Staying the course

As you know, London yesterday became the third major western city (and second in the Anglosphere) in less than four years to be hit by terrorists in that most cowardly of acts of war, civilian mass murder.

Sadly but not surprisingly, the usual cast of America-haters, terror apologists and appeasers, anti-Semites, and other assorted loons are trying to point the finger of blame at US/British policy in Afghanistan and Iraq (and/or Jewish conspiracy), and as usual they could not be farther off the mark.

Like the others, it was an attack not on any particular people or nation, any action or policy, but on a way of life and a value system. They despise us for our individual freedoms, our human rights, our refusal to subjugate women and execute homosexuals, in short our culture. It’s not about grievances; it’s about hating those who will not ever submit to totalitarian theocratic rule.

It is interesting that, despite years of time between to plot, this was so much less damaging than New York. They can still land some blows, but an increasingly sophisticated defense makes their task much more difficult. And don’t discount the huge drain on their resources that is the Iraq “insurgency” (in that redefinition of insurgency that describes foreign forces attacking domestic interests as insurgents). With such a significant and elite portion of Al Qaeda concentrated in one small area, it is harder for them to wreak havoc elsewhere. And you have to figure that prospective state sponsors are just a bit reluctant to increase or maintain aid and risk the fate of Saddam.

This should once again remind all of us of why we fight and why our cause is just and moral. And that we should not become complacent just because our leadership has done such an amazing job in keeping us safe at home as to make us forget how we felt in the immediate aftermath of 9/11. Our enemy is evil and committed; we must retain our resolve in the face of hostility, including the hysterical and relentless propaganda demeaning our country and our cause both at home and abroad.