Al-Jazeera releases full transcript of al Qaeda leader’s tape
I’m not sure what the debate is but I found this interesting.
Could a deliberate strategy of imposing huge security costs, presumably paid for by borrowing/cutting back other erxpenditures/raising taxes etc, be a fairly cost effective way to attack your opponent’s social fabric?
How long will a democratic electorate vote for guns instead of butter?
Mr Rumsfeld, made the same comment in his famous ‘long hard slog’ memo:
“Does the US need to fashion a broad, integrated plan to stop the next generation of terrorists? The US is putting relatively little effort into a long-range plan, but we are putting a great deal of effort into trying to stop terrorists. The cost-benefit ratio is against us! Our cost is billions against the terrorists’ cost of millions.”
I’m surprised there hasn’t been more attacks on infrastructure. Without even trying I could come up with half a dozen easily implemented plans that would cause endless panic and expense.
I’m sort of guessing OBL is bull-shitting after the fact but now that he’s clicked on the idea they’ll have all sorts of effective crap in mind.
:mad:
Of course, Afghanistan alone was not enough to bankrupt the Soviet Union. The U. S. forced them to compete in arms expenditures of all kinds, especially missile systems, naval, air, and ground units. The fall of the Soviet Union is largely attributable to the severe economic hardship their bloated defense spending caused.
As far as this kind of strategy working against a Democracy like the U.S, I don’t see why not. As long as the people of a Democracy perceive a threat to their freedom, they will approve military expenditures to protect themselves.
ObL has long stated that he believes the US’ center of gravity is its economy, and that this is the best way to attack the US. I don’t have my copy of Imperial Hubris with me, but said book is chock full of citations to ObL and other militant fundamentalist thinkers who have made the same argument, and often long before 9/11 or the invasion of Iraq.
Sua
You better hope it doesn’t come to the US becoming bankcrupt, for all your asses sake.
Do you think that Great Britain and the EU will go scot free??
The conflict is not so much economic as it is philosophical / theological and will eventually spread throught the western world if not stopped asap.
This is why total war mobilisation is then needed.
As long as they think they are immune from personal peril.
Then when Push Come to Shove they will cry and complain "Why didn’t the gov’t protect us!"
So, uh which, civilian centers should we start bombing to further the GwoT?
While the long term battles are about PR, winning the hearts and minds, there’s also the short term goal of dealing with the hjearts and minds already lost.
When I say total war mobilisation, I’m talking a whole concerted effort to rid ourselves of Al Queda and affiliates around the world.
oh.
So you meant complete mobilization for war rather than mobilization for ‘total war’?
Yes. I don’t really think the reality of Islamist terrorism has sunk in, even though 9/11 Madrid Iraq happened, I believe we just think it as a far away situation, where it will never happen to us.
I’m probably wrong, but I do sense we’re unprepared somewhere.
Our enemy is volunteering his game plan for all to see. Hmm…
Forgive me if I think there’s something different under wraps. In any kind of face-off, you don’t give away your strategy for defeat. If anything, you misdirect.
Unless that’s just what he wants us to think… :dubious:
Well, Hey You!, it’s not like it is a really tricky, original strategy. In any asymetrical conflict, the terrorists/insurrectionists/guerillas cannot defeat their opponents on the field of battle, so the traditional strategy is to try to make the stronger side give up because it has become too expensive to continue. The expense is in terms of lives lost, treasure wasted, or liberties lost, and preferably all three. So the idea that ObL is aware of this traditional strategy and thinks that focusing on the “treasure wasted” component is the most logical is neither a big surprise nor is it really worth trying to hide from the enemy. In fact, it is the type of strategy ObL would want the US to be aware of, because it greatly expands the number and types of targets that must be protected, in itself causing wasted treasure.
Sua