Wake up America -- WE ARE AT WAR!!!

© David Burton 2009

     It is time for the American people to wake up and remove the blinders from their eyes, the earplugs from their ears and the dunce caps sitting on their collective heads. AMERICA, WE ARE AT WAR!

     "The United States has been at war for over thirty years. Over that period of time American service men and women, along with U.S. civilians have been repeatedly attacked by Muslim fanatics or, as I prefer to call them, Islamofascists. These Islamic fundamentalists are indeed the modern-day fascists. Their objective is world conquest and the imposition of their version of Islam on all humanity. They ruthlessly murder Americans, non-Muslims and those fellow co-religionists who do not follow their version of Islam." (Ref. 1.)

     United we stand! Nine years later, America stands disunited. We have the memory span of a television sound bite. America stands united unless it requires "blood sweat and tears" or the sacrifice of life, limb and wealth.

     We shall never forget! To Americans, never is apparently relative. Nine years later, too many Americans have forgotten why we went to fight in Afghanistan in the first place. For too many Americans, we shall never forget means we shall never forget until we tire of the struggle to destroy all those who would murder anyone who doesn't submit to their warped interpretation of Islam and its holy book, the Koran.

     Who is the Enemy that We are Fighting Against? - The enemy that is waging war against us is not Osama bin Laden; it is not al Qaeda; it is not Iraq, Afghanistan or Iran; and it is not the Taliban. The enemy is radical Islam and the fundamentalist Muslim extremists who believe that the entire world must accept the Islamic religion as they interpret it. These are the bloodthirsty animals that are the enemies of the civilized world. These are the foes that we must destroy or be subjugated by them. There is no one country that we must defeat. We must defeat a movement, a group of madmen that follow the most extreme interpretations of the Koran. We, and everyone else who do not submit to their rules and their interpretation of the laws of Sharia are their potential victims. They wage their version of Jihad against all ‘non-believers’. And that includes Jews, Christians, Buddhists, Hindus, Atheists, and Muslims who are not of their sect or do not interpret the Koran as they do. We will not win the war against Islamic terrorism by defeating a nation. We will win the war against Islamic terrorism by ridding the world of these radical Islamic groups; we will win the war against Islamic terrorism by denying them countries and safe havens in which to nurture and spread their religion of hate, terror and subjugation; we will win the war against Islamic terrorism by convincing the moderate elements of the Muslim religion to openly defy and fight against these Islamic extremists; we will win the war against Islamic terrorism when all the civilized nations stop deluding themselves into thinking that they will be safe from extremist terrorism if they simply ignore or appease the terrorists.

     Our enemies are not signatories of the Geneva Convention and they have monstrously ignored and mocked the protocols of war, the treatment of captured combatants, and the rights of innocent civilians as defined by the Geneva Convention and as adhered to by all civilized people throughout the world.

     Time and again these animals have demonstrated a total lack of respect for the laws of simple humanity and decency and for the laws and customs of the civilized world. They kidnap, torture, rape, behead, murder and send on suicide missions their own women, their children, and the mentally disabled without any compunction whatsoever. They commit these atrocities against "infidels" and any co-religionist who does not conform to their definition of Islam. These creatures are worse than wild animals and deserve to be granted none of the rights afforded to all members of civilized society.

     To radical Islamicists, war on non-believers is a fundamental requirement on true Muslims as written in their holy book, the Koran. "The idea that the Koran commands them to do violence to unbelievers runs from the very top of the international jihadist movement - Osama bin Laden - down to the rank and file. Overall, it is extremely rare - if not impossible - to find a jihadist who does not cite the Koran to justify his actions. Britain-based jihadist preacher, Abu Yahya, asserts simply, 'It says in the Koran that we must try as much as we can to terrorise the enemy.' And Pakistani jihad leader Beitullah Mehsud claims that 'Allah on 480 occasions in the Holy Koran extols Muslims to wage jihad. We only fulfill God's orders. Only jihad can bring peace to the world.' He specified that his jihad - struggle in Arabic - was an offensive military operation: 'We will continue our struggle until foreign troops are thrown out. Then we will attack them in the US and Britain until they either accept Islam or agree to pay jazia.' The 'jazia,' or jizya, is a tax that the Koran (9:29) specifies must be levied on Jews, Christians, and some other non-Muslim faiths as a sign of their subjugation under the Islamic social order." (Ref. 2.) Theirs is a fundamental religious belief. There is no room for argument or compromise - they believe they are doing God's work and only they know the true meaning of God's words, as they interpret those words in the Koran. There is no reasoning with people such as these.

