Cautious retaliation necessary
The Collegian opinion

    It is a month since the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon, and while many Americans are coming together and calling for proper justice, a small minority of people has risen up.

    Many people agree that America must find everyone responsible and bring justice to them while at the same time avoid punishing innocent people.

    But a minority of people does not agree. A collection of writers on the Internet and in print are calling for complete and total destruction of Afghanistan, the Afghani people and their beliefs.     Such reactions make them no better than the Sept. 11 terrorists.

These writers believe no innocents are there and merely being inside the borders of targeted nations means people actively support the evil regimes.

    They believe we should attack Afghanistan with all of our weapons, including our nuclear ones, annihilate their governments and form American colonies that will impose our way of life in the foreign lands.

    They believe that American oil companies should seize all the oil assets in the Middle East and enslave the locals to work the drilling rigs and refineries.

    They believe that the American ideals and way of life are so obviously superior that the “savages” should bow down to us and let us dominate them.

    While the superiority of the American way of life is purely subjective (some think it is superior; some do not), these Americans do not reflect the ideals and values that make America so great.

    They are imperialists who seek to impose our ways on the world and thereby undermine the principles written by our founding fathers who fought and died for their country.

    The terrorists hate us because they see our society as decadent, wasteful and spiritually barren.

    They are angry because their children want to drink Coca-Cola and watch MTV. They are angry that we have free elections. They are angry that we drive huge Cadillac land yachts. They are angry that our women are allowed to wear anything they choose and can speak their minds. They are angry that we have the freedom to pursue whatever life we desire. In the United States, it does not matter where people are or how rich they are. Our people can choose to grow up and be a doctor, lawyer or Indian Chief if they want.

    They hate our free and open society, but even more, they hate that we have the freedom to disagree with our government and that the government, in matters of justice, punishes the wrong and saves the right.

    They focus those fears and anger into beliefs that they have the superior society and into attacks that cause more fear and impose THEIR will on the world.

    The Americans shouting for the unconditional destruction of Afghanistan, imperialistic American colonies and the mass deportation of Arab Americans are not upholding the American ideals of life, liberty, happiness and justice. They are supporting ideals of fear, separatism, hate and intolerance.