tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5264937.post115014869744495715..comments2024-03-26T12:23:29.784-04:00Comments on Philosoraptor: Winston Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08780746334199630779noreply@blogger.comBlogger12125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5264937.post-1150420411220485842006-06-15T21:13:00.000-04:002006-06-15T21:13:00.000-04:00Well, anyway, suicide in the face of an overwhelmi...Well, anyway, suicide in the face of an overwhelming adversary <B>is</B> definitely asymmetrical.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5264937.post-1150315557700691872006-06-14T16:05:00.000-04:002006-06-14T16:05:00.000-04:00"Is it just me, or have these people (broadly cons..."Is it just me, or have these people (broadly construed) simply gone bat-shit crazy?"<BR/><BR/>Don't worry your pretty little head. Giblets has the answer: <BR/><BR/>http://fafblog.blogspot.com/2006/06/610-changed-everything-run-for-your.htmlAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5264937.post-1150197390806408522006-06-13T07:16:00.000-04:002006-06-13T07:16:00.000-04:00Yes, they are at war with us, but that doesn't ent...Yes, they are at war with us, but that doesn't entail that everything they do constitutes warfare.<BR/><BR/>Claims of the kind in question just make us look stupid and evil. It's like something Darth Vader's spokesman would say.<BR/><BR/>There's nothing wrong with pointing out that one of their motives was to make us look bad--if, indeed, it was.<BR/><BR/>But "asymmetric warfare"...Jesus, man, Winston Smithhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08780746334199630779noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5264937.post-1150184222065468222006-06-13T03:37:00.000-04:002006-06-13T03:37:00.000-04:00I don't think it's deniable that the jihadists are...I don't think it's deniable that the jihadists are at war with us. That's warfare.<BR/><BR/>I see them through their own eyes, as best I am able. They, by and large, understand us better that we understand them, or even understand ourselves.<BR/><BR/>In my opinion.Tom Van Dykehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07121072404143877596noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5264937.post-1150164745756481072006-06-12T22:12:00.000-04:002006-06-12T22:12:00.000-04:00Sorry, not buying it Tom.If we're going to count t...Sorry, not buying it Tom.<BR/><BR/>If we're going to count them killing themselves to make us look bad (supposing for the sake of argument that's what happened) as mounting an attack against us, then we've got such an expansive definition of 'attack' that the concept has ceased to be useful. It's a kind of lost contrast problem.<BR/><BR/>I actually think that it's possible--though very far from Winston Smithhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08780746334199630779noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5264937.post-1150161610608770822006-06-12T21:20:00.000-04:002006-06-12T21:20:00.000-04:00Well, you'd have read it, p-mac, if you'd've follo...Well, you'd have read it, p-mac, if you'd've followed WS' link, which I did. If you get to know me, I try hard not to throw just any ol' thing lying around to see what sticks.<BR/><BR/>But NGOs have great sway in the public debate, let's be clear. They are quoted endlessly and without fail in (most often lefty) Jeremiads. Speaking truth to power and all that.<BR/><BR/>Or perhaps you see them Tom Van Dykehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07121072404143877596noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5264937.post-1150161339644041512006-06-12T21:15:00.000-04:002006-06-12T21:15:00.000-04:00I don't know what the hell Goodman is smoking, but...I don't know what the hell Goodman is smoking, but what's wrong with what Roth said? It might be a slight overgeneralization, inasmuch as I haven't seen any direct reports on the mental states of the three decedents previous to their suicides, but if you've followed the reports out of Gitmo over the past two years, there is quite a lot of anecdotal evidence of mounting despair: lawyers report Mike Russohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16875295164111148699noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5264937.post-1150161126743941782006-06-12T21:12:00.000-04:002006-06-12T21:12:00.000-04:00Winston,Just a caution. When you find yourself usi...Winston,<BR/><BR/>Just a caution. When you find yourself using the phrase, "you people" or "those people", it may be time to step back and take a deep breath.<BR/><BR/>Just for your health, you know.Random Michelle Khttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13817444379694818074noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5264937.post-1150155653988379142006-06-12T19:40:00.000-04:002006-06-12T19:40:00.000-04:00Yeah, I'm with p mac.Yeah, I'm with p mac.Winston Smithhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08780746334199630779noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5264937.post-1150154542530581492006-06-12T19:22:00.000-04:002006-06-12T19:22:00.000-04:00Tom--Two people from NGOs saying something doesn't...Tom--<BR/>Two people from NGOs saying something doesn't have quite the same impact as an official government communique. I'd never have heard of those guys if you hadn't posted it here. An official government announcement is genuine news.<BR/><BR/>Al Qaeda is basically a cult. There are ways to deprogram cult members. Guantanamo is not following the usual procedures, to say the least. <BR/><Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5264937.post-1150153101720302002006-06-12T18:58:00.000-04:002006-06-12T18:58:00.000-04:00William Goodman from the New York-based Center for...<I>William Goodman from the New York-based Center for Constitutional Rights told AFP news agency the three dead men were "heroes for those of us who believe in basic American values of justice, fairness and democracy". <BR/><BR/>Mr Goodman, whose organisation represents some 300 detainees, said the government had denied them that. <BR/><BR/>Ken Roth, head of Human Rights Watch in New York, told Tom Van Dykehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07121072404143877596noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5264937.post-1150150248679223812006-06-12T18:10:00.000-04:002006-06-12T18:10:00.000-04:00Gone?Gone?James Redekophttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05833355144832388008noreply@blogger.com