     When Did This War Begin? - In modern times, Radical Islam has been attacking the U.S. and the rest of the civilized world for decades. Historically, Islam has been at war with the non-Islamic world for sixteen centuries, following the establishment of the Islamic religion in the Arabian peninsula during the seventh century. Islam’s first attempt to conquer the civilized world nearly succeeded. Their first Jihad resulted in the spread the Muslim faith over all of northern Africa, into western Europe in Spain, into the southeastern states of Europe, and eastward as far as India and southeastern Asia before it was finally stopped. 9/11 was not the first attack on American soil. America was attacked by Muslim extremists long before September 11, 2001. The first attack on American soil occurred on November 4, 1979 during the presidency of Jimmy Carter, when Iranian extremists attacked and captured the American embassy and our citizens in Teheran. Under long-standing and universally recognized international law, the foreign embassy of any nation is regarded as being part of the sovereign territory of that nation. When the Muslim extremists attacked our embassy in Teheran, it was the same as attacking New York, Los Angeles, or any other city in the United States. Then president Jimmy Carter totally failed to make any meaningful response to what should have been considered an act of war.

     On February 26, 1993, Muslim extremists attacked the United States by detonating a truck bomb in the garage of the World Trade Center in New York City. The then newly elected president, Bill Clinton, made no response to the attack. On August 7, 1998, Islamic terrorists killed hundreds of people in simultaneous truck bomb explosions at the United States embassies in the East African capital cities of Dar es Salaam, Tanzania and Nairobi, Kenya. The attacks, linked to local members of the Egyptian Islamic Jihad brought Osama bin Laden and Ayman al-Zawahiri to American attention for the first time, and resulted in the F.B.I. placing bin Laden on its Ten Most Wanted list. In response to the bombings, U.S. President Bill Clinton ordered Operation Infinite Reach, a few ineffectual cruise missile strikes on targets in Sudan and Afghanistan on August 20, 1998.

     Clearly, attacks against America on American soil have been taking place for at least some 3 decades. We have collectively stuck our heads in the sand and blithely ignored the realities that Radical Islam had been fighting an undeclared war against the U.S. and has been attacking us on our own soil for years.

     What Do We Need to Do to Win this War? - To win this war, we must defeat radical Islam and the fundamentalist Muslim extremists who believe that the entire world must accept the Islamic religion as they interpret it. We must defeat a movement, a group of madmen that follow the most extreme interpretations of the Koran. We can only win the war against Islamic terrorism by ridding the world of these radical Islamic groups; we can win the war against Islamic terrorism by denying them countries and safe havens in which to nurture and spread their religion of hate, terror and subjugation; we can win the war against Islamic terrorism by convincing the moderate elements of the Muslim religion to openly defy and fight against these Islamic extremists; we can win the war against Islamic terrorism when all the civilized nations stop deluding themselves into thinking that they will be safe from extremist terrorism if they simply ignore or appease the terrorists.

