movies and McDonalds) may penetrate the darkest spots on the globe, sta PARTISAN that can’t really be considered the product ‘of American political hegemony, Perhaps it isa by-product of having the largest laissez faire economy (or close to it) in the history of the world, but if America is an empire it is not very good at it A second theory is that America does not do enough for the world’s huddled masses. Even if this were true it would be something not easily changed. America dis- poses of billions of dollars a year in foreign aid and it only buys fair-weather friends. In fact, itis persuasively argued that what bin Laden wants is for us to quit helping—and therefore influencing—Muslims in places like Saudi Arab A third response, is that these attacks are the result of our close relationship with Israel. A major criticism in this vein is that America should retreat from its position as Israe’s second and leave the Semites to their own devices. Does anybody, however, really think that if George Bush had come into office and renounced American sup- port for the state of Israel that bin Laden's, sleepers would have packed their bags, set- ted their bills and flown back to Arabia? Of ‘course not. They hate Jewish Israel and they hate Christian America, Ifthe radical Arabs, and Palestinians were successful in theit murderous dream of annihilating every last Jew from The Levant, it would only mean more free time to scheme up another plot to destroy the West. One need not be pro-Israel to see the need for America to maintain a close alliance. Remember back in 1981 when the Israelis bombed the Iraqi nuclear facil- ity at Osirak? The move was widely criti cized by the international diplomatic ‘comps, bat is there anybody in the English speaking world today who thinks that was; a baud idea? ‘The problem to which Americans must resign themselves is thatthe world remains a bitter, dangerous and evil place. Generally speaking, Earthlings do not get along well with one another and itis usually best when, they are left to run their own airs. So what is the solution? Southerners have always held that minding one’s own business is a good way to get through life, but even that view sometimes requires con- certed action to put down those who threst- en civilization, Like most of the world’s problems, the diplomats and ni will never be able to find a solution without the assistance of arms. ©

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