Ten years ago, the USS Cole was bombed in the harbor at Aden, Yemen by bombers linked to Al Qaeda. This Navy Times article discusses the lessons learned.
But about halfway down the article is this:
Asked whether Navy ships still stop in Yemen’s Aden Harbor to refuel, Derrick-Frost replied, “U.S. Navy ships have not actively visited the port of Aden since the Cole tragedy.”
If the sole aim of Al Qaeda in the Cole bombing was to take American lives, then they succeeded in doing that; if they had a secondary mission to force the US Navy to stop using Aden as a refueling stop, then they succeeded with that, as well.
I'm reminded that Ground Zero, nearly ten years after 9/11, is still just a hole in the ground, and that we suffer horrible indignities when we travel by air. We haven't caught Osama bin Laden, either.
So are we really winning this thing, or are the terrorists simply absorbing the punishment, and will be ready to re-constitute the minute we stop pounding them?
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6 comments:
The terrorist are winning.
Ya, Ya I know we have more of this and that..but you have to admit who is more tenacious in their goals. Who has more grit and fortitude to accomplish their credo?
Certainly not the USA. We have been coddled, mollified, pussified. We have been PC'd to death. We have been nutured.
All in the name of evil.
Not very happy tonight, due to living in this estrogen scented society. And watching the NFL's best wearing "PINK"!!!!!
Steve
According to bin Laden's writings, his goal was not to keep us out of Aden, but to demonstrate that a tiny boat laden with explosives could bring a great ship to its knees. Re-entering Aden would not constitute a "win" for us. Neither would building a 9-11 monument. Until we understand the nature of terrorism, and grasp that applications of testosterone won't defeat it, we won't succeed.
@wally: The US Navy did not need to learn that small boats can be dangerous.
The rest of your comment is simply opinion, and no more or less valid than any other opinion.
Hi Bob. Why so testy? You're absolutely right, my claim that a Ground Zero monument wouldn't constitute a win in the 9-11 exchange with Al Qaeda is strictly my opinion. Is the opinion that Jews drink the blood of Gentile babies equally valid?
By the way, bin Laden's lesson wasn't aimed at the US Navy, it was intended for fellow Muslims. Sorry I didn't clarify that.
@wally: My apologies if I sounded harsh, I didn't realize that I was. Perhaps you're simply anticipating harshness, since many of our exchanges get heated.
Opinions are expressions of belief by an individual or a group. Thus, your statement about the Jews is a perfectly valid opinion, but is not a perfectly valid fact. That an opinion is distasteful does not affect its validity as an opinion.
Ha! And you call me a nitpicker!
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