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From: berman@psuvax1.UUCP (Piotr Berman)
Newsgroups: net.politics
Subject: Re: Patriotism and America Bashing
Message-ID: <1770@psuvax1.UUCP>
Date: Fri, 6-Sep-85 16:52:48 EDT
Article-I.D.: psuvax1.1770
Posted: Fri Sep  6 16:52:48 1985
Date-Received: Mon, 9-Sep-85 01:50:54 EDT
References: <366@drutx.UUCP>
Organization: Pennsylvania State Univ.
Lines: 39

> > = From: richardt@orstcs.UUCP (richardt)
> >> = David Olson
> 
> >>Suppose I drag people out of hospitals and kill them.
> >>Question:
> >>Can I do ANY of those things and still be justifiably be called a fighter
> >>of oppression?  If you cannot answer "NO", then you are a fool and you
> >>didn't even have to laugh!
> >>David Olson
> 
> >I hate to tell you this, David, but by those standards the Good Ole' U.S. 
> >of A.  is one of the prime causers of oppression.
> 
> I won't even try to dispute this. Mainly because it presents the philosophical
> predicament of trying to prove a negative.  BTW -- I am very much opposed to
> oppression, even if the oppressor happens to be an American!  Supprised?  (If
> your comment is meant to dispute mine, I guess I missed it.)  But, I cannot
> accept an equation that goes something like this: 'An oppressive American
> ==> an oppressive America ==> *ANY* American = oppressor.  Therefore,
> imprisoning/beating/killing *ANY* American = fighting oppression'.  As
> plausible as that sounds, it seems to be a rather large case of begging the
> question.
> 
Interestingly enough, it was Shia's Amal who was draging PLO wounded from
hospitals in Beirut.  Sometimes we forget how much of the violence does not
involve Americans.  It seems to me that most of the the groups who use 
terror against Americans are just using violence against all their 
adversaries.  American problem with terrorists is by no means unique or
extraordinary.  Nor is the current wave of terrorism without precedents.
I view terrorists as cockroaches of the world: as with cockroaches, there
are objective reasons for their existance, they are difficult to eradicate,
and they are not nice.
[BTW, imagine Reagan and Schulz making tough anti-cockroach speeches,
 promising preemptive strikes and swift retribution whenever they 
 intrude the White House or the Capitol]

 Piotr Berman
 then everybody would expect
totally within