Originally posted by off2cjb:
The Atomic Bomb is a classic definition of terrorism. We made our point by inflicting great terror upon those people and they gave up.
Please clarify this comment. I assume that you are labeling the USA of terrorism because of its use of the Atomic Bomb on the citizens of Japan during WWII?
I recall from my high school history class many years ago that the decision to drop the Bomb was not an easy one for President Truman. Since December 7, 1941 when Japan FIRST attacked the US at Pearl Harbour, to the Battles of Midway, Guadalcanal, etc...and finally to Saipan, the USA realized that Japan was not going to surrender easily. Many US servicemen were killed in suicide attacks by "Kamakazis", demonstrating the determination and desperation of both military and civilian Japanese. Even as the US closed in on the Japanese mainland, Emperor Hirohito would not surrender. It was estimated that over 1,000,000 US soldiers would be killed in an invasion of Japan. The number of Japanese civilians who would fight to the death or simply commit suicide rather than surrender would be many times the US casualty figure. Given this information and the atomic bomb option available to President Truman, it was an obvious decision.
During that war, it was obvious who the enemy was. In today's war, the enemy hides in the shadows. Throw in religious fanatics, racial tension, political correctness, a divided America and combine it with hatred and intolerance and you have the makings of a very nasty situation.
A war has been declared on America, possibly many years before 9/11, by a shadowy enemy who hates its wealth, its freedoms and everything it stands for. Unless America fights that enemy using the new rules of war, the "American Empire" will lose its power and prestige like the British Empire did at the close of colonialism.