Sep 13, 2002
Did we deserve it?
On a day when Russian President Vladimir V. Putin told Bush in a phone call that “there are things we cannot forget, we must not forget,” 53% of 2,803 respondents to an instant poll by the Echo of Moscow radio station said the United States “deserved” last year’s attacks.
I didn’t want to deal with this yesterday to pay at least some respect to those who died, but I was very disheartened to read this story in yesterday’s LA Times. Almost on cue, a complete stranger instant messaged me on AIM, wanting to talk about our present situation in Iraq, and how America’s insistence on being Global Asshole was feeding the fire for this sentiment.
After all, while thousands perished that morning, it’s nothing compared to the innocents who have died around the world because of U.S. aggression.
Am I missing something? When did Osama bin Ladin become the spokesperson for those around the world with grievances towards the U.S.? When the did rest of the world want to even insinuate that the mass murder of thousands of civilians was a legitimate negotiating tool.
Let’s keep things in perspective. I’m all for dealing with what’s wrong with U.S. foreign policy, but if we’re going to validate fanaticism, why did we ever execute that “freedom fighter” Timothy McVeigh?
