Subject: Re: Two cents

From: [email-masked] (Barry Workman)
Date: Thu, 27 Jul 1995 03:23:50 GMT

[email-masked] (Grego) writes:

>You know of course, that after work or during breaktime the conversation
>in most shops flows round and round from shop tips; to the worst helper,
>then on to the worst accidents you've ever seen ;) to the worst accidents
>somebody ever heard about, then to the sexual proclivities of women, world
>politics, natural disasters, etc. etc. . . .

>The point being, since this is kind of a virtual bull session among
>amature and professional craftsmen, it is not entirely indefensible to
>stray from the topic, from time to time, and introduce a subject which has
>little or no bearing on the subject at hand 

>Therefore, from the world of politics I choose to offer the following
>observation. The Bosnia-Serb conflict is none of our business. Right now
>Bob Dole is trying to push through the Senate a bill to end the arms
>embargo against the bosnian muslims.(He will probably be succesful) 

>I think this is stupid and short sighted. Only a few years ago we endured
>the embarrassing spectacle of facing an enemy armed with advanced weapons
>that we ourselves designed and manufactured (and paid for) 

>These weapons were given to the Afghans to prosecute their war with the
>Soviet Union, and to show their gratitude at wars end, the turned around
>and sold the surplus weapons to their brother muslims in the middle east,
>who incidentally happen to hate us.

>Can we expect anything different from Bosnian Muslims? After all, they
>probably blame us for not supplying them with weapons in the first place,
>which ,after all, is our job.

>I know that I am supposed to confine my rants to
>alt.politics.blah.blah.blah, but addressing a room full of people who are
>standing upon soapboxes just doesn't cut it.           

>                                          g.

>-- 

>*********************************************************************

"There will always be wars or rumors of war..." (If you don't know
the reference, you should)

Being as how the "arms embargo" is a political tool used *ONLY* to
impress the citizens of the USA, I fail to see the relevence.  If
we (The US) "lift" the embargo then all of the black marketing of
arms to the area will become legal.  Being as how the United States
cannot supply the needed arms nor will it profit from there being
or not being an embargo, why bother with useless legislation?

Both sides in the dispute were trained in the use of Soviet weapons.
The arms that are now being blackmarketed into the regon are comming
>from  loose cannons in the former Soviet Bloc areas.  The armies on
both sides need not US weaponry but Russian weaponry.  In order to
make an arms embargo work, all trafficing in arms sales must be
ended.  This will not happen -- the Russian army officers can see
a profit center when it hits them over the head.

Hence, the US Arms Embargo is for the political benifit of the
sitting president only.  Dole is not intent in helping or hindering
a war we have no right to be involved in, rather he is pushing a
bill that will pass the House and the Senate.  This will be followed
by a veto by the president.  THEN when the whole embargo thing blows
up, probably summer of next year, Dole will be in a very good position
to exploit this veto in time for the November elections.
-- 
    - Barry Workman