So, who wants to hazard a guess as to which publication the following quote comes from?
With its crusades against Afghanistan and Iraq, Britain is party to a predictable return to anarchy in both countries. Muslims everywhere thus feel themselves targets of the West’s “exemplary violence”. They naturally seek comfort in group defensiveness. Britain treated the Catholics likewise in 19th-century Ireland and is still paying the price. We learn nothing from our past.
The Guardian? The Independent? The Mirror? Socialist Workers Weekly? No.
The Times, or more accurately Simon Jenkins' latest article.
The man is still seemingly insistent that the War on Terror is not only utterly unnecessary but that the 'Brutalism' favoured by George Bush and Tony Blair would be better replaced by 'neopacifism', a principle here detailed:
It means leaving alone countries where we do not belong, which do not threaten us and where our soldiers breed humiliation and violence. It means facing down the rantings of the security lobby and warmongers. It means denying terrorists the oxygen of publicity and the stimulus of overreaction.
So, in other words it means shutting up, sticking our collective heads in the sand and ignoring the threat to our society. It is not taking the fight to the terrorists and doing so in the absolute belief that they will reciprocate and cease hostililties. The principle, as Andrew Sullivan so eloquently articulated, is that in the face of terror, "the most important thing is to stick on your lapel name-labels, hurry down to the nearest hotel lobby and have a seminar".
This neopacifism is not a limp turning away from conflict.
Certainly Mr Jenkins and I'm Osama Bin Laden's cousin's daughter's friend's window cleaner.
Later
John
Posted by John Swaine at April 2, 2004 07:55 PM