generalspeaking

The Spontaneous Effectiveness of Terror

The unspeakably vile act of terror produces gut-wrenching, spontaneous results as people become instantly traumatized, fearing for their lives. And this represents the success that terror groups look for. Just to threaten, once a reputation has been established, is most often sufficient in and of itself to effectively ensure that the targeted population has been terrorized.

The reputation of al-Qaeda as the world's current number one inciter to violence against the West gives it an aura of stealthy invincibility, even though its successes have been relatively few.

It is the unexpectedness of those vicious attacks, the commitment of those who dedicate themselves to violent jihad to the extent that has been communicated in the past, that death, their own personal annihilation in the act of murdering as many people as possible in a horrible explosion of metal and flesh that is so terrifying to people contemplating the impossible.

Their own gruesome death at the hands of those who glorify their intention to produce it. Videos of 'martyrs' explaining and boasting of their intention to meet their maker in Paradise, and other videos of fanatical Islamists in the act of taking the lives of innocents in the most brutal ways imaginable, add to the luster of the jihadis among incipient volunteers, and to the terror their reputations have spread abroad.

And now here is al-Qaeda helpfully producing how-to instructions in their online English-language journal for jihadis, Inspire. The dreadful reality is that al-Qaeda and Osama bin Laden have indeed inspired countless young Muslim men to abandon normal lives and anything meaningful as civilized people, to adapt themselves to a deadly pathology meant to murder, wreak havoc, and terrorize entire nations.

"To achieve maximum carnage, you need to pick up as much speed as you can while still retaining good control of your vehicle. The ideal location is a place where there are a maximum number of pedestrians and the least number of vehicles."

From Inspire's latest graphic feature titled The Ultimate Mowing Machine. Eerily fearsome ideas emanate from feverishly-hateful brains. An effective one-man initiative can be a simple enough operation: attach blades to the front of a pickup truck, useful for 'mowing down' those unfortunate enough to have been chosen as victims.

When not inspired to use a vehicle with which to conduct maximum carnage, then plan well to use reliable firearms capable of rendering the initiative a resounding success. Target the victims for maximum usefulness: government supporters, for example. As for inspiration, there is an American-bred Islamist now in Yemen, Anwar al-Awlaki, whose jihadi advice and recruitment activities have resulted in a few incidents of note.

Perhaps the most infamous of the recent jihadis, for his ability to infiltrate and build trust in the United States military; U.S. army Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan, whose trial will shortly commence. Although he managed successfully enough to kill thirteen soldiers undergoing health checks before being deployed to the Middle East, he did not himself attain martyrdom. His own wounds inflicted during a stand-off after his murder spree have left him wheelchair-bound.

This man was trained as a psychiatrist. He was reputed to be fully invested in orthodox Islam, even before his radicalization, when Anwar al-Awlaki, another American citizen, and an al-Qaeda operative, communicated with him electronically, offering encouragement and advice. The Internet has proven to be extremely useful to violent jihad and al-Qaeda. A most efficient teaching and recruitment tool.

"God is Greatest" sounds like an innocent enough invocation of pious faith. When it is shouted out during a violent attack and "Allahu Akbar" is heard, any victims understand briefly, before life ebbs from their bodies that they have met the Angel of Death.

Faisal Shahzad's exploit was not nearly as successful as Major Hasan's. He depended on his newly-acquired expertise in bomb-making. A misplaced trust, as the bombs left in a vehicle in a very public square teeming with people, failed to detonate properly, and he was later apprehended while in the process of fleeing the country.

Major Hasan dedicated his effort as a trusted military man and health professional, to army-issue firearms which he was trained in the army to use and which he did, to the advantage of the jihadist that resided within him. Pakistani-born Faisal Shahzad's trial resulted in a life-sentence for his Times Square intent-and-failure.

Major Hasan may yet attain 'martyrdom', for it is felt within the U.S. justice-legal community that he may face the death penalty.

Despite that his lawyer, retired Col. John Galligan, insists Major Hasan will not have the benefit of a fair trial. Fair enough, it is his duty to defend the indefensible. The prosecution will call no fewer than 32 witnesses, all of whom were wounded during Major Hasan's rampage of hate.

As far as al-Qaeda is concerned these two are exemplars of what Islamists can accomplish. And they encourage others to surrender themselves completely to the will of Allah, and perform those functions which will prove the fastness of their faith.

Labels: Terrorism, Traditions

posted by Pieface @ Wednesday, October 13, 2010