Terrorists have existed for decades (some may argue millenia) in some form or another. The boogey men that most of us will remember most strongly are the communists of cold-war Russia. However, other groups obviously had more “true” terrorists. The most well known were/are the palestinian terrorists: PLO, Hamas, Islamic Jihad, etc; or those of Nothern Ireland, the IRA. So, how have things changed? They haven’t. The only reason the west has grown this new boogey man is because the US itself was finally attacked and the average American could be awoken to global politics. Of course terrorists should be combatted, but rationally. They will always have the advantage against free, democratic states. The only way to completely prevent their attacks is to live in a police state – and do we really want that? Anyway, it helps to remember that, each year, we kill ourselves far more often than any terrorists do (especially in the US – annually there are around 10,000 gun-related deaths, versus the one-time killing of 3000 people in the 11/9/01 attack).
There are some 27,000 nukes in the world (still. Despite the NPT). Who do you think controls most of them? That’s right – the west, and the US in particular. Iran has a nuclear program that has enriched uranium about 3.5%, barely enough for a small nuclear reactor. They require 90% enrichment to make a bomb. Even if they succeed in making 1 or even 10 bombs does anyone truly believe they would use them on the west, who has at least a 1000 times more (and is geographically much larger so that any devastation would be more dispersed!). It would be the surest form of suicide. Sure a good Muslim is willing to sacrifice themselves for Allah, but I can’t see their president sacrificing the entire country! It is clear to me that if Iran pursues nukes it is for the same reason the west claims to harbour them – as a deterrent. The US in particular doesn’t want Iran to have nukes because it suddenly makes an invasion impossible. Precisely the reason Iran would develop them. All countries want to maintain their sovereignty. I, personally believe that the Arabic worlds are getting the double standard treatment by the ruling west. It’s a matter of US vs. THEM and we are in control of the global governments. Of course, that’s not to say that I would like to live in an orthodox Islamic state. Of course not. But all three of the Abrahamic religions (Judaism, Christianity and Islam) can be mobilized to war and violence very easily and all have their own share of fanatics. Only their methods differ (and, with the exception of suicide bombers, very slightly). The first two have become more moderate due to the development and incorporation of scientific knowledge but this can easily be a tenuous truce between reason and religion -- as the rise of the Christian conservatives in the US has shown. In general, we have more to fear from ourselves than any terrorists.
Fear of the great bird influenza epidemic has been circulating for several years now. It may or (more likely) may not come. But is the panic really necessary? Flu epidemics, of course, can be very real. There have been several periods of global epidemics in the past and that fact, combined with modern technology and the ease of travel, are undoubtedly what stimulates the fears this time. However, in the world so far there have probably been a dozen human cases and no evidence of transmission from birds to humans. Yes it is important to study it, to understand it, and to develop preventative measures and treatments. Does this really warrant the paranoia circulating in the media. I think not, but only time will tell.
Modern life is already busy and complicated enough without the powers-that-be terrorizing us with their boogey men (why they do it should be obvious). I say: enough is enough.
Void Surfer
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