[lbo-talk] Tom Collier on the War on Terrorism

Michael Pollak mpollak at panix.com
Sun Jan 4 01:04:19 PST 2004


[Military Historian and former Green Beret speaking simple sense]

http://www.juancole.com/2004_01_01_juancole_archive.html#107320315849345537

<snip>

As for SecDef Rumsfeld's leaked memo last Fall, his complaint that we

lack measurements of success in the "war against terrorism" shows how

little he understands that "war." For starters, it is *not* a war, no

more than LBJ's War on Poverty was a war. Using that emotive label

clouds the reality of the struggle. The reality is that, unlike wars

or football games, there will be no victory, no clock running down, no

final score in this struggle against terror -- and therefore no

measurements of success in reaching victory.

We should have goals - the collection of intelligence, the penetration

of terrorist cells, the capture of leaders, the confiscation of funds,

the protection of our citizens - but not measurements and not scores

and not the pursuit of victory. This struggle is a process to be

prosecuted with intelligence and vigor and to be endured with

patience, but it is not a game to be won or lost by a date certain

[read "Election Day, 2004]. Even as we continue to maintain

intelligence agencies and armed forces in peacetime, so will we have

to maintain our counterterror apparatus indefinitely -- smaller,

maybe, as time passes but active and well oiled.

The famous leaked memo is one more indicator that we have given the

leadership in countering terror to the wrong department, the one we

used to call accurately the " War Department." Countering terror is

not a war; it is in Gen Barry McCaffrey's words a threat to be

managed, and it should be managed under the leadership of our

intelligence agencies.



More information about the lbo-talk mailing list