misnomer

don't believe the hype. the war on terror is as real as a three dollar bill. it's a ruse. it's a slogan designated to keep your eye off the ball. instead it's meant to keep you looking over your shoulder in fear. forget health care, forget the economy, forget the fact that the mastermind of 9/11 has yet to be caught. forget afghanistan and tax breaks for the rich and the fact that virtual sycophantic monkeys run important levels of bureaucracy and government, bent on keeping the status quo no matter what the cost. forget the erosion of education and scientific thought as the magical and delusional gain strength. forget habeas corpus, or the lack there of. forget that torture is as american as apple pie.

the war on terror will never be "won" because 1) you don't ever win a war. because even if you think you've won, you really haven't. this is an age old paradigm that humans have long been unable to shake; it's just not that black and white. 2) this "war" isn't against another army, it's not against "evil doers." it's primarily against oneself, and secondarily against a small militant group of fundamentalist that frankly cannot be bombed into submission.

what do i mean by this? i mean that the united states government is using all the wrong tools in fighting this "war." i'm not saying i have any answers, all i'm saying is that it seems pretty clear that the superior military might of the american army with over 400 billion dollars a year in funding just isn't working. not against these so-called "terrorists" who are masters of asymmetrical warfare. war is in their blood. just like the war on drugs, the powers that be are using the wrong tools to fight the problem. in the case of the war on drugs, having made it a criminal matter instead of a health care issue is the primary problem. locking up drug users and their dealers isn't working. legalizing certain drugs and making it about health care and treatment is the way to go.

with the war on terror, you can't use a military to bomb an enemy when there is no major enemy. say what you want, but al qaeda does not threaten western society. far from it. it seems to me that this has less to do with the military, and more to do with law enforcement and policing. integrated intelligence gathering through the use of local law enforcement in various countries seems more effective, such as breaking up terror cells, etc. is there a place for the military in this so-called war? sure. through the use of special forces, small, well placed tactical strikes, and good intelligence. cluster bombing a nation won't get the terrorists. it'll only create more. it will only end up radicalizing people who, previous to the bombs blowing up their children, were quite moderate in their politics and beliefs.

the other part to this phony war is policy. you won't change people's minds until you're out of their back yards and you quit meddling in their affairs. this means that what american foreign policy has been in the last sixty years has to change course. instead of leaving military bases and waging wars to secure oil, try research into alternative fuels and conservation. humans have a nasty habit of not being satisfied, of not wanting to restrict themselves in any way. but the truth is, limits have to be made, conservation must be done. it'll save your lungs as much as it will save your soldiers. it's much harder to look inward, to figure out why it is people tend to hate you, to try to fix those problems within yourself. it's much easier to simply say that they're jealous and they're evil and... just who are they anyway? and it's easier to stonewall than it is to open up, to engage, to exchange ideas.

we've tried the sword. we've taken that path as far as it will go. now let's try the pen.

here is the latest real time with bill maher, condensed, for your viewing pleasure. many of the ideas i've touched upon are discussed here. what we have is a discussion on the war on terror, a surprisingly thoughtful actor, a democratic party full of pussies, and a true republican who's not afraid to tell it like it is. this is a really good episode.