In my lifetime, these are the faces that have been presented to me as the faces of evil. Two of the three (Ho Chi Minh and Osama bin Laden) were, at one time, allies of my country. Khomeini had little use for us after the CIA engineered a coup to overthrow the democratically elected government of Iran and installed an autocrat (the Shah) who would be more compliant with our oil companies. Ho Chi Minh was disillusioned when we stepped in to take the place of the French after they had given up on Indochine as a colonial possession. Bin Laden turned against us after we abandoned Afghanistan once the Soviets were driven out.
I do not deny that all of these men bear responsibility for the shedding of innocent blood. But they are not the only ones by any means.
Where are the faces of those who turned these former friends into sworn enemies? Who will call them to account?
What goes around, comes around.
Submitting ourselves to the requirements of justice would be the first step on the road to peace. Until we make such a move, all of our protestations about being a "peaceful people" are nothing more than lies.
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