No Freedom, No Money.

Saudi Arabian authorities yesterday released Manal al-Sherif, a woman arrested for driving, an activity forbidden to women in Saudi Arabia.

Such laws are utterly ridiculous and go against American ideals of freedom. The United States needs to take a stance against such policies and tell countries that they need to move forward with reforms in order to provide equality and freedom. Countries that fail to do this should be ineligible for any United States aid or protection. Saudi Arabia is protected from attack because the United States will come to its aid and defense, such as how the United States defended Saudi Arabia from Iraqi attacks in the early 1990s. Such protection should not exist for countries that are not willing to align themselves with the objective of furthering freedom.

The United States spends billions of dollars a year on foreign aid and defense. With a major deficit, the United States needs to ensure that it is not spending money to help countries that are not working to further freedom. That money is better spent reducing the United States deficit or helping countries that want to advance freedom.

Kill Qaddafi (Updated)

Update (8:55 AM, 21 March 2011): A report from FOX News indicates that the coalition did attack Qaddafi's compound with missiles fired from a British submarine. However, the coalition maintains that the attack was not targeted at Qaddafi, but was done due the military significance of the compound. Further, The Pentagon has said that the coalition is not going after Qaddafi. The Report believes this is a mistake, and that hunting Qaddafi down is something that the coalition should do. Unlike the hunt for Saddam Hussein in Iraq, however, the hunt for Qaddafi should be done without ground forces. If a location of Qaddafi is determined, then missile or air strikes should be called in.

Original Post
Leaving dictators in power, while curbing their military capabilities, has almost never been a successful strategy in the long-run. In Iraq, Saddam Hussein was allowed to remain in power for over a decade following the Gulf War. Hussein, despite embargoes and a no-fly zone, continued massacring civilians and oppressing the people of Iraq.

In Libya, coalition forces are enforcing a United Nations authorized no-fly zone and have attacked Qaddafi's military forces. Yet, Qaddafi remains defiant, believing that in the end he will prevail.

What should happen is Qaddafi should be told that he has until Noon on Tuesday to order his forces to stand down and then give up power in Libya or leave the country. If he complies, then freedom and democracy can prevail with greater ease. If he does not comply, then he will be forced out of power. If Qaddafi says he will fight to the death, then that means he gets to die. Coalition warplanes should obliterate Qaddafi's palaces, and obliterate his car, his plane, his bunker, or any location he might be hiding in, too

Libya will be a better place without Qaddafi. The people there deserve freedom and democracy, and with Qaddafi out of power, they will be be able to achieve it. A free, democratic Libya will benefit the United States and the rest of the world, as well. The investment of military action in Libya, in the long run, will pay back the American people with greater security, cheaper oil, and a stronger economy.