By Scott Tibbs, March 15th, 2004
The terrorists won!
In the wake of terrorist attacks in Spain on March 11th, the Socialists won power in Spain. Spanish voters, shocked by the bombings of trains last week that killed 200 people and wounded 1500, voted for a party that promiosed to withdraw from Iraq. The train bombings were a despicable and cowardly attack, and the United States pledged to stand by Spain as they faced the terrorists who did so much harm here on September 11th.
Instead of standing against terror, Spanish voters wrapped themselves in the French flag, surrendering to the thugs and murderers who killed and maimed their countrymen last week. This is a dark time for Spain. Not only because Socialists are in power, but because of the way in which they won. The Socialists promised to bring home the 1300 Spanish troops stationed in Iraq.
Spanish voters have not only done themselves a disservice, but they have done the free world a disservice. They have told the forces of evil that they can be cowed by murder and mayhem, only encouraging the evildoers to kill and maim some more. Worse, they have not only encouraged terrorist attacks on themselves, but on their "allies" in the United States and the rest of Europe.
The United States and the rest of the free world must stand strong in the wake of Spain's surrender to thugs and murderers. On September 11th, Americans stood shoulder to shoulder and vowed to win a war in which the terrorists had just raised the stakes to an unimaginable level. We provided an example for the rest of the world to follow. We knew that we had no choice but to fight back and annihilate the enemy, because they, like Nazi Germany, are monsters with no respect for human life and who will stop at nothing to achieve their goal.
The people of the free world cannot afford to follow the Spanish path. We cannot afford to tell the terrorists that we can be bombed into submission. Spain has ensured that more terrorism will follow across the globe. People who love freedom must let the terrorists know that we will never give in to thugs and cowards. We cannot afford to surrender in this war.
Update #1: David Frum of National Review says the Spanish elections were A win for terror.
Update #2: Two more columns: Blame Spain for the next terrorist attack and Al Qaeda's electoral victory.
Update: March 17, 2004
Some people might ask, if you are supportive of the right to self-determination, why is there complaining about the results of Spain's elections?
Just because someone believes in self-determination does not require that person to agree with the results of an election. I disagreed with the re-election of President Clinton, as well as many other elections where Democratic candidates won. But that does not mean I think I should be the only one choosing our elected leaders. I support the right of the people to vote for the candidates of their choice, here in the United States or elsewhere.
The fact that an election has taken place dies not require anyone to be silent about it and not comment on it. In fact, there has been plenty of commentary regarding the Spanish elections. Many people feel that the Socialist victory sends an ominous message to the free world. There is fear that throwing out the ruing party sends a message to terrorists that bombing trains and killing over 200 people worked.
The concern is two-fold. First, there is the principle of not letting thugs and murderers decide elections. What people are more concerned about, however, is the repercussions of the Spanish elections elsewhere. Will the terrorists decide to bomb other US allies, like Turkey or England, next? If they take the results of the Spanish elections as a message that terror works, then where will they strike next?
A major area of concern is the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens, Greece. Security will certainly be tight because of the aftermath of September 11th and the continuing War on Terror. But the Spanish elections just gave the terrorists more incentive to attack the Olympics.
Think of the psychological damage that attacking the Olympics would do. Think of the around-the-clock media coverage it would create. The terrorist attack in Spain generated a lot of ink, but an attack on the Olympics, at the site of the original Olympic Games, is too tempting of a target for terrorists to pass up. It is safe to say there will be an attempted terror attack on the Olympics. The question is, can that attack be stopped? Who would have guessed that people who began the day with box cutters and the knowledge of how to fly a plane would destroy the World Trade Center?