or Powell's or me• • •
"Mike and Jon, Jon and Mike—I've known them both for years, and, clearly, one of them is very funny. As for the other: truly one of the great hangers-on of our time."—Steve Bodow, head writer, The Daily Show
•
"Who can really judge what's funny? If humor is a subjective medium, then can there be something that is really and truly hilarious? Me. This book."—Daniel Handler, author, Adverbs, and personal representative of Lemony Snicket
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"The good news: I thought Our Kampf was consistently hilarious. The bad news: I’m the guy who wrote Monkeybone."—Sam Hamm, screenwriter, Batman, Batman Returns, and Homecoming
September 30, 2005
Right On Time
By my observation, colonial wars always have three stages in the minds of supporters:
1. We've got to help these people!
2. Why are these people resisting our attempts to help them?
3. These people MUST BE KILLED!!!!!!!!
I didn't want to see this procession broken in Iraq. That would mean I'd have to rethink my view of reality, and that always makes me mad.
So, I'm pleased to learn Thomas "The Embodiment of Human Folly" Friedman is right on time:
Maybe the cynical Europeans were right. Maybe this neighborhood is just beyond transformation. That will become clear in the next few months as we see just what kind of minority the Sunnis in Iraq intend to be. If they come around, a decent outcome in Iraq is still possible, and we should stay to help build it. If they won’t, then we are wasting our time. We should arm the Shiites and Kurds and leave the Sunnis of Iraq to reap the wind. We must not throw more good American lives after good American lives for people who hate others more than they love their own children.
This would be awfully funny if it didn't involve the potential death of millions.
No, waitâ€â€it's still funny!
At least if you are not the person being garroted!
Via The Poorman.
Posted at September 30, 2005 12:33 PM | TrackBackI love Tom Friedman! He has no redeeming pundit virtues of any kind to my knowledge. It's "okay" to dismiss anything he says as prima facie intellectually and morally bankrupt.
Posted by: Harry at September 30, 2005 01:41 PMNationalism...one of the most dangerous ideas to mankind if not well-grown.
Posted by: En Ming Hee at September 30, 2005 09:44 PMThus spake Tom Friedman
Nov 2001: "Give war a chance"
Dec 2003: "This war is one of the noblest things this country has ever attempted"
Sept 2005: "We are wasting our time"
Friedman can't even be an original putz. In this month's Harper's, Edward Luttwak makes the same plague-on-all-three-of-their-houses argument, which I believe he spouted during the 90s in regard to the Balkans.
Posted by: Tirebiter in Sector R at October 1, 2005 03:29 PMGreat post.
There could be one stage that you left out - denial. There are still some - mainly those employed by Bush but a few others too - who maintain things are going well in Iraq. I think you are right that most people are well past that stage and into the "kill 'em all" stage but denial is something most of these people go through.
I wonder if in this war it will be said that they "we should just nuke them" as it was in Vietnam. That would certainly be ironic considering the ostensible purpose of the war was to prevent WMD from being in Iraq. I guess the warbloggers would retort that they are against Iraq possessing WMD, not WMD being used against Iraq!
Posted by: ow at October 2, 2005 12:11 PMI wonder if in this war it will be said that they "we should just nuke them" as it was in Vietnam. That would certainly be ironic considering the ostensible purpose of the war was to prevent WMD from being in Iraq. I guess the warbloggers would retort that they are against Iraq possessing WMD, not WMD being used against Iraq!And a 'bunker-buster' mini-nuke would be just the thing for taking out underground nuclear facilities in Iran... Posted by: Gag Halfrunt at October 4, 2005 12:56 PM
It's not Thomas Friedman's fault that he sometimes gets bored when wars don't merrily hum on schedule. Sheesh.
Posted by: Jonathan Versen("HZ") at October 6, 2005 12:16 AM
