Tragedy in Russia
Conservatives like to tout their belief that the best way to fight the war on terror is by killing as many terrorists as we can. Any attempt to understand the social forces that create extremism is weakness. Any suggestion that perhaps our own foreign policy is contributing to the rise of terrorism is treason. We are told that we must create a tough, united front and demonstrate how steadfast we are in this war. This attitude closely matches the approach that Vladimir Putin and the Russian Army have been taking to the insurgency in Chechnya. Today's headlines show, as the standoff at the school in Beslan, Russia has ended in violence and death, it is not an approach without risk. Risks which our government refuses to acknowledge in any but the vaguest sense. Yet through their actions they are inviting terrorists to do in one of our schools what the Chechen rebels have just done in Russia. News reports are still unclear, but preliminary estimates are at least 120 dead, presumably including many children.
/war_and_terrorism | permanent link | ( ) | edit | trackbacks ()