Image provided by: Texas A&M University
About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (June 30, 2004)
spot 2004 Opinion The Battalion Page 5 • Wednesday, June 30, 2004 Intolerance is the answer ooperation with Middle Eastern insurgents will only bring more violence lor a country so pow- they had hurt others. a ^ dk i erhil, the United “We are opening the door of forgiveness...to Wm A I M jh M W ^ i* or a country so pow erful, the United States is weak America’s ability to win ars is waning because olitical correctness is part f the battle plan. Turning n the news day after day hear of yet another lostage beheading or a omb killing —Vmerican soldiers, s ’ “ le ^waders in the Arab laim this is all the one on far too long o eltran n the top first hom Astros from I and p| since Hj me ap trained \ four homer alked fe n -indu! ie Hoofi to NICHOLAS more DAV is while world work of “extremists” has It’s time to reevaluate our outlook. The latest beheading of engineer, Paul ohnson was chilling. He was kidnapped while riving home from work and held in exchange for Mingsi ie re i ease 0 f terrorists linked to al-Qaida. Of course, the United States maintained the lolicy of not negotiating with terrorists. Pictures of Johnson’s gruesome murder sur- aced with a message attached in which, accord- ng to Fox News, the group reiterated its ulti- nate goal of driving all non- uslims from the Arabian ’eninsula. Most Americans have been led |o believe that these terrorists are art of a sick, fundamentalist pinoff of the Islamic religion, ut this is becoming harder to elieve. According to The New York imes, following Johnson’s mur- er, discussions on an Islamic Web ite raged as Muslims discussed hether the beheadings fell within ;he religion’s parameters of accept- |ble behavior. What’s troubling is that the liews expressed on the Web site Ivere mixed. Even more disconcerting is the latest nnouncement from Saudi Arabia’s Prince bdullah that terrorists would be granted mnesty for surrendering within a month and If America's interest is to re main in the . Arab world... then the United States must crackdown hard on terrorists... ;emi' 3S SCI Avould not face the death penalty. In fact, capitu- n , Hating terrorists would only face prosecution if they had hurt others We are opening the door of forgiveness...to everyone who deviated from the path of right and committed a crime in the name of religion,” Prince Abdullah stated. It’s clear the Saudis are not America’s allies, and never have been. They begrudgingly comply with the United States only because of business relations. Nevertheless, the Saudis are not the only prob lematic ones in the Muslim world. While U.S. soldiers quell threats in Afghanistan, or wait around in Iraq to fall victim to an ambush, Syria, Turkey, Pakistan, the Palestinians and most notably Iran, which is funding resurgences in Iraq and pursuing a nuclear weapon, are challenging the United States. So who are we to trust? It would be nice to believe that these extremists represent only a minority of Muslims, but due to the number of extremists, it sure doesn’t appear that way. Here is the problem: the United States waged war on terrorism without clearly identifying the enemy. This may come as a shock to some, but al-Qaida is not the only terrorist organization in the world. Moreover, the causes of terrorism are not sim ply linked to the cliched sociological explanation of disenfranchised youths angry at the transformation of their culture into a more Westernized society. Unfortunately, the roots of ter rorism may be in the Islamic reli gion itself, especially with the dif ferent interpretations of the word “Jihad.” Why else would so many Muslims be calling for Holy War? These people are not a bunch of uneducated fanatics; high-ranking clerics like Sheik Saleh Al-Fawzan are doing it as well. Thus, while not all Muslims physi cally participate, many sympathize with the cause, making it extremely difficult to locate people willing to identify terrorists. Truthfully, the Islamic religion is not a peaceful one, but it’s possible for our two cul tures to live in peace. First, though, the United States must decide on a goal. If America’s interest is to remain in the Arab World, achiev ing globalization and intertwining economies, then the United States must crack down hard on terrorists and their supporters/sympathizers. They should be so frightened of touching an American that to even think of kidnapping one would spell devastation to many Arabs, not just the kidnappers. On the other hand, if the United States desires to play babysitter, trying to befriend the people it is fighting, while it is fighting them, time and money are being wasted and Americans are dying in vain. The United States must no longer tolerate the hostility of the Arab world and must end the military occupation in the Arab World to ensure its safety. Nicholas Davis is a senior political science major. Graphic by Tony Piedra nd| champs dl2a :ked it: record: MAIL CALL NASA is necessary i6-2j thanp i for ft In response to Mike Walter’s June 29 column: As the son of a NASA employee, the col umn put quite a damper on my day. People like you are the reason NASA is constantly forced to cut budgets and scrap programs that would benefit the United States. Unlike private industries, which act only in self-interest, NASA pro vides a public service. While I support private space programs and am excited about Rutan’s Spaceshipone, Rutan’s company is focused on only one aspect of the space industry: tourism. They do not have any enterprise in the many other areas such as astronomy, medical, propulsion and mate rials research. NASA does all of these and has produced GPS, MRI scanners, pace maker batteries and the anti-corrosive paint used on the Statue of Liberty. You also mentioned NASA's “theft of American money.” NASA's budget is one- tenth of a percent of our nation’s budget. The point is, let private industries build their toys, but leave the real work to the big boys. Jim Foreman Class of 2006 Spaceshipone failed In response to Mike Walter’s June 29 column: It is true that the feat by Burt Rutan was history making. However, one must not get caught up in emotions generated by this event and dismiss the facts. This accomplishment was not without a marred report. After a few major upsets, it ended up reaching only 62 miles plus 400 feet, barely reaching into space and far from its goal of 68 miles and was 22 miles off course! The craft did not attain the speed neces sary to orbit the earth. At such low speeds, it is much