July 13, 2005

• The problem:

  Ok, I think I’ve figured out the problem. Why I can’t convince those who support the war, and why they can’t convince me.

  Fundamentally, I believe that if the United States removed all forces from the middle east and stopped trying to exert any influence over the future of the region, the “Terrorists” would have no interest in attacking us, or doing anything but sorting out the future of their own regions. Yes, I do think there would eventually be the same border/expansionism problems that have plagued nations forever, but I don’t think they would care at any more about the United States than the average Minnesota cares about, say, New Zealand. Eventually, they would trade stuff to us, we would trade stuff to them, we’d find parts of their culture interesting and other parts disturbing, and they’d feel the same about us.

  Fundamentally, I think those who support the “War on Terrorism”, or perhaps more accurately, the war against militant Islam as it has been waged so far, don’t agree. They believe that the Islamicists want to dominate their region and then spread that domination world wide. Convert, submit, or die for everyone in the whole world. America’s geographical distance may mean we’d be facing it later than Turkey or India, but sooner or later it would hit us. Therefore, we need to fight them now, before they’ve grown. Not only is it a need for our protection, but it wouldn’t be right to let them role over other smaller countries that we can and should help. So of course, since we’ll have to fight sooner or later, it makes sense to fight now before they do any more damage or grow.

  And, of course, the Islamicists believe that we, “The West”, wish to make the entire world part of the Anglosphere. Resistance is futile, you will be assimilated. So of course, they’ve got no choice but to fight or be destroyed in any way that matters to them.

  So there it is.

  I don’t know that I would, in fact, support completely removing all overt western influence from the Middle East. For the last hundred years or so, we, Britain, and a handful of other Western nations have changed the sociopolitical landscape and power structures of the region to a great degree. To just pull out would create a power vacuum and cultural disorientation that would result in many abhorrent acts. It is possible, however, that it would end up having a lower total degree of horror than many other options.

  I think radical Islamicism in its current form is due in part to the wierd socio-political landscape and externally supported power structures in much the Middle East. I think that left to its own devices in the region, it would diminish, mellow, and find a more balanced ground over a period of time. Our own Puritans had some pretty twisted hard core religious beliefs, especially right after they escaped their oppression. Given some time and ability to do their own thing, they mellowed quite a bit. Stonings and burnings are certainly less tolerated on American soil than they were back in the 1600s.

  Anyway, I’m going to mull on this for a bit. If my assessment is something approaching accurate, it makes logic a pretty useless tool in what’s going on. Whether or not the war is a “good” thing becomes dependent on your belief of what another group of people would do. Lots of opinion, little fact. It is made worse by the fact that even if we said “hey, we’re done, we’re going to start pulling out tomorrow”, many in the Middle East would not believe us, and we’d continue to be attacked for a time, reinforcing the fears of the supporters of the WoT. The fact that a whole lot of Middle Easterners who depend on Western support and/or protection would die horribly if we disappeared completely makes that concept a great deal less appealing.

  So… hrm. Yeah, politics is feeling kinda pointless to me of late. I believe we are creating a reality that is self-perpetuating and eternal in a downward spiral kind of way. The ante will keep going up, liberty and freedom will keep disappearing, the scars on all sides will keep growing. This is the first time that I’ve considered that the movie “Brazil” may have actually presented a rosy view fo the future. I don’t truly believe that the radical islamicists could ever “wipe out” the western nations. There’s a very slight possibility that new revolutionary groups could succeed within their own country and culture, but as long as that country had sufficient outside aid from allies, the chance of those revolutionaries accomplishing anything more than some mayhem is pretty unlikely. Even if they could get a bit further, tearing something down is a hell of a lot easier than building something better to replace it. I believe that the “war on terror” will keep generating an infinite supply of new opponents by creating a situation where terrorism is the only reasonable option of fighting back, and not fighting back is unthinkable.

  As far as I can tell, we’re on the Highway to Hell. This is the road I see ahead, and I don’t see that I have any ability to change the course. I sure as fuck don’t see the Democrats or the Republicans turning the wheel – they’ll just fight over which lane to drive in and how fast to go.

  So, here’s how I’m feeling at the moment. Fuck it all. Enjoy drugs, sex, and rock’n'roll for the time being. Eventually, so many of my liberties and freedoms will be “revoked” that I can’t stand it anymore. Maybe I’ll have enough money that I can run a bit, but eventually it will become too much. Then, unless my spirit has completely died, I’ll fight back in some futile and pointless way. Depending on who you are, I’ll be a “freedom fighter” or a “terrorist”. Then, most likely, I’ll die.

  My best hope is that spiral goes slow enough that the sex, drugs, or rock’n'roll take me out first.

  That’s my feelings right now. Tomorrow, I may feel differently.

  • 5:44 pm
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