French president Jacques Chirac has threatened to use nuclear weapons against states that use terrorism against France or its strategic interests, including its energy supplies. And there are still Continental Europeans who call the Americans arrogant and aggressive!

According to Chirac's new doctrine, the Americans would have been justified in nuking Afghanistan after September 11. In fact, though it has been the world's leading nuclear power since 1945, the United States hasn't threatened anyone with nuclear war except for the Soviets and Communist Chinese in case of an attack on the US or NATO forces during the Cold War.

A total of 100,000 American soldiers died in Korea and Vietnam and there were no nuclear threats. In fact, the Communists would not have dared open hostilities in Korea or Vietnam if they had believed the Americans would nuke them. There have been no American nuclear threats against any state but the Soviet Union or China for any reason, and the Americans have not nuked any states using terrorism, including Libya, Iran, Iraq, and Syria, though these countries have supported many different terrorist attacks against the US.

Remember 1986? Colonel Qaddafi's Libya was backing terrorist attacks all over Europe. They blew up the airplane over Lockerbie and the disco in Berlin. Reagan responded with a bombing raid on Libya and you should have heard those Europeans scream. France refused the US permission to fly over its territory, and the US didn't even bother asking Spain. Under Chirac's new standard, the US should have nuked them.

Or what about Israel? By Chirac's new standard, the Israelis would be more than justified in turning the entire Middle East into a nuclear wasteland after the thousands of terrorist attacks sponsored by Damascus and Baghdad and Tripoli.

But we all know that if the Americans--or the British, or the Israelis--had ever said anything like Chirac did, the uproar across Europe would have been tremendous. Mendiluce and Xirinacs would call for the moral repudiation of the imperialist warmongers. What hypocrisy.

Of course, Chirac's loudmouthed boasting will be counterproductive. Al Qaeda will take it as a challenge. France is now target number one on their list. Jacques, Teddy Roosevelt's adage was "Speak softly and carry a big stick." Actually, TR was rather boastful himself on more than one occasion, but in general the policy has worked.  I'm afraid that Chirac has violated it on both counts, first by shouting loudly and second by carrying a limp, wrinkled stick.