www.justiceblind.com

Debating war makes little sense without referring to the following empirical realities.

 First, since 9/11 and America’s declared “war on terror,” recruitment by and membership in al Qaeda is up.

 Second, worldwide acts of terrorism are up.

 Third, resentment, anger, and fear of the United States by people in nations all over the world are up.

 These claims can be verified easily.  Try www.google.com.

 Fourth, the war on Iraq is a diversion from the war on terror.

 This claim requires some explanation.

 Investigations into 9/11 show that the nations most involved were Saudi Arabia (Usama bin Laden and 15 of the 19 hijackers came from there; some funds for the attacks came from Saudi royals); Afghanistan (the Taliban government allowed al Qaeda to train there); and Pakistan (some hijackers trained there, additional funds for the attacks came from Pakistani Inter Services Intelligence).

 The US responded by invading Afghanistan and Iraq (a country that played no role in 9/11) and by embracing both Saudi Arabia and Pakistan (both played significant roles in 9/11) as allies in the “war on terror.”

 Even after the US supposedly won in Afghanistan, al Qaeda continues to train on Pakistani soil. Additionally, Vice President Dick Cheney admits that the Taliban and al Qaeda are resurgent in Afghanistan and are readying for a “spring offensive” against the people of Afghanistan and US forces.

 The Iraq war is thus a diversion from the war on terror, for it has inhibited our ability to finish the job with al Qaeda in Afghanistan and Pakistan. Further, the war created a new terrorist group – al Qaeda in Iraq – which wreaks havoc daily on the people of Iraq as well as US forces.

 Thus, according to any empirical assessment but one, America’s war on terror has been a massive failure.

 The “but one” argument is this: “We have not been attacked at home since 9/11!”

 Yet, less than six years have passed. Eight years passed between al-Qaeda’s first World Trade Center attack in 1993 and 9/11. Further, al-Qaeda asserts that each subsequent attack must be more spectacular than the last. Stated simply, it takes time for al-Qaeda to do what they do so well.

 People who support US war can write all they want about taking on every nation not friendly to us. Such a view simply ignores the empirical realities of America’s current wars. We’re losing everywhere we are fighting.