America must prevail in World War III

By MICHAEL GOODWIN
NEW YORK DAILY NEWS
When I wrote recently that "World War III has begun," I expected some arguments from readers that the hot spots around the globe did not add up to a world war. Count me as surprised, then, that the vast majority of responses didn't object to my central point. Readers agreed we are in a global war. They only differed on the start date.
I said the war had a long fuse and wondered whether it began when the Cold War ended. Or was it the first attack on the World Trade Center, in 1993? Neither was the first choice of those who wrote letters or sent e-mails. Here are some of their picks:
"It began centuries ago and will continue for centuries to come," wrote Catherine McCabe from the Rochester, N.Y., area. "This is not the usual political war. It is a religious war, with militant Islam tactics dating back in history. It is only now becoming more active with their ability to purchase modern weapons through sales of drugs, money laundering, etc. With them, anything goes in the name of Allah."
California connection
Gary Shadid of Peoria, Ill., targeted the murder of Robert F. Kennedy by Sirhan Sirhan: "Could WW III ... have begun with a certain shooting in California in 1968 by a Palestinian? It is hard for me to believe that event stands alone."
"A new kind of global war -- WW III, if it needs a name for emphasis -- began decades ago," wrote D.E. Mosman, a retired Navy captain. He saw similarities to Vietnam, which he experienced. "Nothing has changed," he wrote. "Except the passage of time and the fact the American people are still woefully ignorant as to their own stake in a war we cannot afford to lose."
He cited a list of events, starting with the massacre of Israeli athletes at the 1972 Munich Olympics and including the attack on the U.S. Marine barracks in Beirut in 1983, the 1985 hijacking of the Achille Lauro cruise ship, the hijacking of TWA Fight 847 in Athens, also 1985, and the 1988 bombing of Pam Am Flight 103.
Common choice
Naturally, 9/11 was a common choice, and one reader suggested we were actually in World War IV. World War III, he wrote, centered on Vietnam and the showdown over communism.
Yet the most popular date suggested is one I find persuasive. Carl Wessels of Waxahachie, Texas, wrote succinctly: "May I suggest WW III started on 1 1/4/1979. The date militant Islamic students in Iran stormed the U.S. Embassy in the Iranian capital, Tehran."
An influential essay on the topic appeared in the spring issue of City Journal magazine. Author Mark Steyn, writing about the hostage drama and how Iran "paid no price," added: "At hinge moments of history, there are never good and bad options, only bad and much, much worse. Our options today are significantly worse because we didn't take the bad one back then."
Global stakes
Our debate is timely, with events of the last week confirming the global nature, and the stakes, of the conflict. The rail bombing in India that killed 200 was probably carried out by Islamic fascists trying to take over Kashmir. And with Israel suddenly fighting Muslims on two fronts, Iran is once again threatening to destroy our closest Mideast ally.
On the most important point, then, there was virtual unanimity among those who wrote: Whenever World War III started, it can end only one way: The U.S. must prevail.
I agree.
Michael Goodwin is a Pulitzer Prize-winning columnist for the New York Daily News. Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune.