Re: What has America lost?

Jeffraham Prestonian wrote:

> "Don Swayser" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote
>
>
> > Perhaps you'd like to explain to the readers of thos thread why you
> > still support a monster like Saddam Hussein. And please spare us the "I
> > don't support him, but this country shouldn't have removed him by war.
> > There is no half way with a monster like that. So, why do you support him?
>
> You may want to look into the logical fallacy
> called false dichotomy.
"False dichotomy"? Let's take a look, shall we?
http://info-pollution.com/false.htm
False dichotomy

In a false dichotomy (also called a false dilemma, either or, black or 
white, the missing middle) you are presented with two choices, when in 
fact there are more than two choices.  If one choice is discredited, 
then the reader is forced to accept the other choice.  But this is not 
an adequate argument, the choice favored must be supported by evidence.

Now, I've looked at the situation in Iraq. What was the middle of the 
road solution. Iraq is a sovereign nation, and Hussein was in control of 
that state. He had ignored the damage that the embargo was causing his 
people for a decade. He did not suffer, he got richer. He ignored pleas 
to moderate his bestial treatment of his own people made by 
international organizations presumably. He invaded his neighbors, always 
seeking their oil production facilities. He was planning on building 
offensive ballistic missiles. Now, explain to me how that is a false 
dichotomy to present it as an either or situation. He either remained in 
power or he had to be removed by force. That means someone who opposed 
his removal was in favor of some other course of action, or was in favor 
of maintaining the status quo.. Tell us what course which wasn't tried 
would have been a success.



> If Bush had made a case for war on those
> grounds, NO ONE would have supported him (or
> conversely, if he made a strong enough case for
> war on that basis, the UN would not have opposed).
> The smart people in the administration knew that.
> So, the WMD and al Qaeda disinformation was
> proffered. Now they and their apologists are
> weaseling and spinning this way and that, trying
> like hell to convince America of the collective
> hallucination of "smoking gun in the form of a
> mushroom cloud," and "we cannot wait" not
> meaning imminent threat. The foreign press,
> thankfully, have not all been co-opted into
> collective forgetfulness.
>
> Sorry, I know which shell the pea is under.

--
If you want to be free, there is but one way; it is to guarantee an 
equally full measure of liberty to all your neighbors. There is no other.
Carl Schurz (1829-1906)