The reaction to the 2 outrages in Canada these past days has been predictable. Turn up the heat on these supposed "terrorists", introduce draconian legislation and alleged safeguards against a repeat of the incidents, etc. etc. Of course, missing in all of this is any proportionality. Stephen Walt, professor of international relations at Harvard, reflects on the whole overall situation in his latest posting on his blog on FP - and has a message for Canadian PM Harper. Stay calm and carry on!
"The attack on the Canadian Parliament building on Wednesday raises familiar questions about how democratic leaders should respond to such events. The death of a Canadian soldier demands a respectful mourning, but the broader issue is how this event should be understood and how Canada's government and society should react. Will the attack be met with calm resolution -- as one might expect after a damaging flood, a destructive tornado, or a tragic fire -- or will the fact that the attack is an act of "terror" reinforce the paranoia and "clash of civilizations" worldview that has warped the West's response ever since 9/11?"
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"To explain one of the underlying causes of such occurrences is neither to justify nor to defend homegrown attackers; it is simply to remind everyone that such unfortunate events do not come out of nowhere. In many cases, they are a regrettable but predictable byproduct. Whether the actions we've taken that inspired these attacks were wise or misguided is a separate question, but the blowback powerful states experience needs to be understood as part of the price they pay for an active, interventionist foreign policy."
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"Fortunately, the actual damage and danger they pose is minor compared to many other dangers. Yet we still tend to speak and act as if they are a mortal threat.
Canada's minister of public safety, Steven Blaney, warned that terrorism was "the leading threat to Canada's national security." If that is really the case, then Canadians are very safe indeed. Two dozen Canadian citizens died in the 9/11 attacks, for example, and a few terrorist plots have been uncovered on Canadian soil since then. But these risks pale in comparison to the more prosaic dangers (highway accidents, natural disasters, influenza, etc.) that most countries (including Canada) take in stride.
Moreover, our reaction to these events seems to be costing us a lot more than the damage that terrorists are likely to do. The 9/11 attacks caused nearly 3,000 deaths and roughly $60 billion in property damage, for example, but the U.S. reaction to it -- including the Iraq and Afghan wars -- cost more than $3 trillion and more than 6,000 soldiers' lives (not to mention the much, much larger totals of dead Iraqis and Afghans). In the U.S. case, let's not forget the creation of a vast and bloated Department of Homeland Security; the expense, inconvenience, and sheer aggravation we all face in those TSA lines; an increasingly intrusive intelligence community that sees itself as beyond public accountability; and a security establishment that does not hesitate to send special forces and drones to an ever-increasing series of countries -- even when the results in Libya, Yemen, Somalia, Iraq, Afghanistan, and elsewhere are repeatedly disappointing."
"The attack on the Canadian Parliament building on Wednesday raises familiar questions about how democratic leaders should respond to such events. The death of a Canadian soldier demands a respectful mourning, but the broader issue is how this event should be understood and how Canada's government and society should react. Will the attack be met with calm resolution -- as one might expect after a damaging flood, a destructive tornado, or a tragic fire -- or will the fact that the attack is an act of "terror" reinforce the paranoia and "clash of civilizations" worldview that has warped the West's response ever since 9/11?"
****
"To explain one of the underlying causes of such occurrences is neither to justify nor to defend homegrown attackers; it is simply to remind everyone that such unfortunate events do not come out of nowhere. In many cases, they are a regrettable but predictable byproduct. Whether the actions we've taken that inspired these attacks were wise or misguided is a separate question, but the blowback powerful states experience needs to be understood as part of the price they pay for an active, interventionist foreign policy."
****
"Fortunately, the actual damage and danger they pose is minor compared to many other dangers. Yet we still tend to speak and act as if they are a mortal threat.
Canada's minister of public safety, Steven Blaney, warned that terrorism was "the leading threat to Canada's national security." If that is really the case, then Canadians are very safe indeed. Two dozen Canadian citizens died in the 9/11 attacks, for example, and a few terrorist plots have been uncovered on Canadian soil since then. But these risks pale in comparison to the more prosaic dangers (highway accidents, natural disasters, influenza, etc.) that most countries (including Canada) take in stride.
Moreover, our reaction to these events seems to be costing us a lot more than the damage that terrorists are likely to do. The 9/11 attacks caused nearly 3,000 deaths and roughly $60 billion in property damage, for example, but the U.S. reaction to it -- including the Iraq and Afghan wars -- cost more than $3 trillion and more than 6,000 soldiers' lives (not to mention the much, much larger totals of dead Iraqis and Afghans). In the U.S. case, let's not forget the creation of a vast and bloated Department of Homeland Security; the expense, inconvenience, and sheer aggravation we all face in those TSA lines; an increasingly intrusive intelligence community that sees itself as beyond public accountability; and a security establishment that does not hesitate to send special forces and drones to an ever-increasing series of countries -- even when the results in Libya, Yemen, Somalia, Iraq, Afghanistan, and elsewhere are repeatedly disappointing."
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