Everyone, from the President on down, says we are at war.
We are not at war.
War is something nations do. As far as I know, a nation didn’t do this thing. “War” is a dangerous and inflammatory word, and we should think twice before throwing it like we have been. This is not a war.
Hendrik Hertzberg wrote in The New Yorker:
“The metaphor of war – and it is more metaphor than description – ascribes to the perpetrators a dignity they do not merit, a status they cannot claim, and a strength they do not possess. Worse, it points toward a set of responses that could prove futile or counterproductive….How do you take “massive military action” against the infrastructure of a stateless, compartmentalized “army” of fifty, or ten times fifty, whose weapons are rental cars, credit cards, and airline tickets?….A more useful metaphor than war is crime. The terrorists of September 11th are outlaws within a global polity.”
The priority is, find out who did this and where they are. But making war against nations that may have helped this group is not the issue. Think about it this way – if this was done by a group of American fanatics trying to avenge Waco or Ruby Ridge, would we be saying we were “at war” with them? Words mean things.
Yes, the word war has been bandied about much too much – from the very start, this has been a war, yet it is more an ongoing criminal investigation combined with military reconaissance. However, the outcry for “peace” is also a little off-base. Peace is lovely. But our Taliban “enemy” is extremely dangerous and cannot be dealt with peacefully. I’ve been arguing about this subject all day long, mostly by myself. *sigh* I guess you could say this war stuff is driving my a little crazy.
It’s as if we need a new word. It’s not a normal crime, and they’re not normal criminals. War is the only word we have, but it still doesn’t fit.
Hmmm, yes, a new word would be good. One that meant defending but not avenging. One that described a cautious and relentless pursuit of those responsible, while never forgetting to reach out to their other victims. A word that does not exist and cannot, I’m afraid. But it’s a nice dream.
It would be one thing if we applied the same rules abroad,but what I see is selective agression,bolstered by humanitarian concessions to make coalitions.You can’t suck and blow and be credible.