Revisiting the Axis of Evil.....
George Bush infuriated many by branding N. Korea, Iran, and Iraq an "Axis of Evil". There is no doubt in my mind that this was
used to correlate our war on terror with the threat that the Axis Powers of WWII. The axis of evil has now entered the lexicon of politics and is quoted by the most staunch advocates and opponents of military action in the Middle East. While the reaction to the horror of September 11th bolstered a sense of nationalism for many in the United States, it also fueled the "I told you so", argument of people who feel that the U.S. foreign policy is too intrusive.
While many of the war naysayers have taken particular glee at the fact that no WMD's have been discovered, we cannot discount the words of the "father" of their WMD program who claims that the weapons were destroyed right before Gulf War II commenced. (See, I am using names as propoganda too!)
It has been proven that all three states had been seeking weapons of mass destruction. In fact, U.S. and Spanish Special OPS intercepted a cargo ship headed for Yemen that was filled with N. Korean Scud missiles headed for Yemen. Is Yemen on the list, but it is a haven for Islamic Fanatics. N. Korea has made a habit of using the threat of Nuke capability as a trump card in exchange for food, electric power, and other resources to bolster their domestic needs. Iran has tried to deny satellite imagery which shows that they are working on nuclear projects. I would say that we need not mention the past Iraqi regime. I believe the photos of the imprisoned children, and the stories of torture, rape, kidnapping, and murder have been filtering out of Baghdad for some time now.
Many critics of the present administration say that we have been strangely reserved about N. Korea, perhaps because of the nuclear threat. While, I think that is a safe way to be when you have a madman in charge who has nuclear capabilities, I don't think that this hints at any lack of courage on our part. In fact, things are much better because China has begun to lean on N. Korea for some type of hasty resolution. Additionally, they are not taking such a hardline stance against S. Korea having anything to do with the deliberations.
In my opinion, the U.S. has been proactive against 2/3 of the Axis of Evil, but I don't think that we are specific enough in our worries over the Iranian government. Of course there are a lot of calls for reform in Tehran. Although these countries are not a formal alliance such as the Axis powers of WWII, they do represent the type of unjust rule and behavior that is a threat to the stability of our world. Things were much easier when the world had two superpowers. There was not such a case for policing.
George Bush infuriated many by branding N. Korea, Iran, and Iraq an "Axis of Evil". There is no doubt in my mind that this was
used to correlate our war on terror with the threat that the Axis Powers of WWII. The axis of evil has now entered the lexicon of politics and is quoted by the most staunch advocates and opponents of military action in the Middle East. While the reaction to the horror of September 11th bolstered a sense of nationalism for many in the United States, it also fueled the "I told you so", argument of people who feel that the U.S. foreign policy is too intrusive.
While many of the war naysayers have taken particular glee at the fact that no WMD's have been discovered, we cannot discount the words of the "father" of their WMD program who claims that the weapons were destroyed right before Gulf War II commenced. (See, I am using names as propoganda too!)
It has been proven that all three states had been seeking weapons of mass destruction. In fact, U.S. and Spanish Special OPS intercepted a cargo ship headed for Yemen that was filled with N. Korean Scud missiles headed for Yemen. Is Yemen on the list, but it is a haven for Islamic Fanatics. N. Korea has made a habit of using the threat of Nuke capability as a trump card in exchange for food, electric power, and other resources to bolster their domestic needs. Iran has tried to deny satellite imagery which shows that they are working on nuclear projects. I would say that we need not mention the past Iraqi regime. I believe the photos of the imprisoned children, and the stories of torture, rape, kidnapping, and murder have been filtering out of Baghdad for some time now.
Many critics of the present administration say that we have been strangely reserved about N. Korea, perhaps because of the nuclear threat. While, I think that is a safe way to be when you have a madman in charge who has nuclear capabilities, I don't think that this hints at any lack of courage on our part. In fact, things are much better because China has begun to lean on N. Korea for some type of hasty resolution. Additionally, they are not taking such a hardline stance against S. Korea having anything to do with the deliberations.
In my opinion, the U.S. has been proactive against 2/3 of the Axis of Evil, but I don't think that we are specific enough in our worries over the Iranian government. Of course there are a lot of calls for reform in Tehran. Although these countries are not a formal alliance such as the Axis powers of WWII, they do represent the type of unjust rule and behavior that is a threat to the stability of our world. Things were much easier when the world had two superpowers. There was not such a case for policing.
Comments