Underground Limestone Castle

Why Al-Qaeda prayed for a Kerry victory

It is true that Americans can appear to have short memories - witness the national myopia regarding September 11th, 2001. Already a distant memory for many, causes of the events of that day have been spun into little more than temporary insanity. Questions about who did it and why are diluted into a harmless broth, whereby a handful of men who probably "hadn't been taking their medication" went off the deep end. The feel-good platitudes of American academia and Government have subsequently been immersed in discussions about the "Root causes of terrorism", "Why they hate us", and how to win "Arab hearts and minds". While these perspectives are primarily borne of childlike ignorance, they betray a much more grown-up propensity to danger, as they play right into the hands of those who seek not to raise questions regarding global diplomacy, but only to become martyrs to their fans.

An Osama Bin Laden, to his misled palestinian supporters, is not a hero in the way we would ordinarily think of a hero - that is, someone who triumphs against evil through the sheer force of his will - rather, he is more like a rock star - someone who emits an aura of wealth and power, but whose product is more or less imaginary. Thus we have "Solutions" such as blowing up American ships and property, and the murder of civilians as the ultimate prize. No one who was actually attempting to open a serious international dialogue or negotiate a treaty would resort to such tactics. It is all showmanship, the kind of instinct within a child to light a firecracker and then run away, lest he be discovered and held accountable. Left undeveloped, this instinct can grow and warp exponentially until the slaughter of innocent civilians can appear to be a splendid way to get one's point across.

This is the problem when it comes to strategies for dealing with Bin Laden and his Al-Qaeda chorus: academic types, bureaucrats, and idealists who believe in the power of government to solve the world's problems, seem to think we should be analyzing the claims of our enemies, taking them seriously, and even (insert shudder here), attempting to comply with their demands. Our politicians praise Bin Laden for "Building day-care centers", and our institutions of higher learning offer seminars on "Fighting Terrorism with Empathy", where blame is laid with the U.S. for "The actions we take out of fear, hate, and retribution".

It should be more than a little disturbing that American responses to terrorism are viewed with more suspicion than the actions of terrorists - what in the world were the attacks of 9/11 besides actions taken "Out of fear, hate, and retribution"? The Chiracs, Schroeders, and Barbara Boxers of the world can present themselves as super-diplomats for begging "Patience" on behalf of a conniving and deceitful Saddam Hussein. (Never mind that a Chirac has a lot more to hide with regard to arms sales and oil-for-food cover-ups; it is his pose as a person who cares about "Peace" which is the most dangerous to us all.) According to this mindset, we are the ones who should be in the psychiatrist's chair for failing to empathize sufficiently with our muslim brothers and sisters; the murderers, as is so common in contemporary culture, are to be excused because of an abusive upbringing, with the U.S. cast as the dysfunctional parent.

What is more dangerous to us is the way the debates are framed: if one were to suppose, even for a moment, that the mainstream press in Europe and the U.S. were a serious representation of popular thought, one could be forgiven for thinking that Bush had already been formally pronounced the new Hitler. There isn't much time or opportunity for the common man to dig through all the rubbish, so he may well shrug his shoulders and get on the Bush-bashing bandwagon. With this development safely in hand, those in journalism who entered the field in the belief that their job was to mold public opinion toward the side of the righteous would congratulate themselves on a job well done.

Fortunately, they weren't able to deliver Kerry to the Oval Office, despite their superhuman efforts. (CBS, in particular, tipped its hand in a manner so odious and foul as to discredit its entire news organization, and yet it lumbers on in denial.) When the results were in, and it turned out that a majority of Americans had not been taken in with Kerry's frantic dance steps on every issue set before him, the media exploded with a tantrum not seen since the days of Reagan. Now we are treated to reports that Americans hoping for a Kerry win are so depressed they have sought medical attention. It must be a very disturbing time for them, as a psychosis penetrating so deeply and thoroughly will indeed be difficult to endure - but unbeknownst to them, they are in luck, as the Bin Ladens and Saddam Husseins, instead of receiving an early Christmas present in the form of a U.S. president who would have been far more accommodating to them, will have to burrow deeper and run faster.

posted by ET @ 3:27 PM