     President George H. Bush got it partly right when he responded to Saddam Hussein's invasion of Kuwait by marshalling a coalition that totally defeated Hussein and Iraq. He failed to complete the job by ousting Saddam Hussein and ending his tyrannical rule. President George W. Bush got it partly right when he responded to the attack of 9/11 by ending the Taliban rule over Afghanistan and destroying most of al Qaeda in that country and sending them scurrying into the caves and mountains of southern Afghanistan and northern Pakistan. He failed to complete the job of totally destroying al Qaeda and killing or imprisoning all of its members in the region. George W. Bush did get it totally right when he completed the unfinished work of his father in Iraq. Under his leadership, al Qaeda was totally defeated in Iraq, Saddam Hussein and his henchmen no longer tyrannize that country and the Iraqi people have the opportunity to establish and run the only potentially democratic nation in the Muslim near-east. President Bush made it clear why we had to succeed in Iraq when he said, “If we were not fighting and destroying this enemy in Iraq, they {the Islamic fascists} would not be idle. They would be plotting and killing Americans across the world and within our own borders. By fighting these terrorists in Iraq, Americans in uniform are defeating a direct threat to the American people. Against this adversary, there is only one effective response: We will never back down. We will never give in. And we will never accept anything less than complete victory.” (Ref. 3.)

     We now have a new U.S. leader in the war against radical Islam. His actions in his first year in office do not bode well for winning the war. One of his first actions in office was to announce the politically motivated closing of the Prisoner Of War (POW) camp in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.

     Captured terrorists are enemy combatants and should be imprisoned in POW camps until the end of the war, even if that means staying in a POW camp for the rest their lives. If they are guilty of atrocities, they should be tried as war criminals and punished accordingly. They are not entitled to the protection afforded U.S. citizens under our Constitution. We already have the perfect POW camp. It’s the one at Guantanamo Bay (Gitmo) in Cuba. Gitmo should stay open and continue to serve the function for which it was created. There is, and never was, a rational reason to close it. We have no legal or moral obligation to give these miserable creatures any better treatment than they provide to their perceived enemies. We do have a moral obligation to use whatever means necessary to save the lives of our soldiers, our citizens and the lives of all civilized people who are threatened by this cancer. To do otherwise would be criminal and immoral.

     The Time Line for Ending the War - The war against radical Islamic terrorism has already lasted for decades if not centuries. America and the rest of the civilized non-Islamic world had just failed to admit it. We all have preferred to close our eyes to the facts and have engaged in the wishful thinking that the problem would just disappear all by itself. It won’t! In truth, the problem has worsened because of our failure to forcefully respond to the actions of the terrorists. The war against Islamic terrorism will end when they (or we) are defeated. There can be no time line for ending the war against radical Islam – to think there is one is just more wishful thinking. We did not revolt against Great Britain thinking that we would only fight up until a certain date. We initiated the Revolutionary War with the objective of fighting until independence was achieved. Abraham Lincoln did not lead the Union in the Civil War with the objective of stopping on a given date – He led the Union with the stated goal of reunifying the North and the South. We did not enter World War II with the understanding that we would stop fighting on a date certain. We went to war with the commitment to fight Imperialist Japan and Nazi Germany until unconditional victory was achieved. In war, no end date can be predetermined. Only the goal of the war can be pre-specified – and in the war against Muslim terrorism, that goal must be the defeat of radical Islamic fundamentalism.

     In truth, the war against radical Islam is a war that will last for generations to come. It can only be won after there is a fundamental change in radical Islamic beliefs and attitudes, and that requires generations of change. Within our lifetime, there will be no quick and clean victory where all our troops come home and we can have a ticker tape parade down Broadway. Israel has been at war with its Arab neighbors and Islamic terrorists for over 60 years - the end there is not yet in sight. Why should we be so naive as to think that our war on Islamic terror can be won in a few weeks, a few months or even a few years?

