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A lone American was arrested in Pakistan Sunday and apparently said he was on a quest to kill Osama bin Laden.
The 52-year-old Californian construction worker was arrested by Pakistanis, but I can imagine the Americans breathed a sigh of relief. Not that paying the extant bounty of $25 million of taxpayer money would be a problem, but the United States would be deprived of a prized enemy if someone actually killed or captured a man who heads up a very small group (Al Qaida) which the American public has been fetch-trained to despise.
Without that card in the expensive house of cards called "terrorism," how could more funding be forthcoming? Finding or fabricating enemies is a long-standing ploy by any number of governments, but it does get tiring when people go hungry or uneducated or uncared-for because the funds are not available.
The convenient enemy helps to consolidate power of those who do not wish to relinquish power, but it can hardly be said to pass for leadership. CEO's, battlefield commanders, and religious leaders all know the efficacy of fear and too often use it as a default position.
The trouble with fear is that those who are afraid are constantly looking over their shoulders and covering their asses -- and thus unlikely to produce the 100% effort that might advance some fruitful cause.
Sometimes it's hard not to wish for leadership.
But as the old saying goes, "If wishes were horses, beggars would ride."
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The convenient enemy, we like to always have someone to fear in the closet or under our collective beds... just think back the past 50 years or so...the list is long;
ReplyDeleteCommunists, Cubans & any south American's who wished for freedom, Vietnamese, and most of South Asians, Osama bin Laden, Al Qaida and any generic Terrorists (like Poltergeists wherever they may be!)fill in the name of your choice, recently The French (and most of the world) and as little George so eloquently said.....all those who were "not for us"... Lets face the truth we MUST HAVE A BOGEY MAN we MUST ALWAYS BE IN FEAR OF SOMEONE! or we wouldn't be the super-power that we are !! what color alert are we at currently??? remember ....be ever vigilant for the enemy!!
It's been us vs.them, and when we don't have an enemy some are created,-Ever notice how during the 80's and 90's how crop circles spawned such fear that we were being watched and visited by aliens.
ReplyDeleteCollectively societies have always engendered this type of fallacy to justify and or polarize action against a group. Rwanda, Bosnia are prime examples. My two cents...
however BD.....internecine ethnic cleansing (Rwanda) is one thing (horrific as is is) but we (USA) see all peoples continually in the context of "Them" and as always "The Barbarians at the Gates".after all we must ever be vigilant and be prepared to defend the American Way! ....recently saw an interesting and astounding documentary ..at first I thought it was a joke ..alas it was all too true "638 WAYS TO KILL CASTRO"...yep that's how many times as a GOVERNMENT we have tried to assassinate another head of state (number must be 700 by now!!) when it was over and the head-shaking subsided I asked myself "how did the USA ever get this way?" .....I came up with just one answer ....its because that's the way we like to be !!
ReplyDeleteWhen we are under alot of pressure, we cant give 100% of our efforts. And sometimes those who we love are the ones who we fear. What happens when an American version of Osama Bin Laden appears!
ReplyDeleteIn this regard there is one Quote i left at Zenforuminternational.org from our Imam Ali: "Be afraid of a gentleman when he is hungry, and of a mean person when his stomach is full - Imam Ali"
Fear me! Muwhaha!