Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Posting-Version: version B 2.10.1 6/24/83; site dciem.UUCP Path: utzoo!dciem!mmt From: mmt@dciem.UUCP (Martin Taylor) Newsgroups: net.politics Subject: Re: Myths destroyed Message-ID: <1291@dciem.UUCP> Date: Tue, 18-Dec-84 17:53:34 EST Article-I.D.: dciem.1291 Posted: Tue Dec 18 17:53:34 1984 Date-Received: Wed, 19-Dec-84 00:48:05 EST References: <646@ihopb.UUCP>Reply-To: mmt@dciem.UUCP (Martin Taylor) Organization: D.C.I.E.M., Toronto, Canada Lines: 34 Summary: In respect of the Iranian plan-highjacking... > Also, Andy, what was Reagan supposed to do? With people like you, he's > in a no-win situation. Who were we supposed to bomb/invade/arrest? > If he takes some action, you're all over him for being a trigger-happy, > militarist, imperialist cowboy, and if he doesn't then you use that as > evidence that he's really just a wimpy paper tiger. Tell me, Andy, > what was Reagan SUPPOSED to do? What could he have done that you > WOULDN'T have criticized him for??? > > --- das Just about what he did! I don't know how many US citizens were on that plane, but if I remember rightly, it was a Kuwaiti plane highjacked by Iranians to Iran. Kuwait might have had some complaint demanding action, but there was not much call for the US to be big policeman. US citizens are abducted and killed by terrorists in lots of countries, and the usual (and appropriate) response is to help the local authorities to deal with the situation. Granted, that's a bit difficult in Iran, but there's not a great deal else to do. Suppose there were Russians and New Zealanders on the plane as well. Would anybody have been happy if three groups of commandos appeared at the airport demanding turns at storming the plane? Would anyone have been happy if US commandos had caused the death of Russians and New Zealanders? The great evil that Reagan has been guilty of is that he has brought instant force to a position of "respectability" as a first response to a disagreement. One should commend him for moderating that tendency. -- Martin Taylor {allegra,linus,ihnp4,floyd,ubc-vision}!utzoo!dciem!mmt {uw-beaver,qucis,watmath}!utcsrgv!dciem!mmt