1. Adam and Eve get booted out of the Garden of Eden. Terrorism generally begins shortly thereafter.

2. Reza Shah Pahlavi (put into power by the CIA in 1953) starts the pro-American White Revolution program in 1963 and begins to piss off the devote Shia population, i.e. the followers of Ayatollah Khomeini.

3. In 1978, an article in Iran denouncing Khomeini starts a popular uprising. In January 1979, the Shah flees Iran (goes to Egypt) and Khomeini comes back from Paris after 14 years of exile. In March 1979, a nationwide referendum establishes Iran as an Islamic Republic.

4. In October 1979, the US allowed the Shah into the country for medical treatment of his cancer. In November 1979, pissed off young Iranian revolutionaries overrun the American Embassy and take hostages.

5. Carter embargoed Iranian oil and took other economic sanctions while working on negotiations. With no diplomatic success, Carter approved the high-risk Operation Eagle Claw military rescue mission in April 1980.

6. The Shah died in July 1980, and Iran invaded Iraq in September 1980. With these events, Carter’s negotiations eventually were successful (after his election defeat). After the US agreed to unfreeze Iranian assets and give them immunity from lawsuits, Iran agreed to free the hostages. Iranians released the hostages 20 minutes after Reagan was inaugurated. Carter met the returning hostages in Germany in January 1981.

7. Far from being afraid of Reagan, the Iranians struck a deal with him to get 1,000 TOW missiles in exchange for their help freeing hostages in Lebanon held by Hezbollah. “However, the arms shipments began before the first hostage was taken, and ended a long time after the last hostage was released.” http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iran-Contra_affair The proceeds from these illegal US weapons sales to Iran go illegally to the Contra terrorists in Nicaragua. The Contras are responsible for thousands of civilian casualties.

8. Reagan was using Iran as a proxy against Iraq. Later, Reagan and George H.W. Bush would give weapons (including materials for making WMD) to Iraq to use it as a proxy against Iran. Go figure.

9. Meanwhile, the Soviet Union invades Afghanistan in December 1979 (busy frickin’ year!) after/during a civil war. Osama bin Laden immediately vows to form an army and fight them.

10. The US supports Osama bin Laden, giving him weapons and military training assistance. Osama’s bunch and others, the Mujahedeen, seem to successfully repel the Soviets (with backing from Saudi Arabia and Pakistan).

11. Saddam invades Kuwait in 1990. Osama asks the Saudi government to help him raise an army to fight the Iraqis. When the Saudis instead allow American forces into the country, Osama is outraged and evolves his group into al Qaeda. He feels that if they can defeat the Soviet superpower, they can defeat the American superpower.

12. George H.W. Bush sends the Iraqis back home. He encourages the oppressed Iraqi Shiites to rise up against Saddam and says he will support them in the bid for freedom. The Shiites do rise up with some success. At the critical point where they need support to finish the job, Bush decides it’s better to keep the devil he knows (Saddam) instead of helping the devil he doesn’t know (an Islamic republic of Iraq). American forces sit in Kuwait and watch Saddam slaughter tens of thousands of Shiites.

13. Through all of this, America continues to support Saudi Arabia and feed from its oil teet. Saudi Arabia continues its dictatorial ways and support for terrorists such as al Qaeda and the Taliban.

14. 9/11/2001.

15. Bush invades Afghanistan as Osama wanted, using the Northern Alliance (the old Mujahedeen) as his foot soldiers. Because these guys are not US troops, they are bought off or incompetent and allow Osama to escape the Tora Bora battle. Osama looses in Afghanistan, but lives to fight another day. Terrorism around the world skyrockets.

16. Bush invades Iraq in an immoral, illegal, unnecessary war. Osama is delighted. He gets his wish a second time: American troops in his backyard that he can attack, kill, and show the US is defeatable. Iraq becomes the ideal training ground and recruitment poster for terrorists. The US military is gradually drained, weakened, and embarrassed in Iraq. Iraq will devolve into either civil war or a replacement strongman dictator, regardless of how long the US stays. Democracy doesn’t come at the point of a gun.

17. Katrina 2005. This event proves the Bush government has done essentially nothing to prepare for another terrorist attack. The war on terror is clearly only a political game designed to keep Bush and the Repubs in power. Terrorists flourish because of the blatant hypocrisy and utter failure to address the root causes of terrorism, to act morally with respect to prisoners around the world and civilians in Iraq, and to work together as a world community instead of pulling out of or not living up to multiple international agreements such as the ABM treaty and the Non-Proliferation treaty.

CZ-1: So, you’d have preferred that Carter started a war that would have killed thousands? Then he could have called himself “a war President” and easily win reelection. Hmm…where have I seen that before? You may think it’s manly to order the military to bomb people, but it’s cowardly.

Carter had a responsibility to those people and he failed them. He’ a mealy mouthed terrorists appeasing chickenshit. Yes, he should have bombed the hell out of them. Because he didn’t Islamofreaks around the world got the idea in their head they could do anything they wanted (and they did) to us and get away with it. It all started in the Middle East because that moral pauper Jimmy Carter did not defend our nation and our honor.

But he was pure hell on that terrorist bunny rabbit.

CZ-1: Bunny killer?

