Glenn Greenwald takes a look at a
column by Walter Williams, who says that the only thing preventing us from really knocking out terrorism is "liberal handwringing" over the use of nuclear weapons to do the job.
Terrorist supporters know we have this capacity, but because of worldwide public opinion, which often appears to be on their side, coupled with our weak will, we'll never use it.
Today's Americans are vastly different from those of my generation who fought the life-and-death struggle of World War II. Any attempt to annihilate our Middle East enemies would create all sorts of handwringing about the innocent lives lost, so-called collateral damage.
Compare that with
this:
General "Buck" Turgidson: Mr. President, we are rapidly approaching a moment of truth both for ourselves as human beings and for the life of our nation. Now, truth is not always a pleasant thing. But it is necessary now to make a choice, to choose between two admittedly regrettable, but nevertheless distinguishable, postwar environments: one where you got twenty million people killed, and the other where you got a hundred and fifty million people killed.
President Merkin Muffley: You're talking about mass murder, General, not war!
General "Buck" Turgidson: Mr. President, I'm not saying we wouldn't get our hair mussed. But I do say no more than ten to twenty million killed, tops. Uh, depending on the breaks.
As Mr. Greenwald points out, the fact that someone like Walter Williams can propose tactical nuclear strikes against Syria and Iran and no one, not even his friends in Wingnuttia, stands up and says, "Are you fucking
insane?" tells you how far we've gone around the bend with the current administration.
