I am sick of hearing about the “War on Terror”. There is no such thing as a war on terror! That is like saying a war on phobias or a war on bombing. It is a nonsense.
What is terrorism? (Interestingly, no Government has dared to define it). Terrorism is a method of fighting. The method is to create terror in people, which incapacitates them in some way. It does not always have to be physical.
Traditional wars were fought by armies, fighting it out, people getting killed while trying to take control of some ground. Having taken control, the winner implemented an order or regime that was to their liking. That is the way it was done for centuries.
Of course this form of fighting means that the strongest tends to win. Maybe not only strength, but strength has a lot to do with it. So what does the little guy need to do to win? Well, he can find bigger weapons and become stronger! The trouble is the guys with the biggest weapons just keep making theirs bigger as well. They also make it impossible to get the materials and the information to be able to make bigger weapons. Eventually there is a limit to the size of the weapon anyway.
But there is one method of war that has been used over the years in different situations by all sides and has been effective. It is called striking fear into the enemy. If you strike enough fear into the enemy, you can overthrow them without as much violence, or at least minimize the violence.
Japan used it to great effect in the World War II, but then again the British used it many years before in Africa, India and many other places. In fact, striking fear in the enemy has been used by the West for many years as a method of fighting.
Today’s wars are not country against country. They are ideologies fighting an ideology. Afghanistan is not fighting USA or visa versa. There is a group of people that are fighting for what they believe in. They based themselves in Afghanistan but are not the elected rulers of the country.
Of course they have limited access to “strength” or “big enough weapons” in order to fight their fight. They are not physically strong enough or have physical weapons to attack with. However, they have a weapon that can be very powerful if used correctly. It doesn’t have to explode (although if it does it provides visual impact) it doesn’t even have to cost a lot of lives. What it has to do is, scare people enough, so that they don’t function well.
The IRA used it very effectively in United Kingdom for years. The bombings that they undertook were not designed to kill, but rather to scare people. They believed that if the people of United Kingdom were scared enough they would demand their Government give back Northern Ireland.
The war against the colonies in Africa was fought in the same way. Southern Rhodesia and South Africa were typical examples. The aim was not to kill all the ‘whites’; they could have done that because the whites were out-numbered. Instead they tried to undermine the economy of the country so that it had to collapse and then they would be able to take control.
It worked! Of course sanctions from the west were a help, but the fear factor was also a contributing element that made the change happen.
So terrorism is a method of war. It is not a war, as Bush would like to call it, that someone can declare war on! Declaring war on terrorism is like declaring war on war.
The real trouble is that the mind-set of the world that is trying to fight terrorism is using conventional methods of war. This is the mind-set of leaders who were leaders in a different era. What they don’t realise is that they are not fighting a traditional war and that being the physically strongest is now not the most important element of the war.
To show how old fashioned the thinking is they still make their decisions based on their own values and beliefs. They think that killing these people will solve the problem. This premise comes from a western belief that human life is valued and people want to live. The truth is, the people they are fighting don’t hold human life as that important. In fact, these people will gladly die if it is in defence of their beliefs.
This method of war should not be fought with the same mind-set of wars in the past. It requires new thinking and new leadership. Solutions to the current problems are not to be found in simply making bigger weapons or shouting louder.
The real impact of the 9/11 attack on the World Trade Centre in New York was not simply the thousands of people that died, although that was a terrible tragedy. The real impact and outcome has been the way United States has got itself into debt and weakened its position on the world stage. The perpetrators of that dastardly attack achieved what they set out to do. They scared America into acting impetuously and into financially de-stabilising itself. Oh yes, it also got America to take out one of its archenemies that was ruling Iraq, and to de-stabilise that whole region. That was a bonus!
What would have happened if America had not gone off fighting in the Middle East after 9/11? What if America had chosen instead to undermine the people behind the attack and even created enough fear in the region to make it impossible for these people to be supported and to operate?
The truth is we don’t know. But we can take an educated guess and one thing is for sure, America would not be as weak as it is now both financially and influentially.
Recently Gordon Brown refused to attend a summit because Mugabe was attending. This is another example of old type thinking and old style leadership. The British Prime Minister thought he made a stand and achieved some sort of moral victory. In reality, Mugabe’s stature has been improved because he managed to force the British out of the summit. The British were too afraid to attend when Mugabe was there! His influence is stronger in Africa because the British Prime Minister had an old style leadership head on.
Terrorism is not something that will ever go away. It is a powerful method used by bullies in playgrounds and corporations in market places. It is so effective because people react to it.
Look how Bush is jumping around because Iran is making nuclear fuel. President Ahmajinidad is having great fun watching how he is terrorising Bush with his rhetoric about Israel and by pretending to be refining nuclear fuel. He knows that if he can keep America fighting traditional wars, their economy will continue to be effected, their influence will be undermined and in this weakened state they can be brought down to size and dealt with.
It is 2008. This year could be a deciding year for better, or for worse. Let us hope that we will see a new generation of leaders emerge that think differently and are prepared to build, rather then destroy. I hear the American news talking about the need for Presidential candidates with “experience”. I am sorry, but the people with experience are often also those that have the old mind-set. Experience is only of value if placed alongside innovation and fresh thinking. Experience on its own is not enough.
Learn from the past but create the future.
The time has come if the people of America and Iran will elect someone who is not frightened. You see: fear is what makes terrorism work!
January 1st 2008
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