This column needs to be seen by the thinking people on this forum-- maybe you'all and your friends can bump it.

From Stratfor: War Plan Part 4: The Intercontinental Theater of Operations

The task is to identify those operatives and either capture them -- questioning them rigorously, as the saying goes -- or kill them. [...] The task of U.S. intelligence is to look for bin Laden's necessary vulnerabilities -- people, money, buildings. When those are found to be of sufficient importance, they must be destroyed using secret U.S. forces deployed around the world, frequently without the knowledge or permission of the host country. And if these forces are captured, Washington, like Israel does, will deny everything. If they are killed, they will be forgotten, except for a star on a wall in Langley, Va. [...] It will be long and unpleasant, and there will be counterattacks.

a two-tiered war is required. The public war is a law enforcement challenge, much like what will happen in North America. A very secret war, perhaps never confirmed, that limits itself to extremely high-value targets and makes as few mistakes as humanly possible also must be waged. [...] Turning the intelligence community from a collector of the arcane into a war-fighting instrument is the key. That, along with cunning and ruthlessness, may defeat al-Qa'ida. [...]

Bump on this one. The nonpublic part of this "war" is the one that needs to be waged most vigorously, and sans compassion...

Yes, and we need to ditch political correctness and use our elites to help win this war. It is no accident that we are a superpower, both politically and economically, and if we can harness the power of the people who contribute the most to that effect, there is NOTHING this nation cannot accomplish.

The nonpublic part of this "war" is the one that needs to be waged most vigorously, and sans compassion

I agree. In addition, it will be the one that tests our collective mettle the most. We'll have a lot of domestic and international support for what is about to happen (and what is already happening) in Afghanistan. However, domestic support for this ongoing - and more important - operation will be critical.

Remember that one of the enemy's central strategies will be to drive a wedge between our citizens and our government - by terrorizing us, by feigning outrage at our response, by creating distrust of our leaders.

Yep. The days of the Sink Emperor's coordinated photo ops with the Clymer News Network of $2 million cruise missiles taking out empty tents and aspirin factories are over. Wet work, not headlines. In large part, this battle will need to be fought in the suites, shadows and sewers--and through the use of surrogates. All parts of the terrorist infrastructure should be fair game--suppliers, financiers, brokers, messengers etc...

I'm afraid this won't go over well with the knuckle-dragging, mouth-breathing wing nuts around here. Anything that even remotely means more power to "the gub'mint" scares them witless (pun intended).

I suspect this thread will soon become littered with cryptic references to Flight 800, Mena, Iran-Contra and OKC, as the "paranoid patriots" grumble about some unknown loss of "freedom"

Oh, and I nominate Warren Buffet to head up the financial end-- the guy's mind is a computer, and he knows absolutely everyone who is anyone in the world of finance.

I agree, and I just absolutely cannot comprehend their thinking. It's been quite amazing to me to realize since 9/11 that the nuts of the far right and the nuts of the far left have so much in common. But, the single-issue people are the most stunning of all-- it's like they have no sense of history, no realization that we're hovering on the brink of WWIII and that it wouldn't take much to push it over. Meanwhile, they're b*tching about homosexuals, and abortion, and all sorts of other irrelevant BS from the culture wars. Who the hell cares about that crap now?

Turning the CIA into an offensive agency won't, by itself, win the war against terrorism. But it will help, and the sooner we get cracking the better.

The CIA needs a true LEADER with full support of Bush.

"Yes, and we need to ditch political correctness and use our elites to help win this war. It is no accident that we are a superpower, both politically and economically, and if we can harness the power of the people who contribute the most to that effect, there is NOTHING this nation cannot accomplish.

Excellent post. Glad to see it here.

I think it was Steve Jobs who said "A players hire A players, while B players hire C players." If we want to stay an A country and win the fight, we need to put the A team to work. Fortunately, Bush is an A player, which accounts for the exceptional quality of his team, but too many in government are B and C players left over from the last administration. Time to clean house.

Thanks, great article!

bttt

bttt

bttt

What this article overlooks is sad.

I'd say the secret wars in Cambodia, Laos, Afghanistan and the creation and utilization of the MPRI in the Balkans are pretty strong indicators of an offensive CIA mentality. Anybody remember the "Bay of Pigs?"

There's still something closer to home to pay attention to. In another issue of accountability, note that the FAA Administrator, Jane Garvey's historic 'stuff' now meets the test for terrorism in Bush's Executive Order. The FAA sponsored the airport security scam - with bonuses. 'Ex post facto' is more of the norm than an exception, anymore.

It also appears that Bush left out (licensed?) the PLO/PA, Hamas, Hizbollah, and Islamic Jihad (Jehad Islamani?).

If I'm reading correctly, it's also rather strange that the bin Laden family in Boston recently received Swiss citizenship & they were allowed to leave the country (presumeably with their fortune) after the 9-11 debacle.

Don't forget that Afghanistan was 'magically' not on the list of 'terrorist sponsoring nations' until after 9-11.

Rather gives the expression, "...curioser and curioser" new meaning, now doesn't it?

In the interim, your personal liberties are being quietly removed; one-at-a-time.

Do we have a shell-game going here???

Children, DAMMIT! One-more-time; pay attention!!!

I think it was Steve Jobs

Steve Jobs with Apple in 1978 could have been both IBM and Microsoft. Instead he is presiding over an Apple well on the way to decay and rot. It doesn't even have seeds that will grow at its death.

He decided to do the Lisa at 10 grand to compete with a 4 Grand PC. He then waited 5 years to do a Mac while the PC took the whole market. He was too stupid to see that a machine equal to the PC at the time of the PC would split the market. He believed a machine superior to the PC could beat the PC after it was established. He knew nothing about how corporate america works or thinks. He refused to listen to those that knew.

He believed the future was hardware when it was software.

If Gates tells you how to make it listen. If Jobs says it don't.

The only certain thing about Jobs and his advice is if Jobs says go left, the correct course is to go right.

A People and B people is bull.

Secure people even if dumb hire the best people they can. The best people make them look smart. Insecure people even if they very bright people hire people dumber than them because they are afraid the smart people will depose them.

Jobs falls into the latter category.