     President Obama has now announced his strategy for winning the battle in Afghanistan. Unfortunately, it does not appear to be a strategy for success. The president's announced strategy calls for an increase in the number of troops in Afghanistan, but also fatally establishes a fixed date for the withdrawal of U.S. Forces from that country. The president's plan has been characterized as a "presidential declaration of surrender in advance of a renewed campaign in Afghanistan." By announcing that the U.S. will "begin the transfer of our forces out of Afghanistan in July of 2011," the president has, in effect, told "the Taliban to be patient because we're leaving." "Obama is setting up our military to fail - but he'll be able to claim that he gave the generals what they wanted. Failure will be their fault. He's covering his strong-on-security flank, even as he plays to our white-flag waivers." The president's announcement of a date-certain to begin withdrawal from Afghanistan is simply a political sop to the liberal members of his party and a look forward to the 2012 presidential elections. Is it a coincidence that the troops will start to come home just as the 2012 presidential election campaign is starting? The president's announcement on Afghanistan sends the following messages:

     "To our troops: Risk your lives for a mission I've written off."
     "To our allies: Race you to the exit ramp."
     "To the Taliban: Allah is merciful, your prayers will soon be answered."
     "To Pakistan: Renew your Taliban friendships now (and be nice to al-Qaeda)." (Ref. 4.)

     "When fighting insurgents and terrorists, if you're not breaking bones, you're losing. Obama isn't sending more troops - he's sending more targets." (Ref. 4.)

     "Mr. President, how can you send our troops to war without backing them all the way? Why did you reassure the Taliban that we've already fixed a sell-by date?" (Ref. 4.)

     "Obama's delivery {in announcing his Afghan strategy at West Point} was superb. But what he was delivering was a funeral oration for his promised strategy." (Ref. 4.)

     "The stage lighting and the camera angles at West Point were terrific. Our President looked good. Jaw jutting high (in his 'hope' pose), he decried political partisanship - but spent more time blaming Bush and Iraq for our Afghan problems than he spent blaming the Taliban." (Ref. 4.)

     The Will to Win - In order to win the war against terrorism, the first thing required is the will to win. U.S. Army General David Petraeus “acknowledges that after eight years of war against a determined and elusive enemy, many Americans, including some members of Congress, question whether the war in Afghanistan remains worth fighting. Petraeus himself, however, has no such doubts, even as he predicts that the campaign there could last another decade – or even longer.” “Permitting Afghanistan once more to become a homeland for Islamic terrorists and revolutionaries … creates too much danger for a large portion of the world, Petraeus said.” When asked what America would need besides more troops and good intelligence in Afghanistan, General Petraeus replied, “Time.” (Ref. 5.) Does the President and the Democratic controlled Congress have the will to win? The evidence to date says no.

     When the president says that, " 'after 18 months, our troops will begin to come home and we'll begin the transfer of our forces out of Afghanistan in July of 2011' ... It's as if, during WWII we'd told the Japanese and Germans that we really meant business, but intended to quit by 1944."
     "The policy isn't 'Go in big and get the job done.' Nor is it 'Get out fast before any more Americans get hurt.' Instead, it's the 'Surrender Surge.' Go in big so you can get out fast."
     "And the emphasis is clearly on getting out."
     "It's been noted that Obama never used the words, 'victory' and 'win' once in his speech. Why would he? His key audience - the liberal base of his party - doesn't care about a win. They just want out." (Ref. 6.)

     "Their rallying cry isn't 'V for Victory,' but the somewhat less inspiring 'T for Transition!' 'Transition' and 'Transfer' appeared a combined 10 times in Obama's speech, along with 'take over' 'handing over'..."
     "All music to the ears of Obama's base. ... When it comes to Afghanistan, there is no Kick Ass Caucus in the Democratic party." (Ref. 6.)

     "For 18 months we'll pretend to fight a war. Some 100 or so soldiers and marines will be killed - not for a military objective, but for a political one, to protect Obama and his party from the consequences of their Afghanistan policy."
     "Then in the summer before the 2012 election season, the troops will start coming home. The President will say 'Well, we tried.' And ... liberals will be very, very happy." (Ref. 6.)

