Front Sight Focus – March 2004
The Hunt for Bin Laden by Martin L. Strong
sealstrike.com
Good guys, bad guys, car chases, in the end, well deserved justice. It’s the stuff American novels and movies are made of. Americans love their villains and historically they have focused their national angst on the personality in charge of our enemies. Hitler in Nazi Germany, General Tojo in Imperial Japan, Mao Ze Dong in Communist China, and Ho Chi Minh in Vietnam -- the list goes on and on. Now we have Osama Bin Laden -- master terrorist, architect of the brutal attacks on American non-combatants, the scourge of democracy in the new millennium.
Bin Laden has played the role of America’s villain extremely well, crowding the media with threats, detailed edicts, and verbose speeches filled with fiery rhetoric aimed at the great Satan and her allies. So it makes sense that for the past two years the public focus (via the keyhole view of the mass media) has been directed at capturing Osama Bin Laden. We Americans know the deal -- capture the villain and the terror will end -- game over. It’s no wonder, then, that we watch and listen with great expectations and hope when we’re told Bin Laden is near capture and feel let down when he yet again eludes our forces. You see, we Americans are used to seeing peace and closure when our enemy "villain" is vanquished and therefore we sincerely believe the eventual capture of Osama Bin Laden will be no different. The war on terror will end that very day, we’re sure of it!
Well, I have a news flash for you. Over the past fifteen years Osama Bin Laden has succeeded in creating a complicated and globally entrenched franchise of terror, a franchise that has ensured consistent standards of terror training, planning, and execution for hundreds of terrorist groups on every continent on the planet. The capture of Bin Laden would have been critical after the 1993 bombing of the World Trade Center in New York City. His capture would have been vital in stamping out the Al Qaeda terror network after the bombing of the USS Cole. However, at this point in history, his death or capture now will barely satisfy the need for justice -- barely impact the worldwide franchise of terror, as the students and lieutenants of Osama Bin Laden plan and plot in the shadows.
Bin Laden’s capture or death will not create the environment for a negotiated ceasefire. It will not serve to reduce the threat the terror franchise poses to America and her allies. It is important to understand that Osama Bin Laden’s greatest value now is that of symbology. He has become the embodiment of righteous Jihad to millions of Muslims. Alive or dead, he serves continues to serve that purpose. So how does this madness end? If we can’t achieve closure by beheading the beast, how might we defeat those who wish our destruction?
The answer lies in a careful study of how America has prosecuted the war on terror. Critics who focus on power players such as Saddam or Bin Laden view the quick capture of these men as a true measurement of success, if not outright victory. This is absurd. The reality of the franchise of terror actually demands a sweeping assault on the strategic, operational, and tactical levels of those organizations. This is, in fact, a war -- not the policing of criminals. The terror trainers and their students must be located and resolutely dealt with. The operational commanders and planners must be eradicated to ensure America’s security. Finally, the strategic leaders must be found and rendered mute. To do less is folly and, worse, wishful thinking. Hope is not a legitimate national defense strategy.
I have no doubt that the capture of Osama Bin Laden will create great pressure on the president to "bring the boys home"-- to end the war after declaring sweet victory. The political opposition and anti-war critics may vigorously applaud a new era of peace so as to diminish the role and responsibilities of our next Commander-in-Chief. Ironically, this would place George W. Bush precisely where his father found himself – a victorious post-war commander with no more evil to fight. Of course, such foolishness would represent a false sense of security. The world terror franchise will continue to recruit, train, and plan. A different personality will rise to the occasion and become the new leader of global Jihad. The war on terror can only be won by ruthlessly hunting down the merchants of death at every level of their organization and in every corner of the planet. The sooner Americans understand this cold fact, the sooner we will win.
Martin L. Strong |
