Well, I know how at least one regular reader of this blog feels about him, but Peter David at least agrees with me on the how winnable the War against Terror ism is.
I feel inidividual battles against terrorism can be won, and terrorism can be reduced, but any so called war would never end. We’re still fighting Johnson’s War Against Poverty forty years later. The situation has improved. No question about it. But its not a winnable war either. It is however a war we need to continue fighting. I’d have no problem with any politician saying “We are going to fight terroism, and continue fighting terrorism, and we will reduce terrorism around the globe, and we will continue reducing it.”
I know the word ‘reduce’ isn’t a strong one. Maybe a good speechwriter could come up with a better way to phrase it. Maybe I could given some time. But to suggest this is a winnable war is a lie. You’re either lying to the American People, or lying to yourself.
Newt may agree with me too, though I can’t find the transcript, and he is on record as saying that it is the male instinct to hunt giraffes, so he’s not the best source.
Well, I agree that a war on Terrorism is unwinnable. I do think, however, that if this nation workd together, we CAN win the war against Peter David. 🙂
This isn’t the first President to declare war against a concept, and he won’t be the last. Concept wars are, by definition, unwinnable. We’ve declared wars on drugs, poverty, inflation. And they’ll never be won. But no President or candidate would ever actually say that.
Except for Bush. And then he took it back.
Promising to win an unwinnable war is nothing new. And Bush isn’t the only one to do this. Kerry has also promised to win the war on Terrorism, too.
Why would no president or candidate ever say this? Why does the issue have to be talked about in the words of a war to be won or lost? Maybe 50% of America has given up on elections because they’re sick of sound bite politics.
Because people like to win things, and people enjoy being on a winning team.
It’s hard to get motivated for “We can’t ever win this war, but let’s fight it anyway!”
Such platitudes are for people who are nothing but soundbite voters. We know that there’s more to national security than “beating the terrorists” and that there’s more to school choice than “future of our students” and that there’s more to personal liberties than “stay out of my bedroom” and that there’s more to tax policy than “keep what you earn.”
But the sad fact is that there are millions of voters who really don’t look deeper than that.