Allies and opponents of US fall silent

[Dennis]

> Since most leftists are largely unwilling to actually think
> radically, they can't radically oppose capitalist imperialism,
> and if they can't radically oppose capitalist imperialism,
> perforce they must sign on to the wars by which it lives and
> breathes.  That being the case, maybe the fallback position
> is a defense of the liberal rights at home, which are also
> under under legal and cultural attack.  This attack is certainly
> a threat to Americans everywhere, probably a much worse threat
> than anything Al-Qa'ida can manage (but don't say that).
>
> -- Gordon

I never said I signed on to this war, especially in the way it has played
out (mostly on the bodies of Afghan civilians), but I did say that al-Qaida
is a threat, which it is, and that this must be included in any critique or
action, radical or otherwise. One can, indeed must, assail US expansionism
and the domestic efforts to lock down dissent; but there is a decentralized
network in the wider world that is committed to killing as many Americans
(and non-Americans) as it can, using whatever tools it has. It is not a
liberation force, it is a violent theocratic gang that won't stop until it
is stopped, and how it can be stopped should be part of any discussion "we"
on the "left" have. In other words, we cannot pretend that it is some minor
irritant that will go away in due course. The challenge is incorporating all
this into an understandable argument. Not easy by any means.

DP