Letter: Let's call it what it really is

Letter writer Scott Abramson calls the failed bombing in Times Square "a man-made disaster” ("Call it what it is” in the May 8 edition of the Daily Journal). What it is, in fact, is "blowback.”

Blowback is the unintended consequences of foreign operations deliberately kept secret so when retaliation comes, the American public is not able to put in context the cause and effect. They then come up with questions like "Why did they attack us?”

America has been lucky for the past 130 years as it has been overthrowing governments at the behest of American corporations with little or no blowback. In Hawaii, the American sugar companies didn’t want to pay export duties so they overthrew the queen. In Guatemala, United Fruit wanted President Jacobo Arbenz out, so out he went. In Chile, President Salvador Allende offended the copper interests, so Allende was killed. In Iran, Prime Minister Dr. Mohammad Mossadegh offended major oil interests and he was ousted. In Nicaragua, President Jose Santos Zelaya was in the way of American lumber and mining companies, so Zelaya was ousted. In Honduras, an American banana magnate organized the coup of the Honduran government.

George Bush lied America into war with Iraq by saying it had weapons of mass destruction to steal oil, and the mainstream media went right along. Now Obama is lying about why we are in Afghanistan, but nothing is ever mentioned about the energy pipeline Big Oil wants to build there.

The Middle East hasn’t been neutered by religion. On the contrary, they are willing to die for their god and values, and to keep out invaders. And, in fact, they are willing to bring the death and destruction that the United States and its coalition of the willing brought to their countries back to our own soil.

Frank Scafani

San Bruno