h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

I have read and listened to all the rhetoric, the modus operandi and watched the TV pictures of all the happenings in the US. Yes I am absolutely disgusted as are most of the world, however please, I should like to appeal to all politicians to move ahead with care. This horror has been perpetrated by a "gang" of very well organised, very well funded guerillas who have no fear of reprisals. Yes we must find those responsible, but lets not start another war - I remember the tail end of the last, of Korea, of Vietnam of Chechnia - please no more.

Please support those who plead for peace not war in all areas of the world.

How I agree with you. Any response should not be knee jerk but carefully considered and diplomatic routes should be the first option.

On another note, it is little wonder the Royal Family loses the respect of its nation if the Queen nor the Prince of Wales can be bothered to leave Balmoral to attend a memorial service. Wake up, The Firm, get your acts together and get behind your people. Your response is hideous in it tactlessness.

How I agree with you. Any response should not be knee jerk but carefully considered and diplomatic routes should be the first option.

On another note, it is little wonder the Royal Family loses the respect of its nation if the Queen nor the Prince of Wales cannot be bothered to leave Balmoral to attend a memorial service. Wake up, The Firm, get your acts together and get behind your people. Your response is hideous in it tactlessness.

How I agree with you. Any response should not be knee jerk but carefully considered and diplomatic routes should be the first option.

On another note, it is little wonder the Royal Family loses the respect of its nation if the Queen nor the Prince of Wales cannot be bothered to leave Balmoral to attend a memorial service. Wake up, The Firm, get your acts together and get behind your people. Your response is hideous in it tactlessness.

The Palace issued a statement yesterday about the Queens mounting horror and cocern for the people of America. I have heard nothing else since but remain satisfied with that.

Welcome to h2G2 by the way.

To all new researchers once you activate you personal space using the edit page button; other ACES, such as myself and fellow researchers can stop by your page and give you a proper welcome.

Clive

I am sorry for posting the reply too many times. First time in the mix and a typo in first posting made no sense of what I wanted to say. Forgive me those who contribute regularly.

let me also say welcome. I'm just a fellow researcher here who logs in regularly but even I post twice at times. Have you checked out the smiley page yet. You should down and check it out at
A155909.

Getting back to the subject at hand. I hope the US doesn't make the same mistake they did a few years ago when they bombed Khadafi only to learn later that the terrorists came out of Lebanon not Uganda.

I am sure that if the evidence overwhelmingly points to bin Laden and the Taliban refuse to extradite him, Amreica will strike.
I am actually quite confused about the situation. Which is the best way to go? This is the first time I have ever seen anything on this magnitude and find my self laced with mixed emotions.

Nizan

You are not alone Nizan.

Any response, has to be carefully considered. I think it's far too early to decide who is at the centre of the attack or to sp[eculate on how any retaliation to that might proceed.
Our responce should be to feel grief for all those who lost their lives or loved ones yesterday.

Clive.

The situation is devastating and enough innocent people have been hurt.

The Afgan people (or whoever else) should not be held responsible for the actions of the few.

I pray that any retribution is thoroughly thought out.

Enough damage has been done.

Don't forget that yesterdays events put us in to (historically) uncharted territory. Nothing, and I /mean/ nothing, of this kind has happened /ever/ before.

It's also important to remember that, although the Palestinians were partying in their streets, the Palestinian terrorist group that were accused were very quick to deny all knowledge and to offer their condolences to the American people, as was the Palestinian head of state. Nobody, so far, has come forward to claim responsibility.

This isn't normal terrorist behaviour. Normal terrorist behavious involves several organizations, most of whom will not have had anything to do with the act of terrorism that has been perpetrated, coming forward and claiming it was them who did it.

The Americans can't just "take out" some middle-eastern terrorist group they "suspect" of doing this. They'll have to make sure they do nothing aggressive unless they are 110% sure they're hitting the right people. They /cannot/ afford to have the whole of the middle east (almost literally) blow up in their faces.

And they can't even assume it was an Islamic fundamentalist faction. It could have been the Chinese - they've cause enough to be that angry with the US - and whenever something like this happens that implicates Islamic fundamentalist groups, you must look very carefully at the Israelis. It is completely possible that they might have staged the whole thing just to pin the blame on the Palestinians. After all, partying in the streets sounds guilty enough to convince Mr. Bush...

Exactly. Messages of condolence are the best contribution people can make right now.

THe Taliban have issued a statement that they would be prepared to extradite Bin Laden if the United States can produce sufficient evidence implicating him, as per standards for any criminal extradition. If they can't, they have no basis on which to mount a military operation anyway.

THe Taliban have issued a statement that they would be prepared to extradite Bin Laden if the United States can produce sufficient evidence implicating him, as per standards for any criminal extradition. If they can't, they have no basis on which to mount a military operation anyway.

Just a small note from Singapore. We received the news half an hour after the tragedy occured and many of us watched the second plane crash on CNN.

