STAND SHOULDER TO SHOULDER WITH THE US

That's the position of the Japan Forum on International Relations. This group, which is similar to our own Council on Foreign Relations, sees the present world situation clearly:

As the time for a possible U.S. attack on Iraq draws near, North Korea is stepping up moves to arm itself with nuclear weapons. Therefore, we must consider carefully what action will best serve Japan's interests and, more generally, what course the international community should take. We support the United States' position and action concerning the Iraq problem, and we insist on strengthening cooperation between Japan and the U.S. in dealing with the North Korea problem. Since these two crises are linked, Japan's ability to resolve the crisis created by North Korea will depend on how Japan responds to the Iraq crisis.

The JFIR also chides the Eurocrats in Paris and Germany for their illogical approach:

We would like to make clear our basic position that we cannot condone development and deployment of WMDs by the so-called rogue states. The Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks underscored the threat of international terrorism. If WMDs fell into the possession of international terrorists, the threat would increase immeasurably. The international community must acknowledge the permitted use of military force as a last resort when the threat cannot be removed through peaceful means.

Those who merely shout antiwar slogans, or take a neutral stand by denouncing both Iraq's noncompliance and U.S. preparations to use force, would appear to have abandoned independent thinking. They are confusing a police nightstick with a lethal weapon.

...

Some Japanese insist that Japan should exercise "autonomy" in its diplomacy by keeping a distance from the U.S., as Germany and France are doing. But there is a big difference between the circumstances involving Germany and France and the situation in which Japan finds itself. At this time, the Japan-U.S. alliance is being tested; this is all the more reason for Japan to decide to give clear-cut support to the U.S. It would be both illogical and inequitable for Japan to demand tough U.S. action in the North Korea crisis while opposing the use of force against Iraq.

I like that word, illogical. That's exactly what the anti-war position has become--illogical.