What the Terrorists Want
August 24, 2006 - Bruce Schneier
I’d like everyone to take a deep breath and listen for a minute.
The point of terrorism is to cause terror, sometimes to further a political goal and sometimes out of sheer hatred. The people terrorists kill are not the targets; they are collateral damage. And blowing up planes, trains, markets or buses is not the goal; those are just tactics. The real targets of terrorism are the rest of us: the billions of us who are not killed but are terrorized because of the killing. The real point of terrorism is not the act itself, but our reaction to the act.
And we’re doing exactly what the terrorists want.
We’re all a little jumpy after the recent arrest of 23 terror suspects in Great Britain. The men were reportedly plotting a liquid-explosive attack on airplanes, and both the press and politicians have been trumpeting the story ever since.
In truth, it’s doubtful that their plan would have succeeded; chemists have been debunking the idea since it became public. Certainly the suspects were a long way off from trying: None had bought airline tickets, and some didn’t even have passports.
Regardless of the threat, from the would-be bombers’ perspective, the explosives and planes were merely tactics. Their goal was to cause terror, and in that they’ve succeeded.
Imagine for a moment what would have happened if they had blown up 10 planes. There would be canceled flights, chaos at airports, bans on carry-on luggage, world leaders talking tough new security measures, political posturing and all sorts of false alarms as jittery people panicked. To a lesser degree, that’s basically what’s happening right now.
Our politicians help the terrorists every time they use fear as a campaign tactic. The press helps every time it writes scare stories about the plot and the threat. And if we’re terrified, and we share that fear, we help. All of these actions intensify and repeat the terrorists’ actions, and increase the effects of their terror.
(I am not saying that the politicians and press are terrorists, or that they share any of the blame for terrorist attacks. I’m not that stupid. But the subject of terrorism is more complex than it appears, and understanding its various causes and effects are vital for understanding how to best deal with it.)
The implausible plots and false alarms actually hurt us in two ways. Not only do they increase the level of fear, but they also waste time and resources that could be better spent fighting the real threats and increasing actual security. I’ll bet the terrorists are laughing at us.
Another thought experiment: Imagine for a moment that the British government arrested the 23 suspects without fanfare. Imagine that the TSA and its European counterparts didn’t engage in pointless airline-security measures like banning liquids. And imagine that the press didn’t write about it endlessly, and that the politicians didn’t use the event to remind us all how scared we should be. If we’d reacted that way, then the terrorists would have truly failed.
It’s time we calm down and fight terror with antiterror. This does not mean that we simply roll over and accept terrorism. There are things our government can and should do to fight terrorism, most of them involving intelligence and investigation — and not focusing on specific plots.
But our job is to remain steadfast in the face of terror, to refuse to be terrorized. Our job is to not panic every time two Muslims stand together checking their watches. There are approximately 1 billion Muslims in the world, a large percentage of them not Arab, and about 320 million Arabs in the Middle East, the overwhelming majority of them not terrorists. Our job is to think critically and rationally, and to ignore the cacophony of other interests trying to use terrorism to advance political careers or increase a television show’s viewership.
The surest defense against terrorism is to refuse to be terrorized. Our job is to recognize that terrorism is just one of the risks we face, and not a particularly common one at that. And our job is to fight those politicians who use fear as an excuse to take away our liberties and promote security theater that wastes money and doesn’t make us any safer.
This essay originally appeared on Wired.com.
August 25th, 2006 at 2:30 pm
Chemists debunking? What the hang do chemists know?
If it’s good enough for the Decider, then it’s good enough for me!
August 25th, 2006 at 3:41 pm
Inept terrists are somewhat less scarey than the SHOCKING & AWFUL types.
August 26th, 2006 at 11:40 pm
Sorry but the terrorists ultimate goal is not to frighten us, or make us give up freedoms for security, or make flying a hassle, nor is it about ending poverty or righting wrongs of the past or even helping the Palestinians. What they want is the total destruction of the west including the United States and Israel and conquer the entire world for Islam under strict shariah law. You may not believe they can do it but they sure believe it and are willing to die in large numbers to realize thier goal. That is what makes them so dangerous and the greatest threat to the world since Nazi Germany.
August 26th, 2006 at 11:54 pm
Question for Ken -
Timothy McVeigh and friends wanted to bring down the US too. Whom should we attack to stop him and his people? Or do you think he represents a small enough group of people, that we need not worry about them?
