« An Advance Auction Sale of Stolen Goods | Main | Derbyshire Demurs From "Democracy Defeats Terrorists" Mantra »

July 14, 2005

Zarqawi's Key Aide Captured...Again

If I read one more story from the Pentagon, CIA, MI-6, and all the rest announcing that they've killed or captured another "key aide" of bin-Laden or al-Zarqawi I think I will barf. Who or what the hell is a "key aide" any fookin' way? Especially the way they bandy the term about? Someone who he met at a meeting once? Or belonged to the same tribe, Mosque, neighborhood, is a shirt tail relative, or whatever? This whole concept is seriously flawed. Here is why.

If you've ever worked or belonged to a hierarchical organization this is second nature. If your boss or supervisor quits, gets fired, dies, retires, or whatever, the organization doesn't stop or close down does it? Adjustments are made, people and organizational charts or TOE's are shuffled and moved in or out and up and down and the whole enterprise continues on. The organization will do whatever it does better, worse, or the same, but it will continue on is the point I am trying to make. One that the mostly uncritical sheep-like media glosses over or ignores completely.

My other point is what constitutes a "key aid"? The Air Force factotum who travels with the President and who carries the launch codes for America's nukes is pretty important too. However, if he or she died in their sleep one night that key aide would be replaced with out a hitch. So would the head of the Joint Chiefs of Staff or the Secretary of Defense or whoever else. That is the nature of hierarchies: The concern is with goals and purposes of the hierarchy and not the people that constitute it. How many CEO's has General Motors had since it was founded? They come and go, live, and die, but GM rumbles onward.

So the Army or Marines kill one of bin-Ladin's drivers, bodyguards, cronies, relatives, officers, or favorite soccer player. Al Qaida goes on. Hell's bells, if you kill bin-Ladin himself, (a worthy goal by the way), it won't stop al-Qaida but for a while. He'll be replaced too. You don't get rid of rats by hunting down and killing every one. You remove the garbage they feed on and the environment they require to live in. If you do that the rats die or flee on their own. (Policy makers and media types please take note.)

You can't kill or capture enough "key aides" to stop terrorism. You change the meddling, insults, occupations, and assistance to oppressive regimes.

Posted by Ali Massoud at July 14, 2005 12:29 PM

Comments

Posted by: Mike Tennant at July 14, 2005 03:48 PM

Post a comment