Airplane in the Groin

Here's a quick way to relate the debate on war with Iraq to something that the Joe Six Packs and Sally Housecoats out there can understand. Especially the Joe Six Packs.

The US is like a man. The tallest, strongest man on the block. He is surrounded by a number of much smaller men who he tries his best to get along with. In the past twenty odd years some of these smaller men have taken to testing the will of the big man by occasionally kicking him in the shins.

1979 hostages seized at embassy in Iran was one of the first such kicks

1983 Marine barracks in Beirut blown up-another painful kick in the shin

1993 nineteen US servicemen killed in Somali/first attempt to bomb WTC- both kicks in the shin

1996 Khobar Tower bombing in Saudi Arabia-the shin kicking continues

1998 Embassy bombings in Africa-our shins are starting to get sore

2000 USS Cole bombed in Yemen-maybe we should look into some shin pads

Despite the irritation of the continual shin kicking the big man had other things on his mind and couldn't really bothered with what was going on in that area too much.

Then came September 11th 2001. This time one of the little men decided that kicking the shins just wasn't enough anymore and so he delivered a blow to the big man's gnads.

This obviously got the big man's attention. After writhing around on the ground in agony he got up and went after the little man who had so grievously injured him realizing that he could no longer ignore his actions.

Meanwhile there's another little man who's been doing some shin kicking of his own.

1993 Iraqi involvement in plot to assassinate Bush 41/possible Iraqi connection to first WTC bombings

1996 to the present- Iraq continually fires on US and British warplanes patrolling the no fly zones

1998 Iraq kicks UN inspectors out of country in violation of Gulf War cease fire and resumes WOMD programs

2001 Iraqi intelligence agent meets with Mohamed Atta in Prague/no direct link to 9/11 proven yet but strong evidence of an Iraqi-Al Qaeda relationship

Before September 11th all we knew was what it felt like to get kicked in the shins. Now we know what it feels like to take one in the family jewels. Does anyone want to get hit there again?