Comments on: Power and Harmony Part 1: America in the Twenty-First Century http://blog.psaonline.org/2008/08/19/power-and-harmony-part-1-america-in-the-twenty-first-century/ Wed, 08 Feb 2012 08:45:45 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.2.1 By: Jim http://blog.psaonline.org/2008/08/19/power-and-harmony-part-1-america-in-the-twenty-first-century/comment-page-1/#comment-1210296 Jim Wed, 20 Aug 2008 22:20:44 +0000 http://blog.psaonline.org/?p=588#comment-1210296 Gorbachev is right; the unnecessary buildup of our arsenal and positioning of 'defensive' missiles in Poland has infuriated Russia, much like the Jupiter and Thor missiles placed in Turkey by the U.S. Russia has to do something; back then, the USSR decided to counter that threat by placing nuclear missiles in Cuba. The result, as you all should know, was the showdown called the Cuban Missile Crisis...we were dangerously close to nuclear war. I was aboard an attack aircraft carrier 50 miles off the Russian coast; our warplanes were armed with nuclear weapons, standing ready on the catapults... We should realize that we are doing the same thing by placing any missiles (although they are deemed 'defensive' by Secretary Rice) in Poland or Georgia we risk the same confrontation--this time, however, our military's conventional forces are too weak to support any effective countermeasure should the Russians retaliate...and we are once again in a situation that could escalate into a nuclear nightmare. Forget 'conventional' terrorism!! Gorbachev is right; the unnecessary buildup of our arsenal and positioning of ‘defensive’ missiles in Poland has infuriated Russia, much like the Jupiter and Thor missiles placed in Turkey by the U.S. Russia has to do something; back then, the USSR decided to counter that threat by placing nuclear missiles in Cuba. The result, as you all should know, was the showdown called the Cuban Missile Crisis…we were dangerously close to nuclear war. I was aboard an attack aircraft carrier 50 miles off the Russian coast; our warplanes were armed with nuclear weapons, standing ready on the catapults…

We should realize that we are doing the same thing by placing any missiles (although they are deemed ‘defensive’ by Secretary Rice) in Poland or Georgia we risk the same confrontation–this time, however, our military’s conventional forces are too weak to support any effective countermeasure should the Russians retaliate…and we are once again in a situation that could escalate into a nuclear nightmare. Forget ‘conventional’ terrorism!!

]]> By: ken http://blog.psaonline.org/2008/08/19/power-and-harmony-part-1-america-in-the-twenty-first-century/comment-page-1/#comment-1208164 ken Tue, 19 Aug 2008 17:27:44 +0000 http://blog.psaonline.org/?p=588#comment-1208164 This is a thoughtful analysis. However, I think the importance of terrorism is misinterpreted. The whole idea of a war on terrorism is conceptually treacherous and dishonest. Terrorism is a tactic. Under the banner of the war on terrorism long standing rights in the west are undermined or jettisoned. The right of habeas corpus is a good example. The war on terrorism is to a considerable extent a cloak to mask imperialist aims as well as a means of conditioning populations to accept an aggressive imperialist foreign policy. The article also downplays the developing conflict between Russia and the US and China and the U.S. The U.S. is surrounding Russia with hostile states through aid and covert help to opposition groups that resulted in various flower revolutions. The U.S. has also simply ignored Russian objections to the missile defence system in Eastern Europe. Also, China is more and more coming into conflict with the U.S. over oil in areas such as Africa. Both China and Russia will no doubt continue to increase their military spending and although it may be some time before they can claim any equality that is not necessary to challenge the U.S. The slow withdrawal from Georgia and the destruction of U.S. provided military equipment and the confiscation of other equipment is a punishment of Georgia and the U.S. that is going on despite all the howls of protest from the west. This is a thoughtful analysis. However, I think the importance of terrorism is misinterpreted. The whole idea of a war on terrorism is conceptually treacherous and dishonest. Terrorism is a tactic. Under the banner of the war on terrorism long standing rights in the west are undermined or jettisoned. The right of habeas corpus is a good example. The war on terrorism is to a considerable extent a cloak to mask imperialist aims as well as a means of conditioning populations to accept an aggressive imperialist foreign policy.
The article also downplays the developing conflict between Russia and the US and China and the U.S. The U.S. is surrounding Russia with hostile states through aid and covert help to opposition groups that resulted in various flower revolutions. The U.S. has also simply ignored Russian objections to the missile defence system in Eastern Europe. Also, China is more and more coming into conflict with the U.S. over oil in areas such as Africa. Both China and Russia will no doubt continue to increase their military spending and although it may be some time before they can claim any equality that is not necessary to challenge the U.S. The slow withdrawal from Georgia and the destruction of U.S. provided military equipment and the confiscation of other equipment is a punishment of Georgia and the U.S. that is going on despite all the howls of protest from the west.

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