Open Letter to My American Friends
My dear friend, 1. Beyond the tragedy and the immense suffering brought about by the evil attack on America of September 11, 2001, this crisis should lead to a paradigm shift in the war against terrorism. Terrorism must be resisted now with unshakeable resolve—not one feckless act of this for that, not a series of half-measures that serves only to provoke further acts of destruction, but an implacable and unceasing campaign against terrorism until it is utterly and completely vanquished. 2. During the 20th century, the world has had a condescending attitude toward the use of violence to change public policies. In my country, Chile, there is a consensus now that it was a decade of political violence that led, on another Tuesday, September 11, to the breakdown of our democracy and social fabric. Suffice it to say that Lenin, the man who not only advocated terror as a legitimate weapon to obtain political ends but also practiced it with horrifying determination, still rests in a mausoleum in front of the Kremlin and gives its first name to people all over Europe and the Third World (including a specially shadowy character in nearby Peru).
Mar 31, 2010
|
3 min