August 27th, 2006 at 12:01 am
Ken,
Half way through your first sentence I knew where you were headed. Where do you get your info? How can you be certain that total destruction of the west is the goal? More importantly, what do you suggest be done? The Iraq war isn’t accomplishing a dang thing toward making the world more safe. What do you propose?
August 27th, 2006 at 12:04 am
So ken, are you saying we should just live in fear forever, or just as long as it takes to end terrorism? At what point will we be able to say there are no terrorists? How will we know they have all been killed?
Would you agree that we need to do a Hiroshima/Nagasaki to convince them to stop attacking us?
And while you’re at it, tell me, what’s so wrong with Sharia Law?
August 27th, 2006 at 1:25 am
Lynette, did you even read what Ken wrote? Ken didn’t say anything about us having to live in fear forever. He gave his opinion. He didn’t give a plan to eliminate terrorism or even talk about killing terrorists, he just told us how dangerous they are and what he thinks their ultimate goal is. He didn’t get into tactics of elimination; he only stated his understanding. O [F] R’s response parallels what Ken said, he obviously read it before he wrote his questions. His questions actually refer back to specific comments Ken made and ask for further clarification. Your questions don’t even make sense in the context of what Ken said. Here’s a perfect example. Ken says “What they want is the total destruction of the west including the United States and Israel and conquer the entire world for Islam under strict sharia law.” Lynette says: “And while you’re at it, tell me, what’s so wrong with Sharia Law?” Did Ken’s comment say he thought Sharia Law was wrong? Lynette, you of all people should know not to assume. Lynette, how about reading what Ken wrote a few more times and coming back with questions and responses that are applicable and relevant.
August 27th, 2006 at 6:02 am
There may very likely ALWAYS be terrorists among us. Unfortunately it only takes a small number of committed people who feel the use of terror is the way to get their message out or to right the wrongs done to them, to have that fearful impact on larger and larger numbers of the collateraly damaged. It’s a cowards way but a way none the less.
One of the problems I see is that victims often want to lash out, not necessarily at the unknown perps, but at anyone of the group perceived to be represented by them. It is safe to say that while Timothy McVie was a white guy, it would be wrong to suggest that all white guys want to destroy the U.S. Recognizing this fact might just allow the victims and thier reps to reduce the size of thier fearsome targetgroup, at the same time reducing the fear level in total. From this point police work is the proper tool for meeting out justice, as opposed to Large, heavily laden bombers, tanks and other high-teck baddies that might prop up ones economy.
Terror attacks make for scarey times, but I don’t feel it justifies all the costs and Karmic ramifications that all out war and imperial ambitions engender. Peace
August 27th, 2006 at 11:38 am
The premise of the article to which Ken has responded, is that “What the Terrorists Want†is for us to be afraid, and to get and keep our attention with constant reminders, like long lines at airports in which people disrobe, throw way bottles of orange juice, and submit to random body searches.
From the article; “The implausible plots and false alarms actually hurt us in two ways. Not only do they increase the level of fear, but they also waste time and resources that could be better spent fighting the real threats and increasing actual security. I’ll bet the terrorists are laughing at us.â€
Terrorism is a strategy designed specifically to create fear. Ken ignores this fact when he suggests that they want to destroy us. Ken seems to enjoy the constant attention and long lines caused by terrorism as indicated by his recent post http://brutus1964.blogspot.com/2006/08/my-solution-to-airport-woes.html
Ken’s claim that “they want [to] conquer the entire world for Islam under strict shariah law†may well be true, but it is simply not possible so why is it relevant.
The consistently stated goal of the various Jihads is and always has been to get western troops out of the Middle East.
The problem here, is that the truth hurts republicans politically. The truth is, we can prevent most terrorist acts with good intelligence. We now know that the Bush administration could have prevented 9/11. The war in Iraq has only made the world a more dangerous place.
Ken cannot accept these truths because doing so would require a complete reversal of his world view, and a quick review of his blog http://brutus1964.blogspot.com will demonstrate the Herculean effort Ken has made to support hi world view.
August 27th, 2006 at 11:43 am
LDS - Did you even read the original article?
The premise of the article to which Ken has responded, is that “What the Terrorists Want†is for us to be afraid, and to get and keep our attention with constant reminders, like long lines at airports in which people disrobe, throw way bottles of orange juice, and submit to random body searches.
