A kinder, gentler war on terror?
By Aussiegirl
If the Bush administration is actually doing what Powell suggests here then the country is in big trouble.
Speaking softly (and presumably carrying a small stick) and being conciliatory is precisely NOT what we should be doing. Read Ralph Peters article just below this post to find out why.
FORMER US secretary of state Colin Powell today defended the invasion of Iraq but admitted America's image had taken a beating and called on the Bush administration to be more sensitive.
. . . But the former top diplomat, often described as a "dove" among the conservative "hawks" dominating the White House, also called on the current administration to be more conciliatory in its approach.
"I would like the government to speak with a softer voice and listen with a more discerning ear," he said.
The former top diplomat conceded that the US has "massive problems" communicating to the world what it stands for.
"There is a strong tide of resentment in the Muslim world against the United States," he said, adding that US President George W. Bush was "not unmindful" of this and was trying to be less strident in his second term in office.
posted by Aussiegirl @ 5:55 PM
1 Comments:
One of the major tactical and strategic errors of the current wars the Bush administration has mis-led us into is the appearance of their being anti-Muslim.
Some of the so-called "psychological torture" of the prisoners has been, or at least reportedly has been, acts and statements seen as violating the Muslim belief and the Muslim holy book.
Though such things might have been aimed purely at the individual prisoner, the individual torturee, they will inevitably be portrayed -- by al Qaida and by the "news" media -- in the harshest light possible and give further aid to the recruiting efforts of the enemies.
Beyond anything else, bad tactics and bad strategy.
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