What would Koizumi Do?

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If militants had captured four of your army engineers and then promised to kill them unless you pulled your small number of non-combat soldiers out of Iraq, would you do it? Or would you let the four soldiers die?

Remember that Japan hasn't sent soldiers to a combat zone since World War II.

― Tracer Hand (tracerhand), Thursday, 8 April 2004 11:51 (twenty-one years ago)

wasn't Koizumi the purple-haired horny engineer chick from Neon Genesis Evangelion?

― Kingfish Balzac (Kingfish), Thursday, 8 April 2004 12:00 (twenty-one years ago)

See, she'd probably go down to Iraq, hack into their dishwasher, and blind the militants in a sudden spray of soapy foam, at the exact moment that she crashes through the window. When the hostages asked "so how do we get out" she'll pause and say "just grab on to me and hang on" and then they all giggle.

― Tracer Hand (tracerhand), Thursday, 8 April 2004 12:33 (twenty-one years ago)

Time for the old two faces act, methinks. Say to the world media that you're going to stand firm and resolute, and say to the militants that you're pulling the troops out. Act on what you tell the militants, not what you tell the media.

― Momus (Momus), Thursday, 8 April 2004 14:10 (twenty-one years ago)

Questions like these make me glad I'm not a politician.

― Alex in SF (Alex in SF), Friday, 9 April 2004 01:40 (twenty-one years ago)

If it were that simple Momus, why arent more govts doing just that? Seriously, it seems weirdly logical somehow.

― Trayce (trayce), Friday, 9 April 2004 02:14 (twenty-one years ago)

As bad as the whole Iraq situation is, and as much as I loathe the idiots responsible for such a completely stupid and relentlessly incompetent operation, there's something to be said for not letting small groups of thugs with guns and hostages dictate anyone's foreign policy.

― spittle (spittle), Friday, 9 April 2004 03:37 (twenty-one years ago)

I mean, if the hostage-taking were perceived to "work" on some level, there'd just be a dozen more hostages tomorrow. (Which there might be anyway, hostages being relatively easy to come by.)

― spittle (spittle), Friday, 9 April 2004 03:38 (twenty-one years ago)

I don't think tricking the media occurs too often. People just don't like to trust it so they can assume something else really happened.

― A Nairn (moretap), Friday, 9 April 2004 03:40 (twenty-one years ago)

How does the Momus-plan work? Do you pray that neither the militants nor the press realize you're playing them?

The militants, presumably, have enough reach to know what's going on with your troops.

And the media presence is going to know whether or not there are Japanese soldiers/civilians on the ground in Iraq. (And the US would tip them off if you pulled out, purely out of spite.)

― miloauckerman (miloauckerman), Friday, 9 April 2004 03:41 (twenty-one years ago)

They need some kind of special ops hostage recovery team that is just really really good at what they do.

― A Nairn (moretap), Friday, 9 April 2004 03:43 (twenty-one years ago)

Rambo!!

― Tracer Hand (tracerhand), Friday, 9 April 2004 09:29 (twenty-one years ago)

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