Where do terrorists come from?
Why do people view America as "the Great Satan"? Why does terrorism exist? Broadly speaking, I would put terrorists into three camps: those that are pathologically impaired, i.e., crazy, those that are politically motivated, i.e., of the belief that their stature can be enhanced or sustained by pandering to a violent constituency, and those who honestly and sincerely feel wronged but powerless. With the latter, the issues are almost never black and white.
Think about Palestine and Israel. After WWII, Palestine is carved into two pieces to create a Jewish homeland. A world horrified and disgusted by the abomination inflicted on the Jews by Hitler sought to ease its conscience by restoring the biblical Jewish homeland. A modest reparation...if you weren't a Palestinian living in what would become Israel or a Moslem who believed that the West had just handed one the world's most holy cities to the "infidels". Who's was right; who was wrong? Maybe everybody was right and everybody was wrong. That moral debate is now secondary to the decades of hatred and murder and anger that has arisen. The result is human tragedy.
During the American revolution, were we terrorists or freedom fighters? Kind of depends on your perspective. To what extent does tyranny lie in the eyes of the beholder? Pathological terrorists deserve no quarter and need to be eradicated down to the last animal. The same can be said for political terrorists. However, I believe it is necessary to understand those who feel sincerely wronged and powerless ...because unless we are willing to kill them all, right down to the last woman and child, it is unlikely that bombing a few weapons factories will do much to dissuade their attacks or mitigate their anger.
Which begs the question, what is the purpose of a military response to a terrorist action? Are we attempting to punish those involved, prevent subsequent attacks or to diminish the capacity to undertake the same? What confuses me is why we don't seek out the leaders. Why bomb a weapons factory, staffed by underlings who immediately become martyrs, while allowing the ostensible leader (Osama bi Laden) to roam free? Bombing Iraq back into the stone age DID get Saddam out of Kuwait, DID kill several hundred thousand rank-and-file Iraqis, but DID NOT get him out of power. Someone please explain to me why the "rules of war" codify killing thousands of conscripted solders but protect the sociopath that precipitated and perpetuated the conflict? Generations of Iraqis will hate America long after Saddam is mole food.
I am always amazed by the sanctity of an individual human life, but our indifference to wholesale slaughter. Fall down a well, get buried under a landslide or carried off by rising water and the nation prays for your welfare and virtually unlimited resources are made available to rescue you. But starve anonymously on the streets of NYC, or live in a country ruled by a dictatorial nutcase, and your life isn't worth a plug nickel. Strange.
By the way...I am not trying to vent some deeply held political agenda...this topic is just more interesting than watching my entire portfolio depreciate.
Best regards,
Gregg |