     "If this is what passes for a new Afghan war strategy it is pathetic - and dangerous. In attempting to make peace within his own fractured party, President Barack Obama will put more American lives at risk and provide an open invitation to the Taliban to simply wait out the departure of those troops." "... by announcing ... that American troops will begin their exit by July 2011 Obama has served them {the Taliban} notice that all they have to do is wait - and the Taliban is very good at waiting." (Ref. 7.) " 'The way that you win wars is to break the enemy's will, not to announce dates that you are leaving.' said Sen. John McCain." in response to the president's Afghan strategy speech at West Point. (Ref. 8.)

     What are the likely consequences of the Obama Afghanistan strategy? If America pulls out of Afghanistan before real victory is achieved, "Afghan militants would be seen as having defeated NATO. ... Afghanistan would again become a haven for Jihadis to seeking to attack the West or to destabilize Pakistan and get their hands on its nuclear weapons." (Ref. 9.)
     As is the case in the global war against radical Islamic terrorism, the insurgency in Afghanistan cannot be defeated solely by military means. The war must also be waged on the political and economic fronts. In Afghanistan, this will likely mean negotiations between Afghan leaders and top Taliban leaders who break with al Qaeda. "But such peace negotiations won't make headway as long as the Taliban believe they are winning and only need to wait for a NATO exit." (Ref. 9.)

     Afghanistan, per se, is not necessarily our only concern or the most important concern in the region. The fate of Pakistan may ultimately have greater significance. "If Pakistani officials think we are quitting Afghanistan, they will support a takeover by their old allies, the Afghan Taliban; ... The only chance to get the Pakistani brass to squeeze the Afghan Taliban is if they believe NATO is determined to stabilize Afghanistan."
     "Achieving such a goal will be difficult, but not impossible, and the alternatives are far more disturbing." (Ref. 9.) Just consider the prospect of nuclear weapons in the hands of Islamic Jihadists!

     "During the Reagan years, self-defense was known as 'peace through strength.' And it worked. America's strength and the assurance held by much the world that we were willing to use our muscle against threats served to deter those who might have wanted a piece of us." (Ref. 10.) In other words, we were perceived as having the will to use our might and the will to win. "There was a time when America was feared. We either restore it or we'll live - or die - to regret it." (Ref. 10.) We can either wage the war against radical Islam on their home turf or we can fight the war here in America. Let's not forget that 9/11 did not happen because we were fighting in Iraq or Afghanistan. We have been fighting in Iraq and Afghanistan because Muslim extremists attacked us here in America. Since we responded to the 9/11 attacks, the war has been waged on the grounds of the terrorists and not here. We need to continue to carry the fight to the enemy and not give them the breathing room to plan more attacks against America.

     A Peace Time Draft? - It has been said that America possesses the finest military in the world. In peacetime and in limited military engagements, this is probably a valid statement. BUT, over extended periods of hostilities, we are wearing down our war fighting capabilities. "A classified Pentagon assessment concludes that long tours in Iraq and Afghanistan, along with persistent terrorist activity and other threats, have prevented the U.S. Military from improving its ability to respond to new crises." (Ref. 11.) We are wearing out our military personnel and their equipment. Multiple tours of duty are eroding the morale of our all-volunteer military and their families. It's time for the rest of us to assume our fair share of the burden! It's time the rest of us to assume our duty as citizens to fight alongside these volunteer soldiers. It's time for the rest of us to assume our obligation as Americans to make the financial sacrifices to fund the war against terrorism. We need to stop funding the war with "supplemental budget requests" and to lay out annual budget line item funds for the war and to pay for these costs with the necessary taxes.

     The ongoing war against Muslim terrorism is wearing down our peace-time volunteer Army. The strains are showing everywhere. Quality is now beginning to suffer. “Since the start of the Iraq war … the percentage of recruits who have graduated from high school has dropped annually. It is now down to 71 percent, well below the 90 percent level the military would like to maintain.” “… fewer and fewer young people with solid educational backgrounds are willing to enlist.” (Ref. 12.) “Gen. James T. Conway, commandant of the Marine Corps … said Marines are overstressed and need more time at home between deployments.” (Ref. 13.)

