THE WORLD ACCORDING TO TLEINTIJINCO

It used to be Communism... Now the new buzz word is Terrorism

The west, mainly the European Common Market of Western Europe and the United States, have for the most part of the 20th and the beginning of the 21st Century characterized themselves for fighting a common enemy. One which becomes the priority goal to defeat. An enemy that offers them the opportunity to define themselves and clearly define who the enemy is.

Communism used to be that enemy.

The political adversary. The threat. Maybe communism is still somewhat of an enemy but due to its collapse in the form of its most formidable proponent, the former Soviet Union, is only a half-dead or half-alive enemy and hence, no longer a threat.
In many parts of the world, primarily in Latin America, Communism became tamed Socialism without its world-take-over by military means rhetoric. After all, it may have been the socialism aspect of communism that initially appealed to people and which still finds attractive. Behind the socialist aspect of communism, the militia, the revolution, the hunger for power and control, the establishment by force and the shrinkage of individual freedom were to follow. The State became an all-power monster against the individual citizen, whose only role was to ensure the survival and continuity of the dictatorship rule of the communist ideology. Only the communist state matter. Individuals didn't count. They simply did not matter.

Today, that enemy is Terrorism.

Certainly terrorism is a much bigger and more ominous threat to the world order and world peace than communism. Whereas communism used to instill people with a sense of community-self-sufficiency ideology, terrorism aims at the destruction of which ever order appears to be the dominant economic and political force. Communism, at some level, proposed its views and fought to take over governments and run them based on their ideology. Communism was ans still is defined by clear boundaries of country and state and government. The enemy was clearly defined. It could be clearly located, and thus could be clearly fought against.

Thus far, terrorism does not appear to be interested in governing a country as to create havoc, destruction, panic and frightful fear in the hearts of the people it constantly intimidates while also creating a state of disheartening feeling on the people looking and trying to find solutions for the causes that terrorism apparently advocate because there is no end to the conflict and no end to the ungoverning lethal spirit of the terrorist. Terrorism does not yet represent a state with its own militia and government and does not yet forms part of the civil genuine political landscape of any country. Countries may support terrorist groups, harbor terrorist leaders, fund terrorist organizations, help terrorists with weapons and money to fund their armies and propaganda. But there are no clearly defined terrorist nations with terrorist government and a terrorist territory. In many cases, terrorism is just another strategically placed piece of the puzzle within a greater framework of political interest for countries which have become too familiar and too intimate with creating, promoting, harboring, and providing infrastructure for terrorist networks and organizations.

This commouflage of uncertainty and not well defined quality is a great weapon on the terrorist arsenal. They cohexist with the rest of us. There is an enormous degree of uncertainty as to who or where is a terrorist. Terrorists also exist in different types of ideology, making it much more difficult to clearly point with a finger, there goes a terrorist.

Terrorism and terrorists can be of any nation, from any background, from any place and go anywhere, meshing themselves into the fabric of everyday communities and everyday activities and everyday common places in life. Thus, making it extremely difficult to attack without also hurting the rest of the population. Terrorism and terrorists attack indiscriminate to make a statment, to create disorder and social unrest, to undermine the legitimately established governments and ultimately to create an unstable society. Terrorism and terrorists are a very lethal virulent even greater threat to the world than communism ever was.

Terrorism plays a game of chess and Russian roulette combined.

The wars being fought in Afganistan, Irak, and the newly form conflict between Israel and Hezbollah in Lebanon are clearly the beginnings of the campaings against terrorism.

It appears that the West has been somewhat successful at creating at least what appears to be the perception of a "terrorist territory" by engaging terrorists in a confined, well defined area.

It may also be very unfortunate that the people and communities who are not involved in terrorism and who are not part of any terrorist networks and organizations have to also pay the price of such effort to combat terrorism and terrorists. It is also very unfortunate that the great number of terrorists are of Arab nations and of Arab descent and ethnic groups and thus giving the impression that the Arabs are the terrorists just like we used to believe that all Russians were communists just like we believe today that all Cubans are also. Which was not necessarily true then and it's not necessarily true now either. People are simply caught between a rock and a hard place. The idea that communism made people atheist through their indoctrination is also applied to the belief that if you are a Muslim, you can be made into a terrorist.

There is a greater and growing perception that a terrorist and terrorism are both, Arab Muslim or Islamic, even when the great majority of Arabs and Muslims are not and do not advocate terrorism or terrorists. Somehow, be that by design and creation, or be that by the natural development of events and cirscumstances, Islam and the Middle East Region, mainly Arabic People, are being identified as Terrorism and Terrorists.

There are terrorists and terrorism everywhere in the world; however, what is perceived as the true enemy, the real terrorist and terrorism, or the TERRORISM with capital T, is the brand of insurrection and resistance in Irak, Afganistan, Palestine, and the Islamic countries of the Middle East. Hammas, Hezbollah, Jihadists, the Osamas of the world, the Sarqawies and the Hassans of the world are becomming more and more the defacto definition of Terrorism and Terrorists. Just like the Castros, the Ho-Chimings, the Maos, the Stalins, the Lennins, the Che Guevaras of the World helped to defined communism. Or the Hitlers and the Mussolinis and Francos helped defined Fascism. Or the Pinochetes, the Idiamins, and many others in Latin America and in Africa defined Dictatorships, so is today Terrorism being defined by ethnicity, religion, geographic region and affiliation to ardent political causes in the Islamic countries of the Middle East.

From the conceptual days of the mid 1800's to the late 20th century, communism took a little more than 100 years to come full circle. From concept to social discourse to political unrest to a form of government to its own political and economic policy failure, obviously with the exception of China which has allowed itself to be transformed be changed by the demands of modern life.

How long will it take for Terrorism and terrorists to come full circle? We have no idea and hardly anyone will know such answer.

One thing we know, if the world is to continue to exist in a certain favorable order for societies and communities to thrive and enjoy peace and tranquility, terrorism cannot win and it should be defeated.

How long? ... We don't know.

posted by Arnulfo Carretero @ 8:05 AM