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The Domino Effect

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A number of years ago, one of the justifications of getting involved in Vietnam was what was known as the Domino effect. In that case, the problem was seen that if we allowed Vietnam to fall under Communist domination, that one by one, all the nation-states of the region would also fall under communism.

Update to December 2003. President Bush has been saying for months that the removal of Saddam from power would not only help the Iraqi people, but would also start a domino effect in the region. We remove the Taliban, we remove Saddam, and woosh…. here comes Quack-Daffy, telling us he’s going to disarm.

The latest domino falls, and this one didn’t require a shot. Just as the President called it. Hmm.  As best I can tell the evidence is now irrefutable that the President’s way of handling this situation is the correct one…

The resulting press is interesting, and telling. Even the usually leftist press is being forced to concede that Mr. Bush has been doing it right, after all.

A few examples:

Says CNN:

“Libya has declared its intention to dismantle its weapons of mass destruction and to limit the range of Libyan missiles to no greater than 300 kilometers,” Blair said, adding that the Libyan leader has agreed “that this process will be transparent and verifiable.”

Libya also agreed to adhere to international agreements on chemical weapons and sign an additional protocol with the International Atomic Energy Agency, the nuclear watchdog group.

“This decision by Colonel Gadhafi is an historic one and a courageous one, and I applaud it,” Blair said. “It will make the region and the world more secure.”

National Website of Wales which said in part:

“War in Iraq helped secure Libya’s agreement to give up its weapons of mass destruction programmes”

British Defense Secretary Geoff Hoon Told Sky News, recently:

“I don’t think you can separate out the relevance of military action in Iraq from the decision the Libyans have taken.

“We showed, after Saddam Hussein had failed to co-operate with the UN, that we meant business and Libya – and I hope other countries – will draw that lesson.”

The Japanese outlet, Asahi.com agrees, saying:

“Some observers believe that the use of military force against Iraq by the United States and Britain was also read as a warning to Libya, with that action paving the way to the current negotiations. It seems plausible that such a threat was one influence on Tripoli’s decision to come clean.”

The Scottsman says pretty much the same:

“…nevertheless, the toppling of Saddam will not have been unhelpful in concentrating minds, both on the decision to abandon weapons of mass destruction and on the agreement to sign up to UN nuclear arms inspections. Such negotiations could have dragged on for many more months and years without yielding anything so dramatic as the developments of the past two days. It was perhaps no coincidence that Gaddafi approached Britain and the United States in March, at the very time when Saddam was being driven from power.”

Larger yet is the report from The Daily Times in Pakistan that with these agreements, comes also, intelligence on hundreds of Al Qaeda and other Islamic militants. Hundreds of terrorists have already been given up by Libya.

Given that there are ties between Bin Laden’s group and Libya, it should not, perhaps be overly shocking to find that Libya’s capitulation on the matter was apparently based on actions taken by the US, which in turn were started based on information apparently obtained by the capturing of Saddam.  The timing and some of the indications all seem to line up to that conclusion, at least as of this writing.

And what will France do, I wonder? Wasn’t it France who tried to over-rule and negate the agreement with Libya last August, over the Flight 103 incident?

Reuters reports that:

France said on Sunday the United States told it months ago it was talking with Libya about giving up banned weapons, dismissing talk that Paris was frozen out because of its opposition to the U.S.-led war in Iraq.

Defense Minister Michele Alliot-Marie said France was kept informed of discussions between Washington, London and Tripoli which culminated in a surprise announcement on Friday that Libya was giving up its banned weapons programs.

Amazing. Sounds like these French have been taking lessons at the feet of one Bill Clinton… who has a habit of resisting to the last, and then when the situation gets out of his control, and what he was resisting finally happens anyway, he’d get out front and claim it was his idea all along. (Take, welfare reform as an example.) Even at this, however, even the French are being forced to admit progress in spite of, not because of their efforts at holding back the US. Says Foreign Minister Dominique de Villepin:

“We are seeing the emergence, after what has been achieved in Iran and in Libya, of a coherent and willful international approach to tackle the problem of proliferation, which is essential for the safety of our societies.”

I suppose the French to be playing along now, but should,be fully trusted… rather like Smeagol of the Lord of the Rings fame. They clearly have an agenda of their own and are still trying to steer matters. Whatever else is happening, however, that particular dog has been successfully called to heel for the moment.

Meanwhile, North Korea is keeping rather quiet about these developments in Libya, and says the Korean Times:

“The reclusive country’s state media is also silent on the capture of former Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein and Iran’s possible acceptance of comprehensive inspections of its nuclear facilities.

U.S. President George W. Bush voiced his hope Saturday that North Korean leader Kim Jong-il would accept international inspections for weapons of mass destruction, as has Libya done.”

This situation seems to also speaks rather loudly as to the effectiveness of the UN in controlling nuclear arms. Consider; that Libya has found itself in need of de-arming means it was armed… for years… with Nuclear weapons banned under the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty they were a signatory to. So much for the arguments about trusting the UN to deal with such matters. And so much also, for the malcontents here at home in the US trying to direct us toward the UN running the show. This situation shows that was a Nuclear attack waiting to happen.

But it didn’t because the current occupant of the White House not only has some testicular fortitude the one he replaced did not, but also one that is a student of history.

History shows clearly treaties don’t keep the peace… the only path to peace in this world is the judicious use of military force. Mr. Bush and his administration have the wit to see this truth, and are reaping the benefits of a possibly more peaceful world as a result of that truth, and it’s resulting policy.

But of course the nine dwarves here in the States won’t like it. Particularly Dean, whose idiotic insistence that all this doesn’t help our security at home, is going to be hanging over his head for the rest of his life.

In the very near term, he may be right, in terms of the possibility of further attacks against America and the west, as the Islamofacists get more desperate. Like any cornered dog, they’re likely to lash out with what they have left. (This, I suspect is the thinking behind the Orange alert as this is written.) Nobody, however, can deny that in the long term, we’re going to be better off.

And think; all it took was standing up to a couple tyrants. Do that and like Dominos, all the rest fall in line. Amazing what happens when you have a leader, isn’t it?