     The ongoing war against Muslim radical fundamentalists in Afghanistan, Iraq and elsewhere has shown that this country cannot repeatedly ask these men and women of the volunteer military, along with the reservists and the National Guard units to be the only military defenders of our country. We simply cannot keep sending them back, over and over, to carry on the long term war against these Islamic thugs. The war against Muslim extremism will persist for decades. The all-volunteer military serves the purpose admirably well in conflicts that are limited in scope and duration - there are none better. BUT, the war against Islamic terrorism is limited neither in scope nor in duration. (Ref. 14.)

     Americans must assume a greater role in this ongoing war. We must do what Americans have always done in times of war. More of us must serve in the Military - voluntarily or otherwise. If otherwise, then a form of military draft must be reinstated. In Israel, nearly all citizens of military age must serve in the military. There are no exemptions for college students or employment in defense related industries as was the case with the draft in the United States during the Viet Nam War. America does not need nor can it afford to have everyone perform some military service, but, it could put in place a lottery-based draft system with no exemptions for the needed number of men and women who would be required to serve for a specified period of time. I’m certain that other equitable systems can be developed. The main point is that the burdens of freedom must be shared equally and equitably and not by a few. The time to begin a reform in the Military is now rather than later. The volunteer military must continue and they must constitute the core of our defense. It has been said that "Freedom is not free." The rest of us must pay our fair share, in terms of our money, our blood, our sweat, and our tears. The time for letting someone else do the work is over. (Ref. 14.)

     Should We be the Only Country Fighting the War Against Radical Islam? - The answer to this question is an unqualified no! Islamic extremists have unofficially declared war on every civilized nation in the world. Islamic extremists have declared every non-Muslim in the world to be their enemies and deserving of death. Islamic extremists have declared war on every moderate Muslim in the world. Islamic extremists are attacking and murdering every Muslim not of their sect and those who don’t adhere to their warped interpretation of Islam. The United States must not be the only country that is fully committed to win the war against Muslim extremism. We need to get the rest of the civilized world to accept the realities of the war being fought and get them to provide their share of the resources - men, material, money and commitment – needed to win the war.

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References:

When will America realize that we are at war?, David Burton, www.sonofeliyahu.com, 11 December 2005.

Robert Spencer interviewed at Right Wing News on his book "The Complete Infidel's Guide to the Koran", and related and unrelated issues, Robert Spencer, www.jihadwatch.com, 26 October 2009.

Bush's Iraq plan clear and right, Editorial, Boston Herald, Pg 38, 1 December 2005.

Dereliction of presidential duty . . ., Ralph Peters, Boston Herald, Page 23, 2 December 2009.

General Petraeus Gives a War Briefing, Col. Jack Jacobs, Parade Magazine, Pgs. 8, 10, 11, 29 November 2009.

. . . and how well it plays in Bay State, Michael Graham, Boston Herald, Page 23, 2 December 2009.

Dangerous strategy, Editorial, Boston Herald, Page 16, 2 December 2009.

Prez Rolls Dice By Escalating Unpopular War, Associated Press, Boston Herald, Page 6, 2 December 2009.

Surge is best solution, Trudy Rubin, Boston Herald, Page 17, 2 December 2009.

Cowering leaves U.S. defenseless, Cal Thomas, Boston Herald, Page 21, 22 September 2009.

Pentagon: Military readiness at risk, editorial, Boston Herald, Page 13, 9 February 2008.

In the Army, strains are showing, Editorial, Boston Sunday Globe, Pg. E8, 27 January 2008.

Washington Pulse, Sandra I. Erwin & Grace V. Jean, National Defense, Pg. 14, March 2008.

Stop the "Stop Loss", David Burton, www.sonofeliyahu.com, 26 May 2008.

18 December 2009 {Article 63; Islam_06}

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