Furthermore we should promote the Islamic Left similarly to the way the Soviets promoted the Left in the US and Western Europe

In the end, the Soviets lost–and collapsed.

I don’t think copying their strategy is a good idea.

We have a very long war with Islam

We are NOT at war with Islam.

It would disastrous not just for American conservatism, but for America and the whole world, if the War on Terror became framed as “Christianity vs. Islam.”

We have millions of American Muslims living their lives peacefully.

The Establishment Clause of the U.S. Constitution forbids the U.S. Government to make war on the religious faith of any of its citizens.

I propose a Cold War strategy in which the US allies with those fighting the Islamics or the Moderate Islamics and Liberal Islamics vs the Islamic Right. This would include a policy of containment. Furthermore we should promote the Islamic Left similarly to the way the Soviets promoted the Left in the US and Western Europe, via clandestine and otherwise monetary support networks, basically a culture war from within Islam, to destroy Islamic culture from the inside. All the tricks are well known, lawfare, demonstrations, infiltration of institutions, promoting minority rights at first in just rational ways, then promoting minorities over the majority, with affirmative actions, re distribution of wealth, special rights and priveleges, etc Focus on the younger generation, educatino systems and schools/universities. Turn the children on their parents….the future belongs to them. Then they will march through the institutions of Islam and promote cultural suicide from within….hamstring any efforts abroad. These young people need to have a base of decent or well paying operations, NGOs, and political activist groups, identity political action, etc….these organizations need seed money to fund the cultural revolution and the backing of Western intellectual prowess, the transfer of the Frankfurt School and Critical Theory into the young, new, educated, well paid Leftwing Islamic radical.

Not at all, the level of distrust and hostility we had/have to overcome in Iraq can be directly drawn from Pappy Bush leaving them to the killing fields after encouraging them to rebel during Desert Storm.

I never said that we should invade every failed state. Stop the strawman. But there is a history with Afghanistan. A recent one.

Suppose in the near future, there is another terrorist attack against Americans, by terrorists who come from Africa.

It’s a real possibility: A U.S. embassy was already bombed in Kenya in 1996, so it could certainly happen again. Radical Islam is spreading like wildfire in sub-Saharan Africa, providing lots of possible recruits to Islamist terrorism. The slaughter in Darfur shows what the Islamists of Africa (Janjaweed in this case) are capable of.

What would you suggest? That we then invade sub-Saharan Africa to build modern democracies in Eritrea and Sudan?

You’ve given us a prescription for endless nation building, as a response to any large-scale terrorist attack against us.

You are unconsciously embracing the old “White Man’s Burden” argument, in which it becomes our mission in life to go out there and civilize the benighted parts of the world–by military force. That is, in fact, what Bush came to believe: That a worldwide organization like al-Qaeda could only be repelled by civilizing the entire world to reject terrorism.

You’re not quite there yet yourself. But it would take only a couple more terrorist attacks against Americans, one from Africa and one from Indonesia (the world’s largest Muslim state), to put you there.

“Well, Bill…I agree with you.”

(*GRIN*) (*CONGRATULATORY PAT ON THE BUTT*)

(Hey… it’s almost football season!) (*WINK*)

Re: Anniemargret // Sep 3, 2009 at 10:58 pm (#25) –

“I lost my boyfriend of 22 y/o, one year out of West Point in ‘68.”

I’m very, very sorry.

Re: Escapevelocity // Sep 4, 2009 at 12:38 am (#28) –

“…Afghanistan and Iraq…”

Just for the record… I don’t equate the two.

Now I don’t want to have large numbers of troops in Iraq (or the Middle East period) much beyond Obama’s first term…

(Let’s see if his campaign promises come to pass…)

…but nor do I believe Iraq and Afghanistan are like situations.

Escape’s points concerning Vietnam and his inferences concerning Cambodia ARE on point to an extent. That said, they don’t really apply to Afghanistan and don’t apply all that well to Iraq. We’re talking far different cultures… different heritages.

Re: Chekote // Sep 4, 2009 at 2:53 am (#32) –

“I never said that we should invade every failed state.”

But that’s the ultimate LOGIC, the ultimate intellectually consistent end point, of your “defense” of the present Afghanistan War strategy.

Chekote. When Sinz, Annie, and myself are all basically on the same side…

(*SHRUG*)

BILL