In his post on Thursday, Bruce noted how Australian Prime Minister John Howard replied to a reporter’s suggestion the war in Iraq had “*increased* the threat of terrorism.” That good man from Down Under reminded the reporter that there had been terrorist attacks before the U.S. military liberated Iraq.
In a post yesterday, Captain Ed noted that Al-Qaeda’s attack in the Egyptian resort of Sharm-el-Sheikh proves that Iraq is not the cause of terrorism. While that terror organization claimed it had bombed this city a response against “global evil powers which are spilling the blood of Muslims in Iraq, Afghanistan, Palestine, Chechnya,” the good Captain notes that Egypt has not stationed its troops in any of those areas.
The terrorists have attacked before the Iraq war and have since attacked nations not involved in the war. Those who might dismiss terrorist actions as responses to this war have blinded themselves to the reality of the terrorist threat. Let me repeat the words of the Australian Prime Minister, words quoted on this blog just a few days ago:
And indeed, all the evidence, as distinct from the suppositions, suggests to me that this is about hatred of a way of life, this is about the perverted use of principles of the great world religion that, at its root, preaches peace and cooperation. And I think we lose sight of the challenge we have if we allow ourselves to see these attacks in the context of particular circumstances rather than the abuse through a perverted ideology of people and their murder.