Tech Connection

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TET Is Not The Best Comparison

Much is being made of late that the current situation in Iraq is similar to the 1968 TET offensive in Vietnam. I think the more accurate comparison would be further back in history - Hitler's invasion of the Soviet Union in 1941 or Napoleon's invasion of Russia in 1812. In both cases the invading army was pushed forward by leaders who sent their troops into battle ill-equipped for a long-term war, so certain were they of immediate victory. Initially, both invasions were wildly successful, but the lack of a long-term plan and insufficient resources lead to their defeats. Both invasions were defeated in large part by guerilla-style warfare that their troops were not trained to defeat. President Bush is finding, as did Napoleon and Hitler before him, that taking ground is not the same as winning the war.

Safekeeping Our Freedoms

With the five year anniversary of the attack on the World Trade Center towers, the price we have paid in lost liberties has become more apparent. What is disturbing about this loss is not the willingness of the general population to forgo their freedoms in the hope of securing more safety, but the ease with which those in power convinced themselves to take them. As technology progresses, the ability to restrict our freedoms becomes easier and it will only be by the virtues of those in positions of power that we will maintain them. The reaction of the Bush administration does not give comfort that we will be in good hands