Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 2001/09/13
[Author Prev] [Author Next] [Thread Prev] [Thread Next] [Author Index] [Topic Index] [Home] [Search]Whatever various people may say, or mean to say, I think we can safely assume---and so should keep in mind---that no one on this list has intended to make a justification, veiled or otherwise, of the terrible events of 11 September. Any discussions should proceed only on that basis. Art Peterson Alexandria, Virginia - -----Original Message----- From: Julian Koplen [mailto:jkoplen@mindspring.com] Sent: Thursday, September 13, 2001 9:14 AM To: leica-users@mejac.palo-alto.ca.us Subject: Re: [Leica] Terror I believe a balanced discussion re Mr. Muir's position would require a revisit of the history that followed the WWII holocaust. The land of Palestine, with no sovereignty of its own, had most recently been a British "protectorate". The UN--the very same UN referred to by Mr. Muir--partitioned that land into two sections, to accommodate a newly formed state of Israel and a newly formed country of Palestine. This was not acceptable to the neighbors of the newly formed state of Israel. Hugely outnumbering this tiny state, the neighbors (including Jordan, Egypt, Iraq, Syria, various Arabian "oil states", etc. united and went to war, fully expecting to complete Hitler's "unfinished business" and drive these survivors into the sea. They did not succeed. Had they accepted the original UN partitioning, I do believe the two countries could have been living in peace. Instead, Israel has lived with neighbors who want nothing less than its total destruction. I will not get into a protracted Arab/Israeli debate. I recognize there is humanity on both sides. I recognize there are perspectives which place emphasis differently from my own. But the above historical reminder is needed for some balance to this discussion, since Israel's current position keeps getting mentioned in what seems to me to be some veiled justification for the horrendous hateful assault on the citizens and government of our United States. Respectfully to all the members of this list...........Julian - ----- Original Message ----- From: "Alan Hull" <hull@telia.com> To: <leica-users@mejac.palo-alto.ca.us> Sent: Thursday, September 13, 2001 4:14 AM Subject: Re: [Leica] Terror I believe that this discussion is the most important discussion this group has ever engaged in. This is life and death, and ALL means to dissuade the US and NATO from blindly lashing out with knee-jerk anger should be used. Please Please Please, cut through the grief and somehow touch base with humanity and try to understand that the white hot hatred that drives suicide bombers will not be cured by a military response. If your anger is so intense that you are unable to touch this base then use cold hearted logic and realise that if the US and NATO escalate this event then the next time the bombers strike it could be nuclear. Solve the root problem, and this type of terrorism will go away I sincerely hope that my contribution to this topic has not lowered the high standard of debate that has taken place here. I do not have the education to take this discussion further. I have spent nine years in the British military during a time when the primary enemy were terrorists from Northern Ireland, Malaysia, Borneo, Kenya and the Yemen. I look at my four year old daughter now and shudder with fear for her. Quote from the URL below from Jim Muir of the BBC. The fact is that for more than five decades, in defiance of countless UN resolutions and of international law, the Palestinians' land has been occupied and their rights ignored by Israel, with full diplomatic cover and open-ended financial and military backing from Washington End of Quote http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/world/middle_east/newsid_1540000/1540364.st m Alan