the dissident frogman

20 years and 6 months ago

Myths & Legends ♠ Mythes & Legendes

the dissident frogman

Necrothreading much?

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From somebody I read often, but never actually blogged about: Victor Davis Hanson, in Legend of the Fall on NRO:
French newspapers may blare, "The slowly rotting situation in Iraq, the Mideast and Afghanistan has destroyed the myth American omnipotence," but they don't tell us how removing the Taliban and Saddam Hussein is worse than selling weapons to them or why and how France lost 30 times more of its own citizens to heat in a month than we lost soldiers in battle in two years. Apparently French apartments are far more deadly places than the Pakistani border or the Sunni Triangle.
And also:
There is, however, a political crisis. Critics of the near-flawless military campaign of three weeks were stymied when none of their bleak scenarios came to pass: thousands killed; millions of refugees; governments toppled; terrorist attacks in the United States; mass starvation; and hundreds of U.N. camps. Thus in a frenzied election year they have turned to two backup positions: reconstruction as "quagmire" and WMDs as the sole (and fraudulent) reason for war. Both strategies are risky because they presuppose that a year from now Iraq will be worse, not better, and that there will be no forthcoming textual or eyewitness reports that such weapons in fact were hidden, exported, or secretly dismantled as some goofy gambit of an unhinged dictator.
It's not just about the French press or the critics of the Iraqi battle, but about the war in general.

You should read the whole thing.

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De quelqu'un que je lis souvent, mais au sujet de qui je n'avais jamais vraiment bloggé auparavant : Victor Davis Hanson, dans Légendes d'Automne sur NRO:
Les journaux français peuvent trompeter: "Situation de lent pourrissement en Irak, le Moyen Orient et l'Afghanistan ont détruit le mythe de l'omnipotence américaine," mais ils ne nous disent pas en quoi supprimer les Talibans et Saddam Hussein est pire que de leur vendre des armes ou pourquoi et comment la France a perdu 30 fois plus de ses propres citoyens par la chaleur en un mois que nous n'avons perdu de soldats sur le champ de bataille en deux ans. Apparemment, les appartements français sont des endroits bien plus mortels que la zone frontalière avec le Pakistan ou le triangle sunnite.
Et aussi :
Il existe, cependant, une crise politique. Les critiques de ce qui fut une campagne militaire quasi parfaite de trois semaines ont été bien contrariés lorsque aucun de leurs mornes scénarii ne se sont produits : milliers de morts, millions de réfugiés, gouvernements renversés, attaques terroristes aux Etats-Unis, famines de masse et centaines de camps de l'ONU. Ainsi,au sein d'une frénétique année d'élections, ils se sont retranchés sur deux positions de repli : la reconstruction comme "enlisement" et les ADM comme seule (et frauduleuse) raison pour la guerre. Les deux stratégies sont risquées car elle présupposent que d'ici un an, l'état de l'Irak sera pire, ou pas meilleur, et qu'il n'y aura rapport disponible, textuel ou de témoin oculaire, montrant que de telles armes ont en fait été cachées, exportées ou secrètement démantelées en un pari insensé par un dictateur instable.
Ce n'est pas seulement consacré à la presse française et aux critiques de la bataille d'Irak, mais au sujet de la guerre en général.

Vous devriez lire le tout.

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the dissident frogman

I own, built and run this place. In a previous life I was not French but sadly, I died.

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Comments thread (3)

835 - Papertiger

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VIctor missed the mark with the last paragraph. I don't believe we will ever abandon the South Koreans, Tiawanese, Austrailians or any other country or fraction of a country that petitions America's help against a Dictator. There might be a populist movement in some countries to cut ties with America , but I think that they will only point out how little control the electorate has in certain countries. The politicals will continue their socialist nannying of the public, and drag the anti- America crowd to accept what is good for them. Ain't it awful.

836 - Hank Scorpio

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I can't get enough of VDH. Great historian, and his points are always salient. If any of you come across it, give his book Carnage and Culture a look. It goes into great detail behind how western culture has enabled us to be so lethal in battle. A great read.

837 - julia

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this was a good story/myth/ledgend you all should be very proud of your self keep up the good work................!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!