Understanding Bin Laden (long) (661 hits)
Category: PoliticsRating: 1.09 on 18 reviews (Rate this item) (V)
Submitted by Ralph Master Nator (View user info) at 2003-09-14 17:02:56 EDT
Don't really have a comment on this. Hope you can take the time to read this, thanks.
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Understanding bin Laden
For brevity I'm going to start out by using at least two assumptions and one reasonable conclusion. The assumptions are that al Qaida is a real, organized terrorist group with the primary aim of attacking United States interests worldwide and that Osama bin Laden is the leader of al Qaida. The conclusion is that the attacks on the WTC towers and the Pentagon were, if not directed by Osama, at the very least enthusiastically approved of by him; Osama has stated as much himself.
Osama is himself a (former) money man and he knows how the western business world works for that is what he trained for and did for a living before becoming a militant, religious radical. He views the United States as an imminent threat to his religion and his beliefs and especially that of his ethnic brethren in the Arab world and his religious brethren throughout the globe. Why? Well, briefly here's the history:
All of this enmity goes back to the creation of the state of Israel in 1948 which deprived Palestinians and Arabs of land they considered to be their own by virtue of the fact they and their ancestors before them had lived, farmed and died in that geographic location for hundreds, thousands of years even. Similarly for hundreds, thousands of years Jews had lived dispersed throughout the world (but mostly in Eastern Europe) united by their religion. Zionism was invented in the 19th century as a tool to connect Jews throughout the world with something they had not had before - a common home. Zionism used religious literature to define the Jewish homeland as the land west of the Jordan river, basically. Palestine was not the first place considered, even Madagascar was tossed around at one point, but it was the most viable of the options at the time because it was close, thinly populated and controlled by a receptive nation - England. Influential Jews made a deal with England during World War I to sponsor their side of the war in return for assistance in creating their new Zionist homeland. This alliance culminated in the Balfour Declaration which committed England to the creation of a Zionists state in that strategic wedge of land in Western Asia but it really only gave the Jews a foot in the door and a tentative string of settlements.
The actual British motivation behind the restructuring of Palestine was much less one of charity towards Jews as it was of simple opportunism. The British government colluded with Jewish Zionism in order to cement control over a strategically important region of the world while also denying control to opponents, especially their inveterate economic competitors in central Europe (Germany). The Balfour Declaration was also seen as a means of getting the Jews out of the country; unfortunately for England the 'win-win' situation never materialized.
During World War II the Jewish leadership again sided with the allies and the return payment being full-blown statehood after the war, in other words completing what they had started. Indeed this is quite ironic given the current Israeli government resistance to the present Palestinian effort to achieve it's own statehood, but as we'll see this sad tale is rife with double-standards. Anyway, by the end of World War II, England was for all practical purposes defeated and their imperial power was eclipsed by that of the United States but the objectives of both remained interwoven.
Transfer of Power - Political Power Follows Economic
Two devastating, fratricidal world wars in the space of 40 years had left Europe physically and economically ruined. Control of the imploded British Empire and basically everything that colonial Europe controlled plus the direct influence of world affairs that went with it, all were transferred to the source of the money which financed both world wars - the United States of America.
The United Nations was one of the primary elements in the post-war restructuring of the world order. The United States helped found the United Nations which although created for multiple, often humanitarian reasons, was essentially seen by the elite in America as a tool for granting legitimacy to certain international policy decisions, especially in this case concerning the Jews and Israel. One of the first acts of the new United Nations was to officially recognize Israel as a state in 1948; wars followed, the Arabs lost, and Israel expanded - that's the story up until the present.
Today the United States government is an unwavering and uncritical ally of the state of Israel and by extension Israeli government policies such as the expansion of illegal settlements in occupied territory. This alliance takes the form of billions of dollars in military aid in equipment and technology as well as direct financial assistance in the form of cash payments as 'foreign aid' and loan guarantees among other things. Since Israel is an implacable foe of Arab states and Islam in general Osama bin Laden reasons, just as former General Ariel Sharon of Israel does, that coexistence is impossible and defeat of the enemy is the only path leading to victory. Further since Israel would not have the military tools or finances to survive independently from the United States (they don't), in order to stop Israel one must stop America. Right? So now the question is how do you stop America?
Tactics of a Terrorist
It's very important to realize that Osama sees the United States as a financial leviathan which can only be defeated by going to the heart and stopping the blood flow of this enemy beast; the heart is New York and the blood is money - Dollars. Osama's conclusion defines the palette of targets for al Qaida. The heart of the financial world and thus the American financial empire is New York which is the main center for world trade - gold is priced and sold in dollars, so is oil and most other crucial commodities.
Two of the biggest strikes so far have been the WTC towers and a hotel bombed in Bali both of which are clear attacks on western finances for WTC is trade and Bali is tourism. Secondary class targets for al Qaida are military hence the attacks on the USS Cole and the Pentagon. But the widely dispersed range of targets in time and space testify to the disorganized and haphazard nature of al Qaida's terrorist network and its asymmetrical combat. The asymmetrical nature of the conflict is necessary because the terrorists cannot control the battlefield but must instead wait and plot in order to find the most opportune moment to strike and when they do must attack a target with the highest reward to them and the greatest damage to the enemy for the least effort; they seek the biggest bang for the buck.