From the article; “The implausible plots and false alarms actually hurt us in two ways. Not only do they increase the level of fear, but they also waste time and resources that could be better spent fighting the real threats and increasing actual security. I’ll bet the terrorists are laughing at us.†Terrorism is a strategy designed specifically to create fear. Ken ignores this fact when he suggests that they want to destroy us. Ken seems to enjoy the constant attention and long lines caused by terrorism as indicated by his recent post http://brutus1964.blogspot.com/2006/08/my-solution-to-airport-woes.html
Ken’s claim that “they want [to] conquer the entire world for Islam under strict shariah law†may well be true, but it is simply not possible so why is it relevant. The consistently stated goal of the various Jihads is and always has been to get western troops out of the Middle East. The problem here, is that the truth hurts republicans politically.
The truth is, we can prevent most terrorist acts with good intelligence. We now know that the Bush administration could have prevented 9/11. The war in Iraq has only made the world a more dangerous place. Ken cannot accept these truths because doing so would require a complete reversal of his world view, and a quick review of his blog http://brutus1964.blogspot.com will demonstrate the herculean effort Ken has made to support his world view.
August 27th, 2006 at 6:21 pm
Lynette
You may not believe it is possible for Islam to take over the world, but they certainly believe it. These are not my ideas and I am not getting my information from right wing sources but from actual statements made by the President of Iran Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, Osama Bin Laden and other terror groups. They are not wild conspiracy theories but the stated goals by these people.
The president of Iran has publicly stated his desire and even his calling to bring about the apocalypse. If Iran is able to develop nuclear weapons it will bring the world closer to that goal. During the cold war the Soviet Union and the United States never pushed the nuclear button because neither side had a death wish. This is not the case for government of Iran who would be happy to die in the name of Allah.
To be honest I have no idea what the solution is but I do know the evil designs of terrorists must be aggressively resisted with every resource at our disposal. To appease or deny the danger will only empower them just like it did for Nazi Germany prior to WWII. Chamberlain was wrong back then, but unfortunately we have not learned from the past and are doomed to repeat it. Shall we retrace the path of Chamberlain or go the path of Winston Churchill? I would follow Churchill any day.
Also I think you missed the tongue-in-cheek nature of my article on airport lines.
August 27th, 2006 at 7:47 pm
Gosh Lynette, you’re pretty smart for a girl.
August 28th, 2006 at 12:10 am
Hmmm . . .
I heard it was the Christian Fundies who are trying to bring about the apocalypse.
August 28th, 2006 at 9:50 am
The crazies hate our freedumb. That would be our apparent freedom to make the world in our materialist image no matter what an indigenous population thinks.
Don’t agree with our liberties with your country or assets, or the method of funding your economy? Too bad, that makes you a terrorist, with the goal of eradicating us not only out of your own countries, but our country as well. Talk about projection.
Ken are you skeered? I’m not. What level of organization have I seen in world terrorism? Certainly nothing that can put a dent in our way of life unless we let it. Remind yourself that 911 is under review, with the truth being unavoidable, as is the way of it.
There is more organization in Girl Scouts selling cookies than most things I have ever seen coming out of the arab world lately.
August 28th, 2006 at 10:19 am
At least Churchill knew who the enemy was. I don’t think we can make that claim today.
August 28th, 2006 at 3:32 pm
Great post.
August 28th, 2006 at 8:56 pm
You have just been kidnapped by Muslim extremists. Gagged and bound by painful cords and thrown into a warehouse miles from anywhere. Masked gunmen taunt you and threaten your life. After days of mental and physical anguish the captors remove the gag and bindings and tell you your life will be spared if you renounce your faith and convert to Islam. What would you do? Would you go along with them and go through the motions of converting in order to save your life, or will you stay true to your convictions and refuse to renounce your faith no matter the consequences?
This scenario was in fact played out in Gaza by the kidnapping of Fox News Journalist Steve Centanni and cameraman Olaf Wiig. They were ordered at the barrel of a gun to convert to Islam and they did in fact go along with it to save their lives. I am certainly not going to judge them for their decision, but it makes me wonder how I would react in the same situation. Would God hold it against me if I insincerely converted to Islam in order to save myself? How could I stand before God to be judged and look upon martyrs who refused to renounce their God even unto death? I know God would forgive me, but could I forgive myself. I can only hope I am never placed in that position, but if I am I hope to have the courage of my faith to stand tall and affirm to my captors my faith in Jesus Christ.
What happened to Centanni and Wiig is a microcosm of what the terrorists have in store for us. They don’t care if we embrace Islam willingly or at the point of a gun. There design is for a world dominated by Islam and every man, woman, and child subjugated under Shariah Law. Do we have the courage of our convictions to fight for our beliefs no matter what they might be or are we willing to go along with them to save our own lives? This is the war we are fighting. The Terrorists understand this and it is time for the west to wake up and understand that it is not just our way of life we are defending but our very souls.