easier to re-enter the atmos phere and use normal flight methods. Bringing commercialization into space is a great pursuit, but to call for the disso lution of NASA is premature at best. I challenge someone to find a corporation that would have funded the Hubble Space Telescope, one of NASA's greatest achievements for verifying and spawning countless ideas and theories. If knowl edge is a reward in itself, NASA still has plenty of jobs set before it. Paul Gesting Graduate Student Aerospace Engineering A&M should recruit Whites In response to the June 29 article "White People to become the Minority." If this research holds true and next spring, white people do in fact become the minority population in the state of Texas, will the University change its recruiting efforts? Right now the University is highly focused on recruiting minorities, so next year if white people become the minority, will the University gear its efforts towards recruiting white people, or will it stay true to the ideas of diversity, which is just a form of racism against whites and keep on recruiting ethnic minorities? Eric Brown Class of 2004 Bush a liar, not Moore In response to Andy Thaxton's June 28 mail call: Republicans are utterly threatened by what “Fahrenheit 9/11" has the capacity to accomplish in this country. The award winning film will open the eyes of a delud ed audience. As a country founded upon truth and integrity, we have always placed full faith in our leaders to be the best, but current evidence reveals a diminishing confidence in that foundation. If Moore didn’t chal lenge the administration’s lies who would? He is merely addressing Bush’s inexcus able “justification” for war. As for the accuracy of the documentary, it has only been torn apart by critics who are frustrated with the message given by the film. The liar here isn’t Michael Moore. I hope more "staunch, conservative" Aggies go out and see "Fahrenheit 9/11" and witness the extent of our Bush whacked nation. Sara Runnels Class of 2006 Jurors in Peterson trial must ignore legal games Despite prosecution's poor courtroom tactics, jury must convict Peterson for double murder T he 1995 acquittal of O.J. Simpson was only the beginning. Now, the American judicial sys tem has transformed from presentation and examination of evidence into reckless disregard for the facts. It is no longer which team of lawyers is presenting the truth, but which has better theatrical presentations. Unfortunately for the family of Laci Peterson, her death could just be one more victory for the power of expensive litigation. The evidence has piled up against Scott Peterson, who is on trial for allegedly murdering his wife in December of 2002. The prosecution in the case seems to be ignoring its resources, paving the way for Peterson to walk out of the courtroom a free man. There is more than enough evi dence to incriminate Peterson. Shortly after Lad’s disappearance, he dyed his hair blonde and was found in Mexico with $10,000 in cash and his brother’s driver’s license on him. He told a friend that if he ever killed someone he would drown his victim. He told police he had been fishing on his boat at the time of Laci’s disappearance in the San Francisco Bay area, three miles from where Laci’s body was even tually found. Police found a hair of Laci’s on the boat as evidence that her body had been there recently. He was not secretive about his dis inclination toward his upcoming fatherhood and his lack of concern at Laci’s disappearance. Yes, the prosecution has stated all of these facts. It is the method in which the team of lawyers has pre sented the facts, however, that makes the case weak. They began by outlining Peterson’s infidelity which, as the defense duly noted, makes Peterson an adulter er but not necessarily a murderer. Although Peterson’s affair might give him a motive for murdering his wife, that is still specu lation. The prosecution has taken these incriminating facts and mentioned them only as a side note compared to the time and energy devoted to outlining Peterson’s infi delity. In the time that remains in the trial, the prosecution must remind jurors of the facts the defense has dismissed. The defense, however, is giving the jury a show rivaling the notori ous “the glove doesn’t fit” episode in the Simpson case. Aside from dismissing Peterson’s infidelity as commonplace, the lawyers have dreamed up unrealistic theories about Laci’s murder that don’t add up. Perhaps Laci was the victim of a cult of religious fanatics who sac rifice unborn children. Perhaps she, despite frequently exhibiting excitement about the) birth of her child, was secretly depressed and ran away without so much as bringing her purse. The defense insists that either possibility is more likely than Peterson, described by the defense as an innocent and loving husband, mur dering his wife. Besides conspiracy theories that border on lunacy, the defense has also discredited veteran detective Allen Brocchini to the point that even Mark Fuhrman, the detective scrutinized in the Simpson trial, looks more credible. The public search for Laci after her disappear ance, which went on unaided by her loving husband, turned up hun dreds of tips from people all over the country. Brocchini testified that he pursued every tip to the best of his ability and manpower. Yet, the defense paints a picture of a sloppy investigative job that convicted Peterson as a last result, and the prosecution has done a poor job of proving the legitimacy of the inves tigation. Undoubtedly, in every murder investigation certain facts will be overlooked in favor of others, but that alone doesn’t discredit the sig nificant amount of evidence against Peterson. If the investigation was indeed sloppy, the facts they dug up on Peterson are all the more impressive. Unfortunately, the theatrical tactics used by the defense lawyers look like they may work. Maybe the jurors would like to believe that nothing would possess a husband to murder his wife, but if they chose to acquit Scott Peterson, they are only fooling themselves and mak ing a mockery of the American judicial system. The power is in the hands of the jury. Regardless of the honesty and good the jurors may want to place in the heart of Peterson, they cannot ignore the facts, however ill-pre sented by the prosecution they might be. If the jurors choose to convict Peterson of a crime he doubtlessly committed, they will reestablish moral codes that stand regardless of showy lawyers insert ing doubts into susceptible minds. Sara Foley is a senior journalism major.