The new nihilists of terrorism

[NV1962]

It's an OpEd in the conservative British newspaper The Scotsman that makes quite a few good points. It's a long read, but worthwhile I think... Here's a selected few paragraphs:

http://news.scotsman.com/opinion.cfm?id=286062004

The new nihilists of terrorism

...

Some will argue that random acts of terrorism have always occurred. They will point to the anarchists of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, such as those who murdered America’s President William McKinley in 1901. But the anarchists of 1901 carried revolvers and crude bombs with music-hall smoking fuses. Today’s terrorist uses sophisticated timing devices and powerful Semtex to kill and maim hundreds at a stroke. Or takes advantage of the crush of modern urban life to crash fuel-laden passenger jets into tall buildings. Let us not forget that it was only because of the failure of an earlier attempt to destroy the twin towers that evacuation procedures were so effective on 11 September, 2001. Instead of 3,000 being murdered, it could so easily have been a staggering 25,000.

...

The spread of this kind of terrorism is no accident. In the past 30 years, democracy has shifted from being a minority political system - restricted basically to North America, Australasia and parts of Western Europe - to become a global standard that most communities wish to attain. At the same time, with the discrediting of Communism, free-market economics are seen widely as the way of raising living standards and guaranteeing personal fulfilment. This cultural revolution has eroded the popularity of totalitarian ideologies, leaving the minority of isolated political cultists with no option but orchestrated violence. The greatest threat is now violence directed not against the state, but against the ordinary citizens who have so manifestly failed the historical destiny allotted them by the likes of ETA or al-Qaeda, or the FARC in Colombia.

...

The real worry about al-Qaeda is not its fantasy politics, but the fact that it has been actively seeking weapons of mass destruction, and is quite willing to use them - bin Laden calls it his "duty". There is no reasoning with this mentality. The danger is that it is so alien to what most of us believe that we are tempted to dismiss the possibility of a Hiroshima explosion in London or Glasgow. Few of the morning commuters in Madrid yesterday were thinking of much else than their family, lovers, football, or just getting through till the end of the working day. But in the minds of ETA or al-Qaeda, such non-political thoughts are as much an enemy as George Bush or Tony Blair. That is why they want to bomb them out of our heads.

...

However, the main weapon in the fight against the new terrorism is improved intelligence. Since 11 September, 2001, the flow of anti-terrorist intelligence has certainly improved. But as the Iraq conflict proved, our intelligence capability is far from perfect, while our intelligence assessment is often corrupted by political wishful thinking. All that has to change, and there can be no penny-pinching when it comes to financing the anti-terrorist fight or funding our armed services properly. It remains to be seen if the Treasury has fully understood that message and the nature of the times in which we live.

Whichever group, or groups, was responsible for yesterday’s appalling carnage in Madrid is the common foe of all mankind. United, we must defeat them.

[Palestine]

1. do not rush to judgment

We live in a complex world.
Many would benefit more from this than Qaida.
Many would benefit from blaming this on Qaida.

[teryang]

2. Most terrorist attacks receive state support

...from someone trying to exploit and manipulate political situations in their favor. States maintain corrupt financial and institutional relationships to support, finance and conceal such terrorist activity. Intelligence operatives from different states often make use of the same networks. BCCI, and the network described in the Forbidden Truth are good examples.

For example, where do the BFEE, CIA and the Saudi royals leave off and their respective criminal infrastructures begin? I'm not suggesting any connection here but some state organization, agency or proxy was probably well aware of this operation. This essay strikes me as simple minded.

It reminds me of the old activists' joke that, "the guy who suggests planting a bomb is FBI."

The man of interest is the man who pays the man, who's sits above the man who enables the angry man (or woman) with the bomb.

[bemildred]

5. It's not random.

One might say it is indiscriminate, but Spain was not selected
randomly. They seem anxious to deflect blame for this from
the current Spanish regime, hence the continued inclusion of the
ETA in the list of perps., despite at least two "al Qaeda" related
claims of "credit" and a firm denial from the ETA. You are quite
correct, it is the fellow who arranges for the Semtex and the customs
clearances that is of interest, you don't just go out and buy a pound
or two at the store. The rest is the same emotional drivel that
they fed us after 9/11 and every other one of these attacks since
time began.

[Miss Authoritiva]

3. Standard issue ....

No offense, but this is the standard issue, rapid response, gloss-over column that appears or will be appearing on editorial pages around the world. Change the date, change the location, change the dead and injured tallies, change the usual suspect(s), change the perceived grievance(s). Express outrage. Call for more funding, more force, and stricter security. Frightening, isn't it, how formulaic it has become.

And the response of the world's leaders is going to be just as predictable.

[teryang]

4. You got it!

It's the standard platitudinous form.

[T_i_B]

7. Some of it may be

But at least this one does accept that we don't know who did it yet. That is the one thing at annoys me, when columms come out about this horrific event which do not take this little problem into account.

If it is the enemy with of Eta rather than the enemy without of Al-Quaida then a different reaction will be required. Either way Spain needs our support at present. But we cannot react properly unless we have some idea of who is behind this atrocity.

[Miss Authoritiva]

8. In some ways it doesn't really matter.

What you say -- "But we cannot react properly unless we have some idea of who is behind this atrocity." -- is absolutely logical. But in some ways, it doesn't really matter what group is behind this atrocity. Presumably, the hunt for both native and foreign terrorist organizations has long been under way. There's nobody to negotiate with, no bargaining table, no points that can be mutually agreed upon. For most of these groups, what terror achieves beyond terror itself is hard to understand. Maybe there is no larger plan; maybe the terrorist acts have become discrete achievable goals and objectives unto themselves.

[T_i_B]

9. Hmmm

If "In some ways it doesn't really matter" then that is all the more excuse for people to write the "standard issue, rapid response, gloss over columm" as a reaction to it.

Both Al-Quaida and Eta are utterly repugnent, but they would be trying to acheve different things and to cause differenct reactions when they terrorize. Al-Quaida and Eta would need different reactions in order for their terror to be defeated.

[Miss Authoritiva]

10. Precisely...and you're right

Most of the people in power don't "do nuance" in terms of the underpinnings of terrorism -- thus, my "standard issue" comment: newspaper editorial columns are not going to "do nuance" either.

You're right in that AQ and ETA have different motives and objectives, but I'm uncertain (an admission of my ignorance) how approaches to their defeat would differ much in terms of strategy and tactics.

And just to clarify: the presumption underlying the "But in some ways it doesn't really matter" statement is that the search already is on for known domestic and foreign terrorist groups. I will concede that the phrase is clumsy, though.

[belle]

6. It's not that the world is more democratic; it's technological advances...

Read Robert Jay Lifton's "Destroying the World to Save It" for more on this. Chilling stuff.