The "boxcutter" reference is a simple, but difficult one to reckon with: smaller and smaller groups of individuals creating greater and greater damage. That won't improve with obsolete WWII-type attacks on sovereign countries, on any scale.
It would be great to think we're able to control suicide terrorists to such a degree of confidence -- that would be a serious mistake. Our level of vulnerability is high, and getting worse with current opportunistic policies of massive retaliation, as if those being threatened had anything to do with 9/11. Anyone with common sense, and public-service attitude, would look at the intelligence "failure" and depose everyone in the leadership, protect whistleblowers, and keep a bright light on minute-by-minute review on exactly what occured, in all departments. That's being stonewalled, which is incredibly suspicious.
Attacking more Arab countries without finding out what happened makes the gov't actions more of a danger to Americans than the terrorists of 9/11, not less.
It's obviously more profitable politically and personally for the administration to shift the focus towards expending billions in hardware into blowing up thousands of "precision bombed" individuals, in yet another pornographic promotion of violence - as Bush said last night "and, well, the other terrorist suspects, let's just say they won't be bothering us anymore", in a gleeful murderous note. And that was after detailing drills, rape and torture. A sane honest leader would discuss the true costs before advocating destruction of other human beings in the name of the U.S., but it's the rule of blood-lust, rather than rule of law.
"Precision bombing", like "surgical strike" and "collateral damage" are euphemisms for blowing people up. The real question - Are you prepared to be personally responsible for destroying these human beings? Take into account legality, common sense, and the Constitution. Do these actions increase, or decrease national security?
"Precision prevents a lot of unnecessary carnage...", sure, like drills prevent a lot of unnecessary tissue damage.
BTW, the Strangelove/Kahn/Doomsday Machine issues seem crazy, but rather than losing sleep, get some rest, then read "The Future Doesn't Need Us", by Bill Joy, and let me know what you think, if you get a chance ... I'd really appreciate hearing your impression.
The future holds a dramatic expansion of the 9/11-type threats, and won't be successfully met with WWII-type attacks - they are not only irrelevent, they accelerate the problem. If creating thousands or hundreds of thousands of deaths doesn't give you pause, consider that these policies accelerate your own vulnerability. |
