Terrorists Defeating Terrorism

Politics | September 16th, 2001

While we consider the escalated war against terrorism that America is prepared to engage in, we should carefully profile our new enemies in these matters.

Afghanistan has been principal in these issues. The US media has reported that the Afghan government is responsible for harboring these fugitives of terrorism, and even our President has confirmed these suspicions. Who is the Afghan government? More importantly, what is the relationship with bordering nations like Pakistan and Iraq.

The apparent truth seems to be that the Afghan government is highly decentralized and extremely dependent on terrorist organizations. This is the failure experienced by the Soviet Union when it attempted to control Afghanistan by controlling the Afghan burocracy. A country that lacks centralized government cannot be centrally controlled, and this makes it very difficult to attack.

Even more disconcerting is the question of victory, something that is not always clear at the beginning of any war but that must be considered in order to recognize the onset of a favorable outcome. The defeat of Afghanistan does not immediately appear as a possible outcome because there is no central authority to conquer. Another potential outcome is the elimination of terrorist organizations globally; however, this is equally improbable simple because we can never know the existence of every terrorist cell in every nation.

Meanwhile, Pakistan has a central government that has been tainted by terrorist cells in the country. Even more troubling is the prospect of nuclear assaults that could be enacted if terrorists decided to overpower the Pakistani regime. Of course, Iraq vigorously supports any activities that might jeopardize the American stability and can therefore be considered another valuable ally of terrorists.

The victory against terrorism needs to be willfully executed by the terrorist themselves. Terrorists need to recognize the vicious nature of their acts against humanity, and discontinue the planning and execution of these kinds of exercises.



9/11

Politics | September 14th, 2001

In the twilight of our greatest terror, America stands poised for a sustained military conflict against an elusive enemy. There is no doubt that the horrors of this Tuesday will be eternally engrained in our memories, but we should temper our angst with introspection of these events.

More importantly, understanding the essence of this evil is the only means to devise appropriate countermeasure. A treachorous approach is one that demands immediate forceful response, especially considering the perpetrators of these crimes are likely anticipating this kind of reaction. These terorists are educated in modern miltary techniques and are connected to our vast array of information technologies.

Every action that we take creates an opposite reaction. In fact, it is these actions that have at least partially places us in this predicament. The terrorist groups that attack us today are the same groups that we provided weapons and military training to.

Is it possible a violent assult of Afghanistan or Iraq can cause the desired immediate affect? More than likely, this kind of attack will provide a sense of relief that there is something Americans can do in the war against terrorism. The truth, however, is that these groups are willing to die in a conflict against the world power of the United States. Any military attack that we make today will result in a faceless attack against American citizens tomorrow.

The Osama bin Laden terrorist group does not believe that any Americans are innocent. We are all equally guilty of any attack executed either by our government or our military. Therefore, by invoking our military we will all be attacking Laden and every American in every place of every country will then be guilty of this assult.

The terrorism continues as a consequence of any response. This is not the kind of world civilized people live in.