In a strategic sense Al Qaida faces a serious deficiency in the pacing of attacks, they instead are essentially random and do not escalate; this indicates a lack of central coordination and tactical control of the battlefield. Such lack of coordination has to be less than desirable from al Qaida's perspective but may be an acceptable tradeoff for achieving the security of a decentralized terrorist network. Al Qaida may well be more of a symbol than an actual coordinated entity, likely an umbrella label for multiple, loosely connected gangs of hotheads and Islamic religious radicals who identify with Osama bin Laden and his ideals and band together on a local level to plot and attack according to their resources. Training in some cases is coordinated by al Qaida and this allows for at least a semblance of coordination in tactics and targets because at least one member in each regional terrorist group has been clued in on what the goals are what the spiritual mission is.
The Bankrupting of America
The truly frightening conclusion here is that if al Qaida, meaning Osama bin Laden, truly sees success in their holy crusade as being won through the financial destruction of America then Osama has found about the most desirable opponent he could pray for in President George W. Bush. No wonder Osama is convinced his mission is sanctioned by Allah for Bush has forced a discretionary war on America against Iraq without sound pretext and without any discretionary spending to pay for it! Today America is actually paying foreign countries, like Poland, to send their troops into Iraq to create the illusion of an international effort and get a few America soldiers out of the firing line. The official cost of continuing operations in Iraq is estimated at 4,000,000,000 US Dollars per month. Further their is still no evidence to connect terrorism, i.e. Osama bin Laden, with former Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein who ran a secular, socialist regime. Factoring in the costs for fighting in Afghanistan, Iraq and everywhere else brings annual defense spending to around half a trillion dollars a year!
The end result is that Bush got his war in Iraq and every American is now paying for it, some with their very lives and the rest with their own money as the carnage continues long after victory was declared. To pay for this stunning debacle the federal government is taking out loans so fast the worldwide debt market is choking on the volume of paper flooding it! The price of gold is rising noticeably as it's seen as about the last safe-haven in times of high debt and financial turmoil. Current federal deficits are being compared to Reagan's tenure of reckless cold-war spending and the war in Iraq is approaching similar costs as that of the Vietnam conflict.
So where's the reward? Where are the gains? The truth is America gains nothing from war in Iraq but loses on a scale too vast to fathom. The financial loss is staggering and the political loss is nearly as appalling for not only has the United Nations been undermined but the world community itself has been fragmented by the unilateral approach of the Bush administration.
The winners are not America or even its allies but rather its enemies. Osama has been completely justified in claiming America is a menace to the Muslim world and gains a theater of direct combat in Iraq with which to send fighters to attack and kill Americans. New converts are flooding in to train, fight and die for al Qaida amidst the rhetoric and polarization of dialogue which obscures the fundamental issues of ignorance, poverty, injustice and flagrantly biased foreign policy.
Logic would dictate that the interests of a sovereign and independent state like the United States would be best served through fair and objective dealings with all foreign nations, not with taking sides and then refusing to question or analyze unhealthy relationships. Taking sides in any conflict, much less one as fractious as that between the Jews and Arabs, should be taken only with the greatest of trepidation and planning, and likely should not be done at all. Promoting injustice and getting deeply involved in foreign conflicts is a recipe for violent retribution.
The present situation is entirely unsustainable but America is trapped between two formidable and seemingly immovable objects. Over the past fifty years the Jewish lobby in America has built an incredibly potent machine for manipulating United States foreign policy to favor the state of Israel and its government actions to the point no federal representative can question this state of affairs without swift and severe retribution with the aid of a complicit mass-media. Questioning Israel or American foreign policy concerning the total support of that west-Asian mini-state means career suicide for an American politician and instead the ones that want to climb the ladder do the opposite, they ask how much more can be given to Israel! Want an example? Right here, right now - candidate Howard Dean under fire.
It appears that America will continue down the same perilous path until it either reaches financial oblivion and is physically unable to sustain the current state of worldwide warfare and military sponsorship of ultra-violent militant regimes, or until it seriously reevaluates its external associations and adopts a foreign policy as detached and impartial as practically possible thereby undercutting the explosive fuel of injustice powering the likes of dangerous terrorists like Osama bin Laden. 11.09.03
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Source: http://www.holology.com/america.html#30
User Reviews
Submitted by nate <nospam.at.noemail.com> at 2004-10-26 09:33:17 EDT (#)
Ranking: -2
it has some right facts, but it has tons of wrong presuppositions, actually all of them.
it has wrong conclusions.
and add in the whole "killing americans is justified" and "its the jews fault" rhetoric make this one piece of crap article of hatred.
'nough said
Submitted by Wiggles (user info) at 2004-10-05 20:11:36 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
Usually I wouldn't +2 a copy and paste, but this was extremely well-written and informative.
Submitted by Nator (user info) at 2003-09-15 02:20:51 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
Thank you very much, everyone.
