Apologies for hitting the target!

[army]

Apologies for hitting the target!





Posted by Rob Thompson Broker from Toronto ON Canada on May 10, 1999 at 23:40:07:



I must confess - i‘m too young to remember much of vietnam of the 60‘s - i could only read about it in the papers in the 70‘s - but i remember all too vividly the shots of the evacuation of Saigon in 1975 excuse me - Ho Chi Mi City will be forever etched on my mind. I bring this up now because I see some disturbing similarities to the absolute idiocy that was occuring then - and again - our American allies seem to be at the forefront of stupidity. I‘m referring specifically to the bombing of the Chinese Embassy in Belgrade. I will be most interested in reading the various comments that follow this - but my own opinion is along this line - What in the **** are we aplogizing for? hasn‘t anyone ever heard of collateral damage? hasn‘t anyone ever told diplomats you DON‘T stay in a city that‘s under seige - especially if there is a way out? Yes, it‘s regrettable that a neutral embassy got nailed by a bomb. So what? Like it or not, there is a shooting war going on in Yugoslavia - and when the bombs and bullets start flying, all bets are off. There isn‘t a safe place to be in Belgrade - which, if we think this through - is the whiole point of the exervise - so why are we wringing our hands over collateral damage? I‘m no longer serving - so i haven‘t got access to the wisdom of those currently in uniform - but I‘m wondering if the profession of arms has changed so radically in the past ten years that it can no longer be recognized for the deadly art it truly is. I hope i haven‘t offended too many people - but, at the same time, apologizing for your war efforts is akin to saying, "I‘m sorry that we‘re bombing anyone". Comments, please?

 

[army]

Re: Apologies for hitting the target!





Posted by Michael A. Dorosh from Canada on May 11, 1999 at 12:04:32:


In Reply to: Apologies for hitting the target! posted by Rob Thompson on May 10, 1999 at 23:40:07:



"I hope i haven‘t offended too many people - but, at the same time, apologizing for your war efforts is akin to saying, "I‘m sorry that we‘re bombing anyone"."

Actually, I think this is the standard NATO line - and rightly so. They ARE sorry they‘re bombing people, but they are doing so to achieve a laudable goal. I won‘t enter the debate on whether that goal is achievable or not, but keep in mind that NATO wants to keep its image as the good guys, and I think the NATO leaders would sincerely like to go about this another less violent way if there was any possibility that they could.

As for the Chinese diplomats not being there - well, I suppose they have to be concerned about being in harm‘s way, and they certainly have the option to leave, but life does go on despite the bombings unfortunately, and Yugoslavia still has the right to act as a soveriegn state - which includes diplomatic relations with other nations.