Topic: CurrentTerror Plots.

senojekips · March 20th, 2008

Mueller, John. "Simplicity and Spook: Terrorism and the Dynamics of Threat Exaggeration" Paper presented at the annual meeting of the International Studies Association, Hilton Hawaiian Village, Honolulu, Hawaii, Mar 02, 2005 Online <.PDF>. 2008-02-24 <http://www.allacademic.com/meta/p70917_index.html>

ABSTRACT It has been common to exaggerate and to overreact to foreign threats, something that seems to be continuing with current concerns over international terrorism. This paper assesses threat exaggeration and overreaction from Pearl Harbor to the post-Cold War period and applies that experience to post-9/11 fears of, and policies toward, international terrorism. Alarmism and overreaction can be harmful, particularly economically. And, in the case of terrorism, they can help create the damaging consequences the terrorists seek but are unable to perpetrate on their own. Moreover, stoked by the terrorism industry, many of the forms alarmism has taken verge on hysteria. The United States is hardly likely to be facing an existential threat in the sense that it will be toppled by dramatic acts of terrorist destruction, even extreme ones. The country can, however grimly, readily absorb considerable damage if necessary, and it has outlasted more potent threats in the past. A reasonable policy might be to seek to reduce fears about what may well prove to be quite a limited problem.
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Real world Intelligence agencies play their cards very close to their chests and any real threats are not heard of until the arrests are made.

March 20th, 2008
senojekips Tribunus Laticlavius