A few replies -- Doug, Barabara, jbor, Richard

[jbor]

on 18/10/01 4:24 AM, The Great Quail at quail at libyrinth.com wrote:

> And unlike 
> jbor, who makes many reasonable points, I do not feel that it is
> useful to imply that Doug is trying to do the same thing as bin
> Laden. Doug may dislike America intensely, and he is certainly
> virulent and a fanatic, but his words have every right to be heard,
> and he is far from advocating violence or havoc.

I suspect that Doug's primary aim in his propaganda campaign is the
overthrow of the Bush government, whether or not he even admits this to
himself. At this time I don't see that either his methods or this aim are
conducive to American or world stability. What if the Western world were as
convinced by Doug's propaganda as some sectors of the population in
repressed Islamic countries are by bin Laden's? It is just as important to
speculate on the manipulation of public opinion in the U.S. as it is on what
might happen in Afghanistan. The two are directly connected in fact.

Doug is entitled to his opinions, I agree, as is everyone else. I would
hesitate before allowing them to be published on the front page of the NYT,
however, which probably expresses the gist of my point a little less
provocatively.

best