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Re: [casi] re: Cordesman: What is Next in Iraq?



On Aug 28 2003, Marc Azar wrote:


  So I don't want it. And I strongly disagree with Peter's relativist
> premiss. A mailing list is not about freedo(o)m and democracy for all.
> It's about uniting people around a common purpuse. Very different. If
> you don't agree with the objectives of a said list then you don't have
> any 'right' to join it.

Frankly I very much agreed with Peter's posting. Cordesman is influential,
which makes it important to know what he is arguing (you have to know what
the enemy is thinking), secondly, what he says as regards Iraq (I remember
his pre-war piece 'Planning for a self-inflicted wound') might actually
have some truth in it. In fact, I think it does, otherwise I would have
hesitated to post it to the list. It may be your enemy who tells you that
it is raining outside, but nonetheless this might be true.
 As to the purpose of the list, CASI's website and lists have always been
about supplying information. Also about uniting people, also about running
a campaign - but very much and often in the foreground, about supplying
accurate, high-quality information about the situation in Iraq (that might
be at times come from people you disagree with profoundly).

> > My own ambition for CASI has always been that its material would be so
> > good that anyone seriously interested in the subject, whatever their
> > own angle, would be obliged to refer to it. I'm sure this is already
> > the case with the website. It ought to be the case with the discussion
> > list as well.

 I could not agree more.

> > This may not be the best moment to say this in the wake of - or perhaps
> > in the midst of - the Darin Zeilweger episode but so long as the
> > language is courteous and we're not getting bombarded by spam, this
> > list should, I believe be open to everyone. Including proponents of
> > torture.

 Again I fully agree, though I might feel tempted to put along the lines of
'open to everyone who supplies quality information and analysis,
curteously, to the point, and in form of new points, rather than
repetitions.'

nicholas

--
Nicholas Martin
CASI Lists Manager - lists-manager@casi.org.uk



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