September 14, 2002
Were we hijacked on 9/11?
Some of us spoke out for the United States after 9/11. Have we been taken for a ride? Al-Qaida and the Bush regime share a language. Our survival depends on a different, global identity prevailing.Flush from its cold-war victory, the mighty US military machine had diligently searched for new enemies. At best, success was partial. Condoleezza Rice’s Foreign Affairs article from 2000 begins with this declaration: ‘The United States has found it exceedingly difficult to define its “national interest” in the absence of Soviet power.’ Her frustration was understandable. Imagine yourself at the Pentagon with thousands of bombers, fighters, missiles and ships at your command. You also have twelve aircraft carrier groups, each a floating garrison city built for dealing massive death and destruction in any part of the globe. Surrounded by cruisers, submarines and supply ships, they are indestructible by the forces of all countries of the world put together. But, apart from taking potshots at Iraqi targets, there was little for them to do. These super-juggernauts had a clear mission – to safeguard the Empire and its lines of supply. But extended inaction had made their frightful power fade from the world’s consciousness.
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Americans will have to accept that their triumphalism and disdain for international law are creating enemies everywhere, not just among Muslims. They must become less arrogant and more like other peoples of this world. American people must resist the temptation to define the world in terms of their own narrow interests – a better world is worth it even if they have to pay a little more for gas in their SUVs.
Posted at September 14, 2002 04:56 PM | World
