Sep 11, 2009

[Gunner C]

The first war that the United States fought was the First Barbary War (1801–1805).  Interestingly, this was against Islamic terrorists, then called pirates. 

I quote:

"It was written in their Koran, that all nations which had not acknowledged the Prophet were sinners, whom it was the right and duty of the faithful to plunder and enslave; and that every muslim who was slain in this warfare was sure to go to paradise. He said, also, that the man who was the first to board a vessel had one slave over and above his share, and that when they sprang to the deck of an enemy's ship, every sailor held a dagger in each hand and a third in his mouth; which usually struck such terror into the foe that they cried out for quarter at once."

Sidi Haji Abdul Rahman Adja, Ambassador to the Court of St James during the negotiations with Thomas Jefferson and John Adams

Sound familiar?  They haven't changed a darned bit.  It was a war then, it is a war now.  We tried to prosecute the first WTC bombing as a crime.  That worked out well, didn't it?  These barbarians need to be found and killed on the field of battle.  Those who are captured need to be held as prisoners until the enemy has either been decimated or they quit.  This will not happen in our lifetime.

[arajca]

A very different point - Sept 11 makes me thankful for jury duty.

My uncle worked at the Pentagon, but he was called for jury duty that day. Before the courts opened, the judge sent the bailiff out to tell the jurors about NYC and to send them home. My uncle decided to go to work and head about the attack on the Pentagon on his drive. From what he said, one of the airplanes tires went through his office window as it impacted the building.

All the people who were absent from work who worked in that section that day were not allowed to come back to the Pentagon for six months. Many retired (my uncle included) without ever setting foot in the Pentagon again.