The War on Terror - Two Years Later

Who can forget the shock and horror of that day only two years ago, when the "war on terror" began because of the deeds of a few radical Islamic fanatics? Two years later, what has that war accomplished?

The simple answer is that the "war on terror" has already accomplished two of its main goals: ousting the Taliban in Afghanistan and ousting the Baath Party in Iraq. This is commendable, but the goal not too divergent from those just referenced remains unaccomplished. That goal is the capture of Usama Bin-Laden, Mullah Omar, and Saddam Hussein. But it has been only two years since this war began. At some juncture perhaps those masters of evil will meet an equally evil end.

How is it possible to oust a regime while its former leaders evade capture? How is it possible that with all the military deployments and the billions of dollars spent, and allocated to be spent, the US and its allies have not found those masters of evil? How is it possible that intelligence sources differ as to whether those masters of evil are alive or dead? How can so many questions remain after two years?

Two years is not so long as wars go. It took almost fifty years of rumors and a few teeth fragments to validate that Soviet forces had in fact uncovered Adolf Hitler's shallow grave. It took almost as long - until the 1871 uprising of the Paris Commune - to convince the French that Napoleon had in fact met his demise on St. Helena. No doubt, fifty years from now some Internet site whose data is driven by conspiracy theories will claim UBL and Hussein sightings at regular intervals. It would be a perfect complement to a society that remains fixated by Elvis and Jim Morrison sightings.

And while the cult of infamy persists, the "war on terror" also will persist. The absence of an attack against a Western state since 11 September, 2001 (unless you ascribe to the theory that the crash of Flight 587 and various other events have been the work of terrorists) does not and should not serve as an indication that the Western world is immune to attack. Often, during wars, there are lulls when it seems nothing is happening, but actually much is happening. The vital thing is that the errors that allowed those hijackers to accomplish their goals are not repeated. Not repeating those errors is a very lofty goal. Governments act very slowly. The Department of Homeland Security (an agency that really would do itself a great public relations service if it found another name) is simply a quick fix. Likewise is the Transportation Security Administration (although those inspectors who must examine all those shoes deserve our sympathy). The risk is that these agencies will be victims of the torpor that conquers most government agencies. Bureaucratization is the bane of efficiency. If an agency can produce efficiency while applying the necessary procedures, the agency surely will be on the short list of "let's ask them to do more with less" departments the next time the appropriations are divided.

Go To Page: 1 2

Articles in this Topic    Discussions in this Topic