‘Our Country Is in Trouble’

"We have found the enemy, and he is us!"

i agree that bin ladens six points are what causes anti americanism in the muslim world...would he settle for 5.. we still support Isreal. but not the facist states of saudi araiba, egypt etc??

What this guy suggests is capitulation to those that would harm us. He works to give credence to the claims of Al- queda by focusing on their objectives and desires. Appeasement is a rotten way of solving conflicts or trying to avoid them; ask the Brits about their experiences with hitler pre ww2 or better yet read a history book and see the results of a major power trying to appease an agressor by giving major concessions. after reading this note the disastrous results.

so he would advocate a complete appeasement program and hope that solves the problem? wait, this would mean not catching bin laden as he would become a legitimate statesman? so the real solution in his eyes was that after 9.11 we should have contacted bin-laden and told him WE are the ones that are SORRY?

This guy sounds disgruntled and has not thought out his suggentions. I think he is just another junping on the personal "I told You so" "I'm so much smarter that you" anti Bush bandwagon. Maybe hes an EX hunter because he wasn't a very good one. He seems to want to deflect the blame as much as place it.

Or perhaps book sales are lucrative especially if you can appeal to your audience. Well I'm not buying it.

faminchin @ 02/16/2008 5:43:33 PM

Look faminchin, you're entitled to your opinion on this and to think that I should feel shame for expressing concern with our foreign policy is wrong. I'm an American just like you and love my country! That doesn't mean that we haven't done "bad" things in the past or that we don't have policies that are wrong.....The reference to the Roman Empire dealt with economic & political expansion. Eventually, they grew too large, ran up deficits, and fell apart. That's a concern that I have especially when we'll be running a $10 trillion deficit by the end of this year. We trained Bin Laden during the 1970s-80s to fight off our former enemy the Soviets in Afghanistan. We funded Saddam in order to fight against Iran during the 70s-80s after our "Shah" was deposed of in Iran. We used the CIA and other organizations to eliminate/install puppet leaders in Vietnam, Guatemala, and tried to eliminate Castro in 1961. We support the Saud monarchy in Saudi Arabia and royal family in Kuwait. What makes them different than other dictatorships around the world? My point is, at one time or another, we have made decisions solely on our own interests around the world that has left a bad taste in the rest of the
world. I'd love to see the US reassert itself as the noble leader of the world like we were during the 1940s-1950s when we did tremendous things in Japan, Western Europe with the Marshall Plan, and defeated the likes of Hitler & Mussolini in Europe. I love my country, always will, but at least I'm willing to lift my head out of the sand and will acknowledge when we make mistakes just like I would in my personal life. We've got big problems ahead of us and need discussion on how to solve them!! Look forward to hearing from ya.

This guy just want to keep the war going to protect Israel. Osama bin laden looked dead to me year ago ,but the pictures now paint his beard to make him look younger.Which means to me the guy is dead or in S Arabia.Will be used the in fall election dead or alive.

If Israel "falls" America is right behind it. The Mohammidans would be unstoppable. It is real irony that a Jew hater like you and Scheuer have only Israel between you and a burqa on yours. Scheuer is not correct in his assessment of OBLs actual "beef" with USA/West. But hate filled, like yourself,. are rarely interested in the truth...

"he will do like clinton, when he was prez we were attacked many times, uss cole. twin towers, and over
seas, and he did nothing,"

Actually, Clinton was the one who sent the cruise missles in on one of their training camps--9/11 happened on Bush's watch, not Bill Clinton.

this war is far from over, they want to kill us al, kids, wifes, blacks whites,
if we vote in a obama who doesnt realize what were up against, were in trouble
he will gut our armed forces like jimmy carter did.
and he will do like clinton, when he was prez we were attacked many times, uss cole. twin towers, and over
seas, and he did nothing, we need a prez like mccain, who will keep them on there toes, and make sure were not attacked again

The tiny nation of Israel is our only democratic ally in the entire Muslim Middle East. We support democracy. If we did not, Europe nor Japan would be free and democratic today. Our nation has forgotten that lesson, so we are doomed to repeat it, by appeasing radical Islam that does not practice what it supposedly preaches. This man lead the Bin Ladin hunt during Clinton's reign-not surprised at his passing the buck.
Dixie

I plan to buy Mr Scheuer's book.

This past week Sam Nunn and Willian Cohen were on Charlie Rose discussing the problem of Iraq and mentioned some of the same things Mr Scheuer does.

If Newsweek's member comment boards are going to continue to be magnets for extremists, conspiracy theorists, neocons and other assorted whack- and nut-jobs, we should just do away with the comments sections. Let these wackos find another outlet for their hate, venom, and extreme and inflexible opinions. Or let a sane moderator do some vigilant housekeeping here; when the nutjobs realize their bile won't get posted, they'll find another rock to crawl under.

derekneu assesses Scheuer's observations, saying: "...Take each of the six points Bin Laden gives for his anger toward the west and ask yourself if you would give an inch on any of them." Sigh. derekneu digs in, defending the status quo and urging us to continue on the same course we have been. And how well has that been working out?

No. We need new thinking on the problem, and a new course. By repeating the mantra, "without being able to aquire cheap oil, our economy would take a massive hit that would be very difficult to weather in a globally competetive marketplace," derekneu misses the even larger point that the "globally competitive marketplace" is in the process of ensuring that this diminishing resource will never be cheap again, only increasingly expensive, no matter how many U.S. troops swarm over the sand. The U.S. needs to embark on a Manhattan-like project to simultaneously develop alternative energy sources and technologies, and press aggressively for conservation of traditional ones. Taking anything approaching a long view, oil is over, and we need to understand and act on that. Leapfrogging the politics of oil would be a great step toward defusing the conflicts with the muslim Middle East.

"Strain them any way we can financially," continues derekneu, pouring gasoline on the fire. Again, how well is that working out? If we are so desperate for their oil that we recklessly invade the countries that have it to ensure its continued flow, just who has the leverage to "strain" the other here? Get real. And please, get some new ideas that work. These creaky ones haven't, don't and won't.