August 28th, 2006 at 9:36 pm
Your home has just been bombed. Your children and wife and other family members have been killed. Everything you own has been destroyed. You are very, very angry and vow revenge upon those who have destroyed your life. You are now a potential recruit for terrorism
This scenario is being played out day after day.
We are creating more terrorists than we are killing.
There have always been and probably will always be those who choose to be murderers and terrorists just like there will always be mentally unstable people or any other group that deviates from the norm. The point is not to make any more than are naturally occuring.
August 28th, 2006 at 9:37 pm
get a life ken, Jesus’ teachings are very highly regarded by Muslims, after all He was a hoody. As for the poor people who are caught up in this insane war, whether they be the latest generator of body parts, a cameraman in the wrong place at the wrong time or simply we taxpayers, there’s reason to suspect that none of this had to happen.
August 29th, 2006 at 7:42 am
This article and your analysis are not very realistic.
Lets say the Bush administration took all of your recommendations and pretended there were no terrorists and made everything just like it was on 9/10/2001.
The next time there is a terrorist strike against the United States all you guys from the left would be calling for Republican heads because they didn’t protect us against the terrorists. Even if they had been doing a lot behind the scenes to police against such a strike they’d be blamed for not doing anything because they wouldn’t be making the public pronouncements and changes to security at airports you guys are now bitching about.
Commonsense defence against terrorism can only be put in place when either Bush is gone or you guys on the fringe left get over your BDS.
August 29th, 2006 at 5:51 pm
Jer. forgive me but it seems that on 9/10/01, the bush admin was in fact pretending that there were no terrorists, despite the presidential daily briefing of Aug 6, (Bin Ladin determined to strike within the US). Now we’ve been calling for his head ever since. He knew that it was about to happen but let it happen on purpose. “they just didn’t protect us from the terrorists”. I’m glad we’re in agreement on that much. Please join us in ditching the lesser because both we on the left and you on the right are all at risk from the Policies FUBARed of this bogus crew.
August 29th, 2006 at 11:46 pm
alien,
Hmmm…the idea that the president “knew that it was about to happen but let it happen on purpose” sounds pretty wild. Do you really believe that? You should tighten your tinfoil hat a bit because I think some of the space rays have gotten through and made you a little saucy.
August 30th, 2006 at 6:22 am
I believe it, but, you know, I could be slightly misinformed. There is that Aug 6 PDB, and the other screedhing Red Alert notices bandeid about at that time, there is the statement made in the Project for a New American Century document penned by Cheney, Rumsfeild and crowd about needing another Pearl Harbor to get thier world dominating project off the ground. There is the close assoc. of the military industrial complex and this admin. and the Repub held congress…I could go on…oh yea there’s global warming and the mostly hot air eminating from the whitehouse these days. Ones tinfoil hat really needs to be snug or it’ll blow rite off. Why just the other week the authors of the official report on 9-11 issued statements about how this admin made it all but impossible toget to the truth, so tell me aare you convinced beyond doubt that th official story is TRUE? What can I say?
August 30th, 2006 at 7:46 am
Alien,
Good points all. I don’t really believe the President knew 9/11 was going to happen and let it happen on purpose but I can’t argue with you about a lot of your other points. Republicans have done a horrible job of dealing with terroism and Iraq was a terrible idea which I supported.
It sucks to be wrong but I was…maybe I’m wrong about all the conspiracy stuff too…but I doubt it.
August 30th, 2006 at 8:38 pm
Jeremy, you’re a gent. Good on ya.
August 31st, 2006 at 7:24 pm
I also wanted to mention the idea of ‘catastrophic success’. Rumsfield believes we had it in Iraq and I believe that the terrorists, whoever they were, had it on 9-11 (from thier perspective). Fiery, smokey, plane-crashing mayhem - Yes, the complete destruction of all that symbolic prominance…they just got lucky. So it’s one thing for the administration to have allowed (and by allowed, I really mean to let what ever it was that all the intel agents had been screaming about, go forward) the former as a pretext for their grand plans, but they, like everyone else, were shocked at the perps ‘catastrophic success’! Still they had thier ‘Pearl Harbor’ pretext IN SPADES. The rest is, as they say, FUBAR.
December 21st, 2006 at 7:08 am
What the terrists want, what the terrists need? Shave and a haircut, 2 bits.
January 3rd, 2008 at 6:22 pm
My mind is like a bunch of nothing. Whatever. I don’t care. My life’s been pretty unremarkable lately, but shrug.
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