Jimmy Carter is real life is the Looney Toons character Elmer Fudd.

http://www.narsil.org/politics/carter/killer_rabbit.html

Let’s see now, Carter the bunny killer left our people to rot in Iran for over a year

CZ-1: So, you’d have preferred that Carter started a war that would have killed thousands? Then he could have called himself “a war President” and easily win reelection. Hmm…where have I seen that before? You may think it’s manly to order the military to bomb people, but it’s cowardly.

then tried to cut a deal with our enemy to fix an election

CZ-1: No evidence of that.

and you think that’s not as bad as Reagan’s crew going behind the ratbastardcommieasskissers in congress

CZ-1: It’s called BREAKING THE LAW. Say it with me, we are a nation of laws, not men.

to fund an anti-communist insurgency a few hundred miles from our border?

CZ-1: The Contras were immoral terrorists. The illegal CIA funding contributed to the deaths of thousands of innocents.

I think what the bunny killer did was worse, sorry.

CZ-1: Bunny killer?

The Iranians gave our people back because Reagan said he was going to kill them if they didn’t, and they believed him. They knew he was no bunny killer.

CZ-1: That’s a bunch of crap. There’s some good evidence that Reagan’s campaign team did indeed strike a deal with the Iranian hostage takers. It had nothing to do with fearing him. Come on, fear that old geezer of B-grade movie actor? Carter continued to negotiate with the Iranians after he lost the election and right up to when he stepped down.

We cannot command these feelings away, and we definitely cannot hide it from them by simply ignoring the situation.

Don’t tell me that people 50 years ago were more sexually abstinate. They weren’t. They just didn’t talk about it. Girls were sent away when they got pregnant and everyone pretended that it didn’t happen. But it happened. Also, I meet way too many adopted people to not believe the reports.

We can either accept this as natural human behavior and deal with it, or keep ignoring a deteriorating problem.

And religion is not the solution. I’ve seen studies where kids take abstinence pledges with their churches, and the majority of them break those pledges within a year.

I’m not sure what the solution is. I’ve not really thought it through. But, personally, from what I’ve seen, it is mostly the kids who do not feel loved or valued enough at home who go out to seek that affection elsewhere. And when mom and dad are exhausted because they both work hard all day, because they have to, we’re only helping to feed into an epidemic.

Commercialism is a big culprit… but I’ll spare you that soap box today :). I’m too exhausted myself from dealing with the problem kids’ cabin fever last period…. Way too many students in one classroom in this state.

Comment by I-RIGHT-I — February 23, 2006 @ 11:46 am

They have been having babies as early as grade school for quite some time. I’ll write more later, I have a meeting I have to go to…

Comment by unbelievable —

It wasn’t about his sullying of his office with illegitimate sex with female employees. Not at all. It was a host of other things like selling his office to the Red Chinese for example that made us use his perjury about sex to impeach him. But it is interesting that since all that BJ stuff came out kids are doing it wholesales as early as grade school. That’s part of the Clinton legacy. Who says what the bastard did in private didn’t hurt anyone?

My bad, I assumed you did. :)

No, I’m not happy. I’ve seen a half a dozen posters around here whine and wail because George sold our ports to the Arabs. It only gets nuttier and nuttier around here. Sheesh.

Comment by I-RIGHT-I — February 23, 2006 @ 10:19 am

Yes, there are definitely people on both sides of the political spectrum that will crow about whatever the opposing party is doing without knowing anything about it. It’s how people wanted Clinton impeached for having oral sex, and why one of the regulars here jumped all over me for saying that Bush going after Osama and the Taliban was justified. I don’t buy into absolutes. There are exceptions to every rule… which I guess is an absolute… well, see what I mean :)

Not ‘for sale’, but ‘under contract’. Happy now?

Comment by unbelievable

How come you want to lump yourself in with the functionally illiterate? No, I’m not happy. I’ve seen a half a dozen posters around here whine and wail because George sold our ports to the Arabs. It only gets nuttier and nuttier around here. Sheesh.

Comment by I-RIGHT-I — February 22, 2006 @ 10:16 pm

If we’re illiterate, how are we reading your post? :)

Not ‘for sale’, but ‘under contract’. Happy now?

Comment by I-RIGHT-I — February 22, 2006 @ 2:00 pm

I hope you’re not doing that while simultaneously thinking that I am hot… (down boy, I was joking… :)

Comment by C# Web Service

Let’s take a vote. How many of you functionally illiterate losers think we actually sold the ports to the ragheads?

Comment by unbelievable

I’m always serious. I’m a serious guy…..spins, grabs crotch, tips hat.

Comment by I-RIGHT-I — February 22, 2006 @ 12:36 pm

I know. I was playing… as usual. (And that’s what you really like about me :).

Why so serious lately?

Comment by unbelievable

It’s only a figure of speech. One grabs his crotch and say’s, “I got your (fill in the blank) right here buddy.” It’s one of those “you’ve got to be there” dealios.

Comment by I-RIGHT-I — February 22, 2006 @ 9:31 am

That would make you a woman…

Comment by CZ-1

Let’s see now, Carter the bunny killer left our people to rot in Iran for over a year then tried to cut a deal with our enemy to fix an election and you think that’s not as bad as Reagan’s crew going behind the ratbastardcommieasskissers in congress to fund an anti-communist insurgency a few hundred miles from our border? I think what the bunny killer did was worse, sorry.

The Iranians gave our people back because Reagan said he was going to kill them if they didn’t, and they believed him. They knew he was no bunny killer.

Comment by JPark

Translation: “Please Judd, get rid of this bad man for us. He’s hurting our feeling and kicking our collective asses.”

I got your bitch in my pants loser.