2011 National Strategy for Counterterrorism

Sometimes Federal documents can be pretty lengthy, hundreds, if not thousands of pages long.  Thankfully the NATIONAL STRATEGY FOR COUNTERTERRORISM is only 19 pages long and I just finished reading it this morning while riding my exercise bike--which is where most of my "fun" reading gets done these days.

 

Here are a few thoughts that came to mind after reading the strategy:

 

• There is a very heavy emphasis on al-Qa'ida and its minions while making a nod to other national and transnational terrorist groups.
• Words count.  It was noted that we now have the laws in place to take legal action against terrorist activities.  Definitions have been clarified for the differences between affiliates, adherents and associated forces.
• Key to the document is that while we will be relentless in our efforts we will adhere to our core principles and United States core values.  The end does not justify the means.
• There are several notations about "building a culture of resilience."
• What causes terrorism was not addressed in depth, but the recent civil disobedience in Greece gave me pause to think about this issue.  If you look at the history of pre-Nazi Germany, any time there is a group of people who feel "put upon" for lack of a better word they can move quickly from civil disobedience to more violent behavior.  I can potentially see another era of radicalization coming to the United States and own future if we don't put our financial house in order and people become willing to sacrifice something they are "due" in order to achieve long term economic stability.
• All our international partners don't have the same values we have, but sometimes we need to work with them to counter terrorist threats.
• Whole-of-government comes up several times.  But no mention of the role of the average citizen in fighting terrorism is mentioned.  That is where "whole community" should come to bear.
• There is an acknowledgement that you can't "harden" every potential target and it is resiliency that will save the day.
• I may have read this before, but they wrote, "Integrating and harmonizing the efforts of Federal, state local and tribal entities remains a challenge.  The word harmonizing might be one to use more. 
• They note a "critical point of departure in saying that the countries and people of Southeast Asia bear the responsibility for addressing the challenges posed by terrorists in the region."  Sounds like we don't want to "open another front on terrorism."

Lastly, the strategy notes the evolving threat of terrorism and our need to adjust our strategy accordingly.  Which is to say, the next underwear bomber maybe wearing Victoria Secret panties, perhaps a thong.