It wasn't a fiasco if you consider that it accelerated the ending of the war before thousands more would've lost their lives had the war continued. It was tragic, it was horrible, but then, it was war.
Following WWII, in a bid to solicit Japanese help in the fight against the Communists, the Americans never fully prosecuted Japanese war criminals. In fact, the American government exchanged immunity against many Japanese war criminals for their detailed chemical and biological warfare data on Chinese prisoners. It's a dirty secret hidden in the San Francisco Peace Treaty. That shows you how the current talk about WMD and Saddam war crimes is just an excuse to start a war.
Sad to see people still supporting the appeasement of terrorists. The Spanish election sends a great message to terrorist groups around the world -- that they can influence the results of all national elections through the use of well timed attacks. Sadly, I expect many more attacks now that they've been so successful in Spain. Furthermore, for all those euro-lovers out there, can you recall one intance in all of history where appeasement has successfully dealt with an aggressive foe? Practically every single conflict has been ultimately settled through war. Sad but real. The sooner people realize this the sooner we can deal with the problem of terrorism and lunatic dictators. Let's not forget that Al Qaeda built out their organization during the appeasement years of Clinton, when the Khobar Towers, the USS Cole, the first Word Trade Center attack, and the US embassies in Africa all went largely unpunished. Even when we had the opportunity to get Bin Laden, we refrained because we didn't want to rock the boat. Finally, for all those people who fault the US for "breeding" people like Hussein, you easily lay blame on some sort of profit motive, yet you always fail to put things in the broader historical context of the Cold War, when most foreign policy decisions were subjugated to the prime objective of Soviet containment. Hussein (and Afghanistan) were unfortunate results of this policy. Does this make it right? No. Could there have been a better way to deal with Hussein while still containing the Soviets? Maybe. But to fault US support of Hussein at the time as purely driven by those "greedy oil companies" is specious at best.
So, peace accords and agreements like the one ending WWI, and any other peace accord or non-agression agreement is just a lot of luke warm air ? Remember Gorbachev and Reagan on Iceland, signing deals ? BTW, I do love the Euro and have my base currency in EUR for trading purposes. ;-)
Um, all of these agreements you speak of were largely formalizing the conclusions of a war, where there was already a clear victor. LOL
"THE" ? I'm sorry but people cannot speak like a single voice so this is really dishonesty. You can also quote such or such politician and it wouldn't even engage the people either. And do you also consider Rumsfeld as "innocent" ?!!!! I demand YOUR opinion, not that you speak in the name of all americans because you can't. http://www.counterpunch.org/floyd1101.html This column stands foursquare with the Honorable Donald H. Rumsfeld, U.S. Secretary of Defense, when he warns that there will be more terrorist attacks against the American people and civilization at large. We know, as does the Honorable Donald H. Rumsfeld, U.S. Secretary of Defense, that this statement is an incontrovertible fact, a matter of scientific certainty. And how can we and the Honorable Donald H. Rumsfeld, U.S. Secretary of Defense, be so sure that there will be more terrorist attacks against the American people and civilization at large? Because these attacks will be instigated at the order of the Honorable Donald H. Rumsfeld, U.S. Secretary of Defense. This astonishing admission was buried deep in a story which was itself submerged by mounds of gray newsprint and glossy underwear ads in last Sunday's Los Angeles Times. There--in an article by military analyst William Arkin, detailing the vast expansion of the secret armies being massed by the former Nixon bureaucrat now lording it over the Pentagon--came the revelation of Rumsfeld's plan to create "a super-Intelligence Support Activity" that will "bring together CIA and military covert action, information warfare, intelligence, and cover and deception." According to a classified document prepared for Rumsfeld by his Defense Science Board, the new organization--the "Proactive, Preemptive Operations Group (P2OG)"--will carry out secret missions designed to "stimulate reactions" among terrorist groups, provoking them into committing violent acts which would then expose them to "counterattack" by U.S. forces. In other words--and let's say this plainly, clearly and soberly, so that no one can mistake the intention of Rumsfeld's plan--the United States government is planning to use "cover and deception" and secret military operations to provoke murderous terrorist attacks on innocent people. Let's say it again: Donald Rumsfeld, Dick Cheney, George W. Bush and the other members of the unelected regime in Washington plan to deliberately foment the murder of innocent people--your family, your friends, your lovers, you--in order to further their geopolitical ambitions.
To show that it is not a question of defending europe I will tell my opinion about so called "pacifist" attitude of France for example: this is just HYPOCRISIS, the reason is that they sold arms to Irak. So I don't defend the bastard that governs France either although he is normally my political color: I don't follow blindly a political leader as some seem to follow Bush and Rumsfeld even they fuck them hard !
Who gives a shit. Had they not started a war in the first place that would not have happened to them.
Agreed. I think that anyone who would want war is a bit off their rocker, but the Peace at All Costs crowd are a bunch of nutters too. If someone walks up to you and punches you in the face you may choose to walk away or fight back. Buf if they get you on the ground and they proceed to keep kicking you better fight back or you could be killed. Thats the situation we are dealing with in regard to the terrorists. Brandon
You are sadly misinformed. Japan not only attacked the US they also attacked the Philipines, Dutch East Indies, Russia, and China. As far their planes go, the Jap Zero was one of the best fighters around and far superior to anything we had at the time. Towards the end of the war we had two options...Invade or give them an ultimatum. Read any credible historian, thay all agree there would have been many MILLIONS of casualties during an invasion...on both sides. Who knows, many us would probably not be here had we invaded. I know my father would have been involved in any invasion. PS. We dropped a total of 2 atomic bombs after they refused to surrender.