Wouldn't it do a bunch more good... (Score 1)

...to be working to build out the information infrastructure in places like Syria, Lybia, North Korea et. al.? It seems we may be able to save a bunch of cash (well, and lives) sending over laptops and WAPs instead of bunkerbusters and MOABs... I'm not so naive as to think that fostering communication is a panacea for totalitarian rule, but it is certainly a powerful tool for bringing democratization. Iran, despite our current administration's rhetoric, has been a powerful example of this... While our threats have in effect bolstered the hardline mullahs' regressive tactics, there's a strong argument to be made for the student population's use of the net as informational and organizational tool in bringing about concessions over the past decade... Not to mention the fact that it serves as a pipeline for bringing western information and culture into these otherwise (to varying degrees) closed societies, the power of which, while certainly not as rapid, is easily as mighty as that of the 'coalition' forces...