Is There a Terrorist Threat?

One of my biggest critisisms of my fellow liberals is the tendancy to dismiss the threat of terrorism. I constantly meet people and have friends who believe 9-11 was an inside job and a bunch of guys inside caves couldn't have pulled it off. I think most of us do recognize the threat but there's some of us who can't come to terms with it.

When terrorism happens we want justice, and justice is what we deserve. I supported military action in Afghanistan because the Taliban were clearly harboring terrorist fugitives responsible for the attacks on September 11th, and they did not want to take steps to turn them over.

We all want to see Osama Bin Laden captured and put on a legitimate trial for the crimes he has committed over the years. This is supported by nearly every American, and most of the world.

After September 11th, the Bush administration developed an ambitious doctrine of pre-emptive strikes if there is any suspicion that a country is harboring terrorists. The US military muscle was beginning to flex. One by one, every nation on earth was put on notice that you are either on side with the United States, or you are a potential target. This raised a lot of eyebrows overseas, but here at home while the nation was still in paralysis, there was little critisism.

Iraq was invaded under the Bush-Cheney doctrine and the brutal regime of Saddam Hussein was brought down hard. But their credibility was lost once the public learned that none of the reasons given for fighting this war held true.

Many Americans cite the danger of terrorism as a reason for continuing to fight this war. I would say that the danger of terrorism is worse since that war began, and it is a good reason to end the war in Iraq as soon as possible.

I think many Americans have this fantasy that eventually we'll kill or catch every terrorist in the world. Once that happens the world will be safe once again. This seems to be the current strategy in play.

What it doesn't take into account is that there are terror cells all over the world, in every major city of North America and Europe. There are guys all over the place who may or may not be connected to Al Qaeda, but you don't need any special connections to build a truck bomb and take down a major building, landmark, or subway station.

This is how a potential terrorist is created: You have an idealistic young muslim man with deep faith, let's say he lives in Cleveland. Him and his muslim friends get together every so often for pizza, popcorn, tell jokes, share stories, and watch jhadi videos.

Over and over again, the young man sees oppression of "his people" around the world. Images of the suffering in the Palestinian territories, Iraq, and other places. When they are taught that America supports these atrocities, they are filled with a helpless rage at the injustice. He may attend a mosque where these views are encouraged.

Now most Muslims share the view that the west and Israel are oppressing Muslims. Most would take action through peaceful means such as activism, awareness, protests, petitions, etc. But a few will go to the next level of violent protest, and plan to commit acts of terrorism against the west. And I will tell you, there are people just like this in every city in America. Most of them will probably never get to the execution phase of their planning, but it is happening.

My point is, why would we stay in Iraq and give the terrorists more material to work with? Many children are growing up in Iraq under the occupation and while many will have a favorable view of America, many others will have had a father, uncle, or brother who was killed by the Americans. This kid becomes a potential threat. There's thousands of kids in this position. Is this threat really worth having control of the middle east oil supply? We can keep killing them, and we'll just have to deal with more of them.

The way to stop terrorism at the root of the problem is to take steps to end oppression of Muslims around the world. Open up a dialogue. I'm not saying we roll over to them, I say we get them on our side. Close down Guantanamo Bay and put the prisoners on a public trial in front of a legitimate international court. Punish Israel if they commit a war crime. Let's truly become the beacon for freedom around the world and muslims will follow.

We also need to stop the anti-muslim bigotry that takes place here at home. We need muslims on our side to help catch the terrorists. As we speak, there are many muslims working with the CIA and other worldwide intelligence agencies to help bring down terrorist cells. A lot of them are in dangerous undercover roles and certainly deserve our thanks for helping protect us. And those who are living here peacefully are just like you and me, working hard, paying taxes, and being responsible citizens.

My hope for the future is that as oil becomes a thing of the past, the United States may no longer find it necessary to keep military bases in the middle east. When Bush leaves office (assuming another Clinton doesn't take charge) hopefully we'll see some real change in these areas.

Peace,

LF