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| Fifth Column |
| This dirtbag is teaching at NYU |
| 2004-11-11 |
| Fallujah and the Reality of War by Rahul Mahajan |
| Posted by:3dc |
| #9 Re #8 (Shipman): That looks like an excerpt from Mein Kampf by Adolf Hitler. If so, then I don't get your point. Spell it out. . |
| Posted by: Mike Sylwester 2004-11-11 9:04:48 PM |
| #8 Here ya go MS, the rest of it is better. WHEN my mother died, Fate, at least in one respect, had made its decisions. In the last months of her sickness, I had gone to Vienna to take the entrance examination for the Academy. I had set out with a pile of drawings, convinced that it would be child's play to pass the examination. At the Realschule I had been by far the best in my class at drawing, and since then my ability had developed amazingly; my own satisfaction caused me to take a joyful pride in hoping for the best. Lotta meat there. |
| Posted by: Shipman 2004-11-11 1:23:24 PM |
| #7 ;-) |
| Posted by: Frank G 2004-11-11 11:41:21 AM |
| #6 OK, we get a better understanding. And then? |
| Posted by: Jules 187 2004-11-11 11:36:23 AM |
| #5 Ok - if you exclude a lot of what the guy says and thinks and writes, Mikey is right |
| Posted by: Frank G 2004-11-11 11:36:13 AM |
| #4 Re #2 (OldSpook): For a moment, ignore the article's first paragraph and review the rest, except the last paragraph. The main body of the article is a rather informative and reasonable statement about what the author personally perceived as the situation in Fallujah. He is upset about the damage caused by US military operations. He thinks the damage is unjustified, unfair and excessive. As for his first and last paragraphs, I personally don't think they are justified by the article's body. In particular I don't think he demonstrates that the USA's stated intentions to liberate and democratize Fallujah are "lies." And the article does not cause me to support a peace movement to oppose the war. Nevertheless, the article's main body provides a lot of good food for thought and give us a better understanding of how many Fallujan's perceive the situation. In that sense the article is well worth reading. |
| Posted by: Mike Sylwester 2004-11-11 11:31:20 AM |
| #3 The best rebuttal to the accusation that "the problems are caused by the US military actions" will lie in the alternatives proposed. OK Mike-let's hear, in objective, strategic and tactical terms, what you think should be done (and please, for the benefit of the bandwidth and the readers, don't fall into the liberal habit of regurgitating history and obsessing about what was done badly in the past when asked for concrete alternative plans for now). What are your solutions? |
| Posted by: Jules 187 2004-11-11 10:14:56 AM |
| #2 Sorry Mikey, but the inflammatory language and lies from this dirtbag start at the beginning of the article. To quote: "The assault on Fallujah has started. It is being sold as liberation of the people of Fallujah; it is being sold as a necessary step to implementing âdemocracyâ in Iraq. These are lies" 1) It is a liberation - foreign fighters have terrorized the sity, imposed SHaria , ehld kagaroo courts and executions, tortured prisoners, and done kidnappings and beheadings. 2) It *IS* neccesary for this to be done to set up a lawful, authorized government control for proper elections to be held, without the ability of criminals to stuff ballot boxes, or control who votes and who doesnt. Even the UN agress on that point: fair elections cannot be held until the legitimate government of Iraq (Allawi's government) has control sufficient to guarantee fair elections. The whole article is a whining screed about what happneed in April, with no reference to any real figures- he merely regurgitates Baathist propaganda. Look at the conlcusion to this repetition of lies that he puts forth: "The first assault on Fallujah was a military failure. This time, the resistance is stronger, better-armed, and better-organized; to âwin,â the U.S. military will have to pull out all the stops." The first assault was 3 days away from taking the city, and was halted for *political* reasons - it was NOT a military failure, and as evidenced by current events, the criminals in Fallujah are NOT "better armed and better organized" - they are dying by the dozens, while inflicting realtively few casualties on US and Iraqi forces there. This guy Mhajan lies constantly and continuously, citing anectdote after anectdote but no facts at all, and no current information at all, and never bypasses an opportunity to use loaded language and half truths. He is a liar - and deserving of the "ratbag" title. Q.E.D. And Mikey, you are either the most stupid people on the planet to think yourself an unbiased observer if you believe that author and the bilge he spews, or else you are the most gullible person I have ever met. If its the latter, I have some Bridge property in Brooklyn you might be interested in... |
| Posted by: OldSpook 2004-11-11 10:07:43 AM |
| #1 The article is informative, and the author is reasonable. True, he doesn't write about the problems caused by terrorists in the city, but he does write well about the problems caused by the US military actions. I think the characterization "dirtbag" is a bit much. . |
| Posted by: Mike Sylwester 2004-11-11 8:31:22 AM |