I'm glad that we are being cautious about this. Careful deliberation, not incensed revenge, should dictate our actions to come. We cannot leap to conclusions and retaliate without being sure.

The Taliban are clearly fearful that the US will mount attacks against them, in the event that they cannot find anyone better.

[URL removed by moderator]
Reporting on the online community

US is not a small country, this is only
a wound, US is not killed and can never be...
it'll show the world what a Superpower means, we from
United Kingdom express our highest support to US of A

As some of our ex leaders put is

"UNITED WE STAND - DIVIDED WE FALL"

so lets put to it and eradicate the devil from this
planet earth, unite all people and lets not allow
our leaders to waste time in negotiations, now is the
time to retaliate to our Brother or sister's blood
"REMEMBER we're in a WAR"

>>if the evidence overwhelmingly points to bin Laden and the Taliban refuse to extradite him, Amreica will strike<<

It's also important to remember that the Taliban (offensive though they may be) are over a barrel here, Bin Laden is not a member of the Taliban or anything to do with them, but they are his 'hosts' - and not always by choice.

They have said they would try him in their own country, and have now said that they will extirdite him if a link to this event is proven.

The human cost of this awful act is immense. The financial cost is irrelevant. What matters is where we go from here, how we react, and if we are to rid the world of terrorism then we must put our own house in order too.

We cannot alow knee-jerk reactions. This is unlikely to have anything to do with Palestine, but rather the whole long process of US aggression to many native regimes all around the world. Not only the support for the creation of and anti-Arab policy in Israel, but also the occupation of Lebanon to protect the French installed regime there in 1958, the funding and arming of Morocco to invade Algeria in 1962, the CIA orchestrated and funded overthrow of Iraq in 1963, the US and British funded insurrection in the Yemen Republic 1962-1967 (in which 250,000 Yemeni people were killed), the 1970 CIA's massacre of Jordan's Palestinians in 1970 and the Mercenary Army it paid to invade South Yemen in 1972, the CIA / OPS assassinations of the exiled opponents of King Hassan of Morocco and the Saudi monarchy's, and their attempt to assassinate Nasser (which the British tried also). Repeatedly and publicly the US has opposed the popular democratic nationalist regimes to reinstall the puppet monarchies. After Iraq, Libya and Iran returned to nationalist government in the '70 they have all been under sustained attack from the west. Libya has been bombed, Qadaffi has had numerous assassination attempts, his home destroyed and 2 year old daughter murdered by US Air force bombardment. And these are not even socialist governments, just nationalist governments with capitalist economies wishing to profit from their own resources rather than letting the US corporations cream it off. Remember Kuwait was run and funded by Citicorp. The Gulf War, and the continued offensives against Iraq since then were just the icing on the cake.
If the US want to make the world safe for it's corporations through terrorism, it has to expect some back, sooner or later the worm will turn.

We don't even know if this is an Arab / Islamic question yet. The Americans have done this around the globe, it makes me sick when you hear them talking about "defending democracy" when they have systematically waged war on popular democracies to install right wing puppet regimes.

America has not defended freedom or democracy, but rather has defended American corporations right to be the ones who make the profit on the oil provided. Which countries have nationalised their oil industries, therefore denying US corporations from being the ones who profit from? Iraq, Cuba and Libya: all countries that have faced US aggression in the last three decades (it was only after the nationalisation of US oil interests in Cuba that the US imposed it's blockade and formulated the Bay of Pigs strategy).

I have documented the systematic murder of hundreds of thousands of civilians by US forces in the name of protecting trade on the "What's the Matter With Americans" forum, and this is no place for repeating that. But the US in their actions over the last 25 years have declared open season on civilians.

Now no one deserves to be killed, not in Guatemala, not in Palestine, not in the WTC. As i have said, no-one is served by acts like this, and only the innocent suffer. The truth is that the US has been at war in the 3rd world and Middle East for years, killing primarily civilians, destroying democracy in sovereign countries and installing tyrannical regimes. No, i don't think these people deserve what they got, i don't think anyone deserves it, reaction only causes counter reaction, bitterness and hatred grow. I do however think it is to be expected. You cannot, as a nation, behave like that and expect no retaliation. And as a nation you have declared civilians, women and children just targets.

I hope this was not another Pearl Harbour, i'm hoping it was another Hiroshima.

I agree whole-heartedly with what you say about being too quick to blame parties with no evidence however throwing out ludicrous suggestions that Israel may have orchastrated this whole event just to show up the Palestinians is a very harsh and unrealistic suggestion. Israel is daily battling the forces from within it's own borders in order to restore order and try to get back to the negotiating table. Being forced to deal with the enemy from within has not changed the ethics of the Israelis and the pure longing for peace. By the way, the reason you may have forgotten that only a few hours ago you saw celebrations from some parts of the population in this region at the sight of the tragic events is that the very same people's leaders have threatened international journalists with death threats if they continue to cover their celebratory parties - but they are continuing.
Bottom line - let's get one thing straight. Don't distort the daily sturggle for peace in Israel into something it is not.