Blagnet.net

Rhino Repellant

Wow, it seems that by agreeing to begin a libertarian blag with my friend John, I seemingly have unleashed a monster onto the world. When he approached me with the idea, I was concerned that we would not have frequent enough updates. It seems this fear was absolutely unfounded, since it would appear that John has become some sort of blagging machine, while most of my work in the week or so this site has been up has been behind the scenes.

For those of you that are young and hip, you likely have a facebook account. On facebook, ABC holds a daily debate on political positions. Today, ABC asks: Has the War on Terror made America more or less safe from terrorist attack?

My answer is that we are now less safe. It seems logical to me that when you prod a hornet’s nest, you increase your risk of being stung.

However, about a quarter of the responders to this debate argue that the War on Terror has indeed made us safer. Their logic is even more simple then my own. “How many terrorist attacks have happened on US soil since 9/11?” they ask. “Zero! Thus, we are safer now then we were before 9/11!”

Of course! Why didn’t I see this before. I’m convinced now; before 9/11, terrorism was an apparently common and almost daily thing - though I don’t really seem to recall that - but now that we have a perpetual, vaguely defined war, we no longer have people flying planes into buildings every week. We are safer. It’s a scientific fact. I’m reassured.

In truth, it’s not hard to see why this logic is flawed. Imagine I said I had developed a special bracelet that was useful in repelling rhinos. Wearing such a device, I would proudly proclaim that I was certain it worked because I had not even seen a rhino since donning the bracelet. You would scoff at such a claim. Obviously, the fact that rhinos live in Africa has a lot more to do with my sudden dry spell of rhino watching, rather than my new piece of jewelry. But we could claim my bracelet could prevent any unlikely event, and the logic does not change. I could say my bracelet impeded solar eclipses, and since there hasn’t been one since I’ve made the bracelet, it is clearly working. But what would I say the next time the moon passed between the sun and ourselves?

Claiming that the War on Terror is working because there haven’t been any attacks on US soil since it began is the same as claiming I have a magical bracelet that stops solar eclipses. Before 9/11, terror attacks were already a pretty rare event. Now, with US Armed Forces permanently in the Gulf, terror attacks on US soil are even less likely. Why should those who wish to see harm done to Americans come over here, when they can just stay in their own hemisphere? Of course, we aren’t allowed to call the attacks on US soldiers terrorists attacks. When a small group of people lunch mortars at military installations from a few miles away, and are often long gone before the last mortar even hits its target, this is not a terrorist attack. It is a military engagement. So long as Americans die, I don’t think the instigators care what you call it.

Al-Qaeda’s ranks have only grown since the beginning of the war, because it makes it easier for them to recruit as we occupy another country. How many attacks have occurred on US soil since the beginning of the assault is irrelevant. The War on Terror has made us less safe.