Few incidents I can remember have resulted in such passionately divided opinions in the libertarian movement as the post-mortem of the terrible events of September 11 last year. Indeed we have been denounced by some as being anti-American, as being "Chamberlains" – as "evil" because we suggested a limited response, and ventured the opinion that perhaps a century of belligerent foreign policy just might have been a factor leading to these attacks.

     Frankly I don't believe that we were attacked simply because of our capitalist system or because of our nude beaches – or other Western virtues. What I am saying is that the evidence of US government misdeeds abroad is just too massive to be ignored and that a somewhat less-than-benign foreign policy paved the way to the tragic events of last September.

     Let me quote from a speech delivered by Pakistan prime minister Benazir Bhutto in September of 1998 at the Royal Institute of International Affairs in London.

"When I visited the United States early in my first time as Prime Minister of Pakistan, in 1989, I vividly recall discussions with then President Bush about the political situation in Afghanistan. The United States had made a military decision to arm and strengthen the fiercest fighters in the Afghan resistance – the forces of Gulbuddin Hakmatyar. I cautioned Mr. Bush that he was creating a veritable Frankenstein by aligning the United States with the most extremist of the Mujahadeen groups.

"I cautioned the West that by strengthening the most extreme and fundamentalist of the resistance, it was weakening the political position of the rest of the resistance coalition. The pragmatists and the moderates were shunted aside by the United State's single minded efforts to strengthen the most extreme of the seven Majahadeen factions. And I cautioned that this element of the Mujahadeen was not only religiously fanatic, but viscerally anti-Western.

"I warned that we must look beyond the inevitable military victory against the communist regime in Kabul, and work toward setting up a successor government that was broad-based and moderate. But because the United States chose not to opt for a political settlement involving all seven elements of the Mujahadeen, peace was not restored to Afghanistan. Indeed in the decade since the Soviets withdrew in 1989, the people of Afghanistan have not seen a single day of peace.

" . . . And as terrorism and drug trafficking pervade western society, the decision of the United States a generation ago has come full circle. For not only is stability in Afghanistan a victim, not only were the foundations and institutions of democracy in Pakistan destroyed in this process, but the recipients of the West's support and largesse have turned their venom against their benefactors. As I predicted nine years ago in Washington, a true Frankenstein has been created." (remember this speech was delivered two years before 9-11 – Ed.)

     Colonel David H. Hackworth (Ret.), America's most decorated soldier, writes in the current (April 2002) issue of "Soldier of Fortune" magazine:

". . . Once the Axis was put down in 1945, America became the self-appointed guardian of Western Civilization, and Johnny didn't come marching home. Like the Romans and Brits before us, we began setting up outposts around the world without any mind of the burden of the cost.

"More tramp, tramp, tramping of American boots was heard after Vietnam; first in Lebanon, then Grenada and Panama, followed by Kuwait and Iraq, Somalia and Haiti and Bosnia, Kosovo and Macedonia. Few of these operations had anything to do with our national security, but all have been big winners when it comes to the bottom lines of the companies and individuals that make up the military-industrial-congressional complex – Not only have the past six decades of hot and cold war bucks been finger-lickin' good for the game's insiders who slip back and forth between government and business, they have also motivated a lot of fanatics around the world to hate all things American.

"Sure we need a strong military ready to defend America, but we need one that – as opposed to the Roman, Brit and Soviet models – follows the wise guidance of our Founding Fathers when they said that we shouldn't do a Pax Americana and stick our noses in other folk's dealings."

     We invite debate on the subject in future issues.

For peace and liberty . . .

Vince Miller
isil@isil.org