Used to the bad guys wore black hats or German army uniforms. Then we evolved and it was hard to tell our enemies from our friends. We soon adopted the thought “the friend of my enemy was my enemy and enemy of my enemy is my friend”. That worked for most of the cold war.
I really don’t envy the President or for that matter Secretary Gates job of explaining why were are involved in another conflict in the Middle East. I am sure for Obama it was doubly hard to explain his apparent change of policy to his supporters. Then we come to the even more troubling question do we further entangle the U.S. and aid the rebels in Libya by providing US arms? The rebels we wish to aid are truly out gunned, both with weapons and armament like tanks. Without such support they are truly fighting an uphill battle.
In 1981 Gaddafi talked about assassinating President Reagan, in 1984 Gaddafi had planned terrorist acts within the United States. April of 1986 the US bombed Libya… Gaddafi was definitely our enemy, I am sure he wore a black hat then. Yet two years before the Sept 11th attacks Gaddafi made a firm denouncement of Al-Qaida another enemy of ours. Just a few years after Reagan had proclaimed Gaddafi “the mad dog of the Middle East” Gaddafi became almost a friend.
Hezbollah is the enemy of Israel, a valued ally in the Middle East. Al-Qaida is our enemy in Iraq, Iran, and Afghanistan. Yet there has been speculation that some members of the rebel forces fighting in Libya may be from these admitted enemies of ours. (Yes both Secretary Clinton and our ambassador to the UN believe any representation of these organizations within the rebel group to be very small.) The Muslim Brotherhood was instrumental in toppling our long ally in Egypt and the U.S. didn’t intervene, the Muslim Brotherhood now sides with the Rebels in Libya which we now want to help, but they are an enemy of our Israel ally.
Are you lost yet? France an ally of the US in Afghanistan chose to avoid Iraq. Georgia (formerly of the USSR a former enemy) was an ally in Afghanistan and Iraq. There are countless examples of loyalties switching as conflicts change or move from country to country.
I say just keep shooting the guys with black hats. Don’t worry too much about the guy who is standing beside you, but don’t hand him your gun.
David
