"Could a New Strongman Help?"
Reader comment on item: Iraq: "Could a New Strongman Help?"

Submitted by Johanna Stephens (United States), Nov 24, 2006 at 10:39

Dear Dr. Pipes,

This is so true;

"It is something ordinary Iraqis say with growing intensity, even as they agree on little else. Let there be a strongman, they say, not a relentless killer like Saddam Hussein but somebody who will take the hammer to the insurgents and the death squads and the kidnappers and the criminal gangs who have banished all pretense of civility from their lives. Let him ride roughshod, if he must, they say, over the niceties of due process and human rights, indeed over the panoply of democratic institutions America has tried to implant here, if only he can bring peace."

However, I feel this obvious solution is often thwarted by the politically correct and other wise meddlesome politicians in Washington, D.C. Just as they have tied the hands of the military to fight this war, they seem to tie the hands of good and able men of the region. Quelling the militant Imams would be a good first step then let a "strong man" take the reins. I fear our State Department also often misses the mark as it were. Am I wrong? If so please correct me.

Sincerely,

Johanna Stephens

Tucson, AZ

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