These people are just plain nuts. No other way to describe them: (h/t Soccer Dad)
There is a necessary reckoning, a collective grappling and
grief, which accompanies the assassination of a powerful public figure
like Ms. Benazir Bhutto of Pakistan.And when a public figure is especially polarizing, as Ms. Bhutto
was, it can be difficult to sort out the complex emotions that arise in
the wake of an event such as this.In the tender middle of every tragedy, however, is a profound
opportunity for personal and collective evolution, a moment when all
defenses are laid bare and essential questions rise to the fore. To see
Bhutto’s death as an isolated act of cruelty by an evil group of
terrorists, distant and separate from each of us, would be to miss a
profound teaching moment.~~~
We
are all terrorists. Before you dismiss this out of hand, please take a
closer look. The terrorist inside you wages acts of aggression on those
you believe to oppress you. The dictator inside you declares martial
law when it suits you. The suicide bomber martyrs you and wounds others
in your attempts to be heard and to be right.
Uh, whoakay then. Me thinks this one should have taken the blue pill.
“One pill makes you larger…..one pill makes you small”….
…..and another pill makes you an author at Huffpo-in-wonderland.
“We are all Terrorists”
I personally dislike these type of overarching comments. They diffuse focus and eliminate the concept of personal accountability.
Ther are those who are terrorists: Individuals and organizations that include terrorism as part of their tools for achieving their political ends: Some to greater degrees than others.
The Pre-peace accord Irish Republican Army was one organization that practiced terrorism as part of their methods. The Ulster Defense league also committed some acts of terrorism, but due to their control of the government of Northern Ireland, they were able to control the situation through the use of state security.
In the Muslim world, there are groups, such as al Qaeda, who practice terrorism to further their agenda. But their use of terrorism changed (with the exception of the September 11 attacks in the US and a few other events) was less when they were “part” of the Taliban government of Afghanistan (this is something of a personal view, used here more to make a point that describe them exactly).
My point is that “terrorism” is not an enemy, any more than a “bullet” is an enemy. It is a tactic.
Thus a “War on Terror” is nothing more than a recipe for a forever war, similar to that deswcribed by George Orwell in his book “1984″. And a tool of autocrats everywhere.
In terms of the War on al Qaeda, my evaluation is that the United States has gotten itself in a quagmire far removed from the control centers of al Qaeda in Afghanistan and pakistan, where the real enemy is safe and rebuilding. A total elimination of al Qaeda in Iraq, according to the US military’s own estimate, will remove no more than 10% of the insurgents who have killed or wounded Americans.
And broad ‘we are all terrorists” comments just takes this focus away from the individuals and groups who are our real enemies.