Don't shoot the messenger, gbusman.
Submitted by hidden101 (user info) at 2003-09-15 01:17:00 EDT (#)
Ranking: 0
gbusman- HO-LY SHIT. you TOTALLY AND COMPLETELY missed the point. this was pretty much trying to explain WHY things are happening the way they are lately. this wasn't anti-American propaganda. maybe towards the end, it was a bit preachy about our leadership, but other than that, this wasn't meant to exonerate or justify anyone's actions.
jeez, calm down.
Submitted by ScoutCJustice (user info) at 2003-09-15 00:41:20 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
Great article. The conclusions he reaches about the eventual outcome of the Bush administration are dead on. I got no problems with carrying a big stick, but whatever happened to the speak softly part. Unless we can kill every muslim in the middle east (which is both wrong and impossible), the way we are going at foreign policy will make all our problems worse, much less help any of them.
Submitted by Hairsphincter (user info) at 2003-09-15 00:19:54 EDT (#)
Ranking: 0
gbusman - I know that Americans don't like to read what is above, but understanding *why* the motherfuckers did what they did is essential, lest it happen again, which did happen 366 days later in Bali and there was another bombing in Jakarta a few months ago.
I didn't take this as a justification, it's an understanding, helping people who don't know and ask "why?"... and it was posted by a Dutchman from an American source.
You have to realise that 9/11 was an attack on the west - as was the bombing in Bali - however I hear very few people talk about "October twelfth" - sure there are different contexts but the sick genius of 9/11 was the media planning - they knew that particular time and timing was going to ensure maximum coverage by interational media - and they got what they wanted.
Does anyone want "them" to keep getting what they want? NO.
How do we prevent it?
Look at the aweful truth, analyse, accept and consider our alternatives.
No-one discredits the lives lost on that day, but there are more recent examples of terrorism happening again and it needs to stop.
I didn't see the post as a justification, we need to learn from these terrible lessons.
Submitted by claude (user info) at 2003-09-14 23:53:53 EDT (#)
Ranking: -2
Too Long!
Submitted by gbusman (user info) at 2003-09-14 23:52:56 EDT (#)
Ranking: -2
It greatly saddens me that I have to come back here and defend myself against this sort of anti-American propoganda. To see people praising the "rationalizing" of terrorist acts against American civilians causes a sickness in my gut that I cannot begin to express.
I am tired of this psuedo-enlightened attitude that people are so proud of, and this article is a perfect example of that. "Maybe if we can just understand why they do what they do..." This line of thinking is intended to create sympathy for these poor victims and help us realize that "terrorists are people too!"
Explaining the reason behind terrorism wouldn't be so bad if it wasn't done with the slant of justification. It's time people realize the difference between a REASON and an EXCUSE. Yes, they're mad because they're not living on their great-grandfather's land. Yes, they have fanatical religious beliefs. Those are the reasons they are willing to commit these awful acts.
BUT THAT DOES NOT EXCUSE THEM FROM CRASHING THREE FUCKING PLANES FULL OF PEOPLE INTO TWO DOWNTOWN BUILDINGS KILLING THOUSANDS OF INNOCENT AMERICANS.
And I know you'll try, but don't come back and say, "I never said it was the right thing, I just gave the reason." I read your article. I read your bullshit about how the poor people had no choice, and the evil Bush is to blame, and America is paying for its wrongs... well FUCK YOU. Those were completely innocent people just trying to earn a day's living for their families. Bin Laden and his organization are responsible for thousands of innocent families having empty seats at the dinner table tonight. And they celebrate it.
Now in your effort to cause some sort of intellectual contemplation about our country on a web page, you calmly explain why this is okay.
Fuck you, and everyone who thought this was an "excellent, interesting read!" You make me sick.
-Bus
Submitted by SundanceKid (user info) at 2003-09-14 22:55:06 EDT (#)
Ranking: -2
It sounds like the only solution is to kill all the fucking Jews.... no wait, that's been tried. So Hitler was right?
This was well written, and very informative. It was also very anti-American and biased.
Because I'm American, and damn proud of it....
-2
Submitted by SoxSexSax (user info) at 2003-09-14 21:35:08 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
Excellent. The fool who gave -2 should be shot.
Submitted by SoHipItHurts (user info) at 2003-09-14 21:31:46 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
Makes a great point.
Submitted by K.M (user info) at 2003-09-14 20:48:47 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
very informative and comprehensive.
Submitted by hidden101 (user info) at 2003-09-14 20:17:37 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
WOW.
thanks for posting this. it was incredibly interesting, to say the least.
Submitted by Hairsphincter (user info) at 2003-09-14 20:07:25 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
Excellent.
Submitted by TwEE (user info) at 2003-09-14 19:50:56 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
Good read.
Submitted by settle (user info) at 2003-09-14 17:39:26 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
Yes.
(+2 really just to even out your rating, pretty informative)
Submitted by El_Guapo (user info) at 2003-09-14 17:38:10 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
where'd you get this from?
Submitted by gbusman (user info) at 2003-09-14 17:28:46 EDT (#)
Ranking: -2
no.
-Bus