America brought it on themselves is that because they back Israel preventing the muslims from going in and slaughtering them.
We are not a threat to muslim terror groups no but they are a threat to us they blow up planes that we fly on they bomb trains we ride on they bomb buildings we go into they don,t discriminate,we have been lucky up to this point as far as casulties that luck won,t last,this fight is ours as much as anyones.
By the way there is far more chance of a mad muslim in our country letting off a bomb than any Maori.
Excuse me if I digress a little of the topic of the thread,
America did not bring it all on themselves, this is simple rhetoric that may suit the public at large. The British train and bus bombings, the Bali bombings etc are all focused on western nations, its called Jihad it is religious extremists who are hell bent on destroying our way of life and what it stands for, now note not all muslims hold this view and I know the majority want religious tolerance.
Israel has gone to war and defeated its neighbors mainly Jordan, Syria and Egypt backed by the US of course but then again Jordan, Syria and Egypt were backed by the Russians in both wars 1967 & 1973, Egypt and Syria had the upper hand in military numbers and equipment, Israel won because of better tactics and ingenuity in fact the war was also a show case of USA vs Russian weapons being trialled out. The British and French supported Israel over the conflict of the Suez Canal against Egypt in 1956 which it also won.
Israel mainly fights its own wars it has US backing sometimes but not all the times, note that the US may front up and declare non involvement and get the CIA to run the war for them it has been known to happen! Russia sort of did the same thing too hence the distrust of super powers.. The US always has a vested interest in its allies that buy their weapons and are pro democratic, its capitalism through and through but so are our countries it's what made the cold war, capitalism vs communism. Now that Russia has succumbed to capitalism it only leaves dictatorships and terrorist groups, China I guess is a little different though (another topic for another time). Israel even buys some of its weapons from the French, British and South Africans, to name a few, so indirect military support and advice and all the political perks go with it.
( Now back to the point) The British were predominantly controlling Palestine as it was known at that time after WWI in 1917 with the Balfour Declaration it put forth the seeds for a Jewish state. In 1948 Israel was declared a state this came about by a UN vote which carved out the new territories for the state of Israel and a Palestinian state, the British had withdrawn from Palestine after WWII.
So who is to blame over Israel being a state in a neighborhood of Arab communities that have been against it from day one is not altogether an American problem, the British, French, UN and even Europe with strong sympathies towards the Jews because of the Nazi death camps all played a part that shaped Israel. I would hazard a guess and say that NZ and Australia also voted for a Jewish state as well, much to the dismay and protest of arabs and palestinians alike.
America being the most powerful western country became an ideal target by radical muslims with anti-western sentiments to make a big statement to the rest of us hence the aftermath of 9/11. NZ was not an important enough target to make that kind of statement, but should we beg indifference because it isn't our fault or problem? Given the history of western influence in the region, that is our oil comes from that region, we use the Suez Canal for trade routes, we are part of the UN that made decisions for Israel to become a state, we have had and still I think peace keeping commitments to the middle east, it is considered a religious pilgrimage destination for christians, etc. So we do have some interest in the region even though we are thousands of kms away.
Yes you are right, how does fighting in Afghanistan and not in Iraq get us off the hook as a non threatening ally? To Taliban fighters a NZ soldier shooting at them is a western soldier that is trying to kill them, can they differentiate? Conflicts quickly turn into us and them, and indiscriminate practices take place where suicide bombers dont ask which country your from! But we should stand up against this type of terrorist action we are part of the problem and should be part of the answer and not play the blame game or we're too far away its not our problem mentality.
We are part of a wider community in which we need to help with peace and security in the region and any growing unrest, and not look for easy options after all the Americans are one our greatest allies regardless of ANZUS.
cheers
