Rumsfeld fears U.S. losing long-term fight against terror

[Tellurian]

SINGAPORE -- The United States and its allies are winning some battles in the terrorism war but may be losing the broader struggle against Islamic extremism that is terrorism's source, Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld said Saturday.

The troubling unknown, he said, is whether the extremists -- whom he termed ''zealots and despots'' bent on destroying the global system of nation-states -- are turning out newly trained terrorists faster than the United States can capture or kill them.

''It's quite clear to me that we do not have a coherent approach to this,'' Rumsfeld said at an international security conference.

His remarks showed a level of concern about the long-term direction of the U.S.-led global fight against terrorism that Rumsfeld rarely addresses in public.

http://www.suntimes.com/output/terror/cst-nws-rums06.html

...after reading the above.. read here:

"The message is that there are no 'knowns'. There are things we know that we know. There are known unknowns. That is to say there are things that we now know we don't know. But there are also unknown unknowns. There are things we don't know we don't know. So when we do the best we can and we pull all this information together, and we then say, well that's basically what we see as the situation ..."

~ Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld, June 6, 2002

and here: The Neocon Philosophy of Intelligence

[Tellurian]

1. Rumsfeld is the austere representation of "no plan" "never had a plan"

Iraqi War our soldiers are dying for daily.

[Just Me]

Well, "they" had a plan to dominate through force,...

,..."they" simply never considered the human element and didn't give a damn that the rest of the world would reject their exploitation of humanity.

[Tellurian]

9. Alert---movie on FX called 'Meltdown' reairs @11PM - must see!!!!

Terrorists attack nuclear facility in US..

Twin threads are going..

[Tellurian]

2. kicking~

why isn't this thread showing up on "latest" page?

kick...I don't understand why this isn't in breaking news..

[Ellen Forradalom]

3. You don't say, Rummy???

We don't have a coherent approach to this? I could've told you that three years ago for 25 cents! Sheesh, the nerve of these people!

[jokerman93]

4. If Rummy were a Shakespearean Character

If Rummy were a Shakespearean character, it would be clear enough from this reading that he's searching his mind for a "final solution" to the Islam problem -- and may not know it yet.

[Tellurian]

5. Mods please remove...

my machine hiccuped..

[Kinkistyle]

6. Well you shook the hornets nest didn't ya?

Unfortunately the hornet's nest was mixed in with a whole bunch of honeybee nests and now the whole lot of them are swarming and you don't know who to swat down and who not to.

So whats the solution to this problem? Perhaps just drop a DDT bomb on the whole lot of them? I believe thats what the ultimate end to Rummy's "War of Terror" will be.

[spotbird]

7. It has been said before.

Rummy must not know.


He who knows not, and knows not that he knows not, is a fool.
Shun him.
He who knows not, and knows that he knows not is simple.
Teach him.
He who knows, and knows not that he knows, is asleep.
Waken him.
He who knows, and knows that he knows is wise.
Follow him.
Arabian Proverb

[oblivious]

8. So many absurd assumptions.

1. winning some battles in the terrorism war
For example?

2. Islamic extremism that is terrorism's source
Is that right? Only those of the Moslem faith engage in terrorism. What an ignorant pathetic propaganda hack!

3. the extremists...bent on destroying the global system of nation-states
I have never seen any proof of this.

4. the extremists are...turning out newly trained terrorists faster than the United States can capture or kill them
There is no question about that, but we know what is causing them to do so.

5. His remarks showed a level of concern about the long-term direction of the U.S.-led global fight against terrorism
Deal with the cause, fool, or better yet, just stop killing innocent people for a while.

edit: spelling typos

[truthisfreedom]

10. translation: "we are generating them faster than we can kill them." the

only solution being to christianize them.

[Tellurian]

11. Dummy know Christianizing them is out of the question..

and is nothing more than an excuse to kill them.

[Tellurian]

12. Going to watch the movie we're not supposed to see, on FX now..

called..Meltdown

[Tellurian]

14. Synopsis of the movie "Meltdown" seen tonite on FOX:

terrorists could be capable of entering a nuclear facility

easily...AND as it turned out the terrorists were GI JOES..proving how it can be done easily and how ill prepared Homeland Security is to deal with an inhouse catastrophic event like this one.

Delta Force, GI JOES dying of Depleted Uranium poisoning they received while in Afghanistan. Demonstrating how vulnerable we are, without our National Guard to protect us.

The story is entirely plausible.

Especially, the part about the government lying to the public.

If this movie wasn't a wakeup call illustrating the severe deficiency's in the Security of our country because of the present administration. I don't know what is..

[PATRICK]

18. Disappointing in that

it resembles nearly to a fault several movies done about the benevolent American terrorist trying to make a point but it goes haywire. Yes, our guys could hurt us more and the mere fact we intend proliferating biolabs and small nukes OURSELVES adds to the neglected other security issues. And yes, foreigners, even suicidal with lots of money and training have a hard time doing the simplest things over here. It's the old crooks staying in the ghetto formula, because they are familiar with the less defended pickings of their own people.

Still, the movie is hampered from being too realistic and showing how a determined group might storm one of our plants, and not wait around to discuss terms and make TV statements. Deterrence is in knowing that there is some security, some of it unknown and failure quite possible. it is not death but failure that inhibits terrorists. However, if we keep ramping up the "war" and growing the enemy into competitive teams of ignorant youths, we may face a desperate storm of such risky ventures next time. Then having every tenth vulnerability protected would not be a deterrent, but a matter of statistical chance.

We could back down from this and at least get back to the chess game, I think, but not with the current jerks in charge in DC.

[Tellurian]

19. Rather than ramping up...

The simple fact of the matter is, we can NEVER be secure or confident we will never be terrorized again, no matter the security they devise and put in place. Bush has done nothing positive for the country and in fact may have put our lives at risk because of HIS foreign policy.

Bush is a greater liability to the country than any terrorist could ever be. imo

[lebkuchen]

13. At the D-Day ceremonies an 88 y.o US vet said

that the Bushies were wrong to invade Iraq with no real coalition (as D-Day had--14 countries). He thought it was a huge mistake.

[Tellurian]

15. He's right of course..and probably why Bush was a no show at the Normandy

site today. He would have been facing more protests from Vets!

Bush has got to be removed by Congress-

Enough is Enough!

[FormerOstrich]

16. Is he confessing his own incompetence?

Acutally, statistics show that terrorism related acts and deaths were declining through 2001 (even when including the wtc deaths).

I don't have time to find the exact link, but the stats can be found at this site (everything terrorism):

http://www.emergency.com/cntrterr.htm

I think they don't even pretend to care what kind of bullshit they speak. They just are doing whatever and saying whatever and it keeps working.

[dusty64]

17. So now he is admitting

that they have lost their "war" and have only made it worse.

[struggle4progress]

20. The stupid policy had bad results?

[chrisdfer]

21. What is the problem?

So? What is the problem? The war on terror is a joke. We are the bad guys and we deserve to lose the war on terror. Perhaps America and Americans will finally fall form power and lose what ever power it has in the world. I have no sympathies for this country or most the morons that live in it. The sooner America collapses the sooner the world can get on with being progressive again. The past 200 and something years has been one of the slowest technological times and the most violent because of the power America has held. It is time for a new country to take the lead and my eyes are set on China. Chinese have better work ethic, high intelligence and much kinder people then Americans. I will be looking for the EU and China to lead the way into the future while America turns into a third world country like it rightly deserves.