A 200-year-old lesson on 9/11
By Chuck Norris on www.worldnetdaily.com
Posted: September 10, 2007
1:00 a.m. Eastern
With the 6th anniversary of 9/11 among us, as well as the imminent report on the status of the war from Gen. David Petraeus, the commander of U.S. troops in Iraq, America continues to face the fallout and frontlines of the war on terror.
Despite debates over the success of surges and the truths behind 9/11, one of the most significant deliberations remains how many Americans are still in denial about the depth and breadth of extremists' hatred for our nation, liberties and way of life. Do people really think ceasing a war in Iraq will quench their fire to destroy our country?
Radical Muslims' guile existed far before 9/11, and it will be there far after an Iraqi war. In fact, it was apparent from the beginning of our nation, as seen in the Barbary Powers Conflict, a confrontation between the five Barbary nations (Tripoli, Turkey, Tunis, Algiers and Morocco) and what they considered the "Christian nations" (England, Denmark, France, Spain and the new United States).
Though I am not a historian or a military strategist, I believe now is a good time to recall this 200 year-old lesson on extremist Muslim-American relations.
The tower of terror in the treaty of Tripoli
While the United States was mopping up from the Revolutionary War, it was also squaring off against largely Muslim pirates and countries in the Mediterranean. These sea bandits cruised the coastlines stealing cargo, destroying villages and enslaving millions of Africans and hundreds of thousands of Christian Europeans and Americans.
Because America was a newborn nation with relatively little naval defense, its merchant ships were exceptionally vulnerable to attack in and out of the Great Sea. America's rebellion against Britain severed its protection by the Royal Navy. And while France helped some during the war, the U.S. was on its own as of about 1783. As a result, its cargo and seamen were captured, and our country's leaders were forced to negotiate with the Mediterranean Muslim contingency.
In 1784, envoys began to be dispatched to secure peace and passage from the Barbary Powers. Treaties were made. Tributes and ransoms were paid. Our cargo and captives were freed. And our ships traveled safely. Over the next decade and a half, millions of dollars were given to these radicals – estimated at 20 percent of America's income in 1800. (Despite that men like Thomas Jefferson argued vehemently against paying ransoms and tribute – he believed the only road to resolve would be "through the medium of war.")
America's first four presidents (Washington, Adams, Jefferson and Madison) all dealt with this East-West conflict of powers, though to varying degrees. Though numerous negotiations and treaties were made, including "the Treaty of Tripoli" in 1796-7, Tripoli (in present Libya) still declared war against the U.S. in 1801. It is sometimes called America's first official war as a new nation.
So, shortly after his inauguration, President Jefferson declared America would spend "millions for defense but not one [more] cent for tribute." As a result, he deployed Marines and warships to the region, which eventually led to the surrender of Tripoli in 1805. It would take another decade, however, to completely defeat the pirates.
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Click here to read the rest of Chuck Norris' excellent article.
The bottom line is this: the Islamo-Fascists don't hate us because of Iraq, or Afghanistan, or anything we've ever done. They hate us because we are not Muslim, and this has been true for as long as there has been a USA to hate. In the early 1800s we beat them militarily and they pretty much left us alone for the next 150 years or so out of fear of the consequences of attacking us. We need to teach them that lesson once again.
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FASCINATING ARTICLE! Did not know that. Never knew either that Chuck was writing. I checked out his other stuff on World Net Daily--pretty amazing!
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