A better route would be to open up the doors of free trade with the world. Not for bin Laden, but for the world. To remove the power from bin Laden is easy. Give it to others.

Poverty isn’t what motivates the terrorists. Many of the 9/11 hijackers were well-off college graduates. Bin Laden’s second in command is a doctor, as were the terrorists caught in the recent UK bomb plots. You could miraculously give everyone in the world a million bucks and a new Mercedes tomorrow, and it would not change a thing. AQ’s message of hate is religious, not economic.

The USA does not support general free trade with many other democracies.

Interestingly, the people who oppose such a policy are your allies on the left here. For example, they’ve tabled attempts to establish free trade with a very democratic government in Colombia because of a strong pro-Hugo Chavez contingent among the libs.

The USA has a history of creating terror dictatorships by its military intelligence and subterfuge.

Balderdash. We have a history of freeing people. You have a short memory not to remember those Iraqis proudly displaying purple fingers only a year or so ago.

As for New Zealanders, I know all about the track record. The combat record of the ANZAC troops is legendary and exemplary. On the other hand, here in the US, the people of Massachusetts at one time took a stand for low taxes, less government intrusion, and more personal freedom – and look how that’s reversed itself. Get the point?

But I do think both the Republican plan to hit terrorism with war, and the Democrats plan to fudge a withdrawal, negotiate or whatever crap they are dreaming up to take executive power – both are unfortunately going to produce an unsafer world.

I disagree. When Iraq becomes stable, as stable as one can expect a country in it’s position to become, the terrorists will lose all their power. No longer will the “Muslim oppression” propaganda work, it is already turning against them as more Iraqis are fighting alongside U.S. and Iraqi troops. They no longer buy the terrorists version of the truth, but they are seeing the truth with their own eyes. This, in turn, sends a message to all those nations who support terrorism. They will know that they will be held accountable if they train, fund, or support terrorism in any way.

Unfortunately, had more nations joined the coalition from the beginning I feel this would have been accomplished already and the message already sent. Instead, Al Qaeda and it’s supporters, saw hope and promise when the world turned against the war. By pushing the right buttons, they have accomplished far more than they ever thought possible.

A better route would be to open up the doors of free trade with the world. Not for bin Laden, but for the world. To remove the power from bin Laden is easy. Give it to others.

This statement seems to imply that combating poverty will help combat terrorism and on the surface it does. However, as you yourself noted, it does nothing for the Bin Laden’s of the world and as you know, the bin Laden’s cannot be ignored or marginalized. So what do you do? You make them, and all those who support them, afraid. You make the terrorists afraid to leave their caves and you make the nations afraid to give them shelter, training, or money.

Indeed, worldwide terrorism has increased and I feel this is because most of the nations on this earth have chosen to appease rather than confront the threat of Islamic fundamentalism. This, as you know, does nothing but encourage this behavior.

In a post 9/11 world, you cannot ignore a nation that has refused to comply with UN resolutions on terrorism and weapons of mass destruction. Removing Saddam and installing a democracy will have far reaching consequences for Iran, Syria, and Russia which is why they are doing so much to sabotage it.

China is now talking with many nations about free trade.

Sometimes it is better to make a point about running over innocent civilians with tanks rather than make some money, but that’s me. Again, if the world had stood with us, China would not have other countries to turn to and it’s human rights records might be a little better.

Great White Rat – I share your view that terrorism is evil. The strategy is just building more terrorism in the future like the early support of the Saddam regime did.

Sorry to intrude into your way of thinking about opposition. But I do think both the Republican plan to hit terrorism with war, and the Democrats plan to fudge a withdrawal, negotiate or whatever crap they are dreaming up to take executive power – both are unfortunately going to produce an unsafer world.

A better route would be to open up the doors of free trade with the world. Not for bin Laden, but for the world. To remove the power from bin Laden is easy. Give it to others.

The USA does not support general free trade with many other democracies. China is now talking with many nations about free trade. The USA has a history of creating terror dictatorships by its military intelligence and subterfuge. We want to be supportive to the USA, but you will not offer us free trade and we are your mates (even if we want to make a stand on nukes – well that is our right).

To understand the stakes requires the governments of the world to tell the God honest truth and stop using propaganda to nurture the extreme views of the Right and Left.

And before you belittle New Zealanders – they have a fine record of military commitment right there with the USA, the UK, Australia and Canada. You better get yer facts right, mate! And our leader of the opposition believes the Iraq war is over.

there is little point in America spending hundreds of billions of dollars on paranoid security if it stops investment…

Paranoid security? You mean, there’s really no one out there looking to do us harm? Interesting idea. Why don’t we meet for lunch next week and talk about it? We could eat at Windows on the World in New York. Oh wait…no, it’s not there anymore.

As for investment, have you bothered to check a few indicators of America’s economic health? Did it ever occur to you that maybe all those business visitors going to Europe are Americans who might be buying up the place? Europe has the exact kind of open-door, easy-entry policy toward islamofascists that enthralls you, but their unemployment rate is double ours. How’s that figure into your economic theory? No thanks – we will keep a watchful eye on security while the Dow and the GNP move steadily upward.

…investment that would a) stop bin Laden and b) encourage democracy and free trade everywhere.

OK, I gotta hear the explanation of how increased investment in America by China, for example, is going to make Osama think, “You know, this jihad thing is so 2001. If I stop now I can still get a good job in the Kirkuk oil fields.”

And here’s another tip: democracy doesn’t flourish anywhere unless you first have security. A land where Koranimals run loose chopping off heads left and right isn’t a land where people think long and hard about, say, whether there should be term limits on the members of their parliament.

The mistake is to think that war will achieve either goal.

Yup. In the same way that World War II didn’t stop Hitler.

The war on terror has not achieved its basic objectives and seems to be feeding terror rather than destroying it.

That would come as a surprise to the Iraqis who have been working with us to destroy the al Qaeda invaders, as ST noted here. And if he were still alive, it would have come as a shock to Abu Osmaa al-Tunisi, whose last message to bin Laden was a plea for help and showed the weakened state of the terrorists.

“Let’s fight terrorism until we win, we will prevail!” is not reasonable strategic planning. Neither is sudden withdrawal, neither is continuing to fight.

Now THERE’s a firm decisive stand. I suppose this is what passes for “nuance” these days on the leftist fringes. If you don’t want to confront them, what do you want to do? Sit down and negotiate with them? About what….which one of us they get to kill first?

The islamofascists are pure EVIL. You do not try to reach an accommodation with evil. You stamp it out.

Americans need to stop criticizing each other and think more carefully about their country’s strategy and direction.

Here’s a better idea, Nicholas. You need to stop inserting this mush into the debate and go back to things you can comprehend, like looking at the pretty little fishies. Hunker down there in New Zealand and don’t worry. There are a hundred thousand or more brave young men and women who continue to protect your worthless hide from the head-choppers. And they are not only Americans, but Brits, Aussies, Poles, and yes, Iraqis as well as others who do understand the stakes. Because clearly, you have no idea what the stakes are.

The mistake is to think that war will achieve either goal. The left and right are both guilty of attacking each other for being what they are. Both sides of a political view are right and wrong. The war on terror has not achieved its basic objectives and seems to be feeding terror rather than destroying it. The US Government has no result for this war and that is why Friedman does have a point.

“Let’s fight terrorism until we win, we will prevail!” is not reasonable strategic planning. Neither is sudden withdrawal, neither is continuing to fight. Americans need to stop criticizing each other and think more carefully about their country’s strategy and direction.

To lefties like Tom Friedman, the US’ focus on trying to prevent another terrorist attack on our soil has cost us our reputation worldwide, as if we should base the security of this country on what the international community has to say about it.

Well, yes, because look at how many other countries in the past few years have elected governments that want to distance themselves from the U.S., or the west in general.

Like Germany. Oh, wait, no, that last election went the other way, didn’t it?

Or like France…oops, no, wrong again there.

And like the latest one, noted here.

But Friedman can take heart…Hugo Chavez, one of the left’s heros, still hates us.

the United States has lost millions of overseas visitors since 9/11

And yet millions of unwanted “visitors” continue to stream across our southern border.

If you can find a 9′ 12″ man, good luck.

If you could find a 9’12″ man, or even 9’10″, he’d be making a gazillion dollars a year in the NBA.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bao_Xishun

If you can find a 9′ 12″ man, good luck. You know what they say: If a man has big feet he must have big … shoes.

Overall I found the oped to be tedious and silly.

Tom Friedman finally says something sensible about 9/11, after years of “Suck on this, Iraq” and chee…

1. Move your office to Beijing.

2. Replace Gitmo with a free hospital for poor Cubans? I thought they already had free health care–the best in the world. Don’t tell me Michael Moore was wrong?