John Edwards' Not so Brilliant Plan to Stop Terrorism
Yesterday in New York, Democratic presidential candidate John Edwards gave a speech in which he outlined part of his plan to stop terrorism. His plan: a new initiative similar to the Peace Corps that would help in areas such as global poverty and other humanitarian areas. According to Edwards' logic, improvements in these humanitarian areas would dissuade people from becoming terrorists. Story from the New York Sun.
The plan Mr. Edwards presented yesterday — which he dubbed "A Strategy to Shut Down Terrorists and Stop Terrorism Before It Starts" — calls for a 10,000-person "Marshall Corps" to deal with issues ranging from worldwide poverty and economic development to clean drinking water and micro-lending. He said investing in those areas would shore up weak nations and help ensure that terrorism does not take root there. That, he said, would allow the country to stop potential terrorists before they even join the ranks.
There are "thousands committed to violence" today, he said, and America needs to use all of its tools to go after them. But he said millions more people are "sitting on the fence" about whether to join those ranks. "We have to offer them a hand to our side instead of a shove to the other side of that fence," he said.
Mr. Edwards proposed creating a Cabinet-level position to oversee the initiative, which he said would require international allies.
Ideas such as the Peace Corps are not bad ideas. Sending people in poor countries and areas is a good alternative to just throwing millions of aid money. However, I do not think it is a sound method in the fight against Islamic terrorism.
Just look at those who perpetrated the 7/7 bombings in London. They were middle-class second-generation British, not impoverished members of the Third World. Look at the leadership of Al Qaeda. Almost all of them are educated and certainly not poor.
You also have to look at the motivations of these Islamist terrorists. They feel they are following the will of Allah. If someone feels it is their religious duty to carry out terrorism against their enemies it will not matter whether they are poor or rich. To associate humanitarian aid with counterterrorism is a stretch at best.
(Hat tip: Captain's Quarters)
2 comments:
As always, you make a really good point. But while many of the Islamist terrorists are not impoverished, this plan seems like one good way to reach out to people in many countries in a positive way. Maybe, just maybe, by connecting Americans with people through a wider peace corps throughout the world, many who might have joined with evil forces will choose not to. It's hard to argue against. Even if it is not the entire solution, it is one positive measure worth pursuing.
But, the United States already gives so much in terms of foreign aid. We already have a Peace Corps. I just don't see how much more we can do. If people don't think we're doing enough already, I don't see why they would ever think we're doing enough.
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