From: hallam@ai.mit.edu
Date: Tue, 17 Sep 1996 11:18:12 +0800
To: cypherpunks@toad.com
Subject: Re: Kiddie porn on the Internet
In-Reply-To: <199609162001.NAA21875@mail.pacifier.com>
Message-ID: <9609162033.AA32637@etna.ai.mit.edu>
MIME-Version: 1.0
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>Yet another obligatory AP (Assassination Politics) reference:  If a person 
>is really interested in helping out "starving children" he may be able to do 
>far more good by purchasing the death of the local tyrant(s), rather than 
>(just) buying more food.


The problem is that assasination rarely leads to the installation of
a government that is any better. In most cases it gets worse.

In the past the US excuse for supporting bloodthirsty murderers like
Pinochet, Saddam, Marcos and Noriega was that the alternative was
worse.

In cases like Eritrea or Ethiopia the average term of office of any 
given despot tends to be rather short in any case. In most cases its
a case of there being little to choose between the leaders of the 
various factions and that ending the war on any terms is better 
than allowing it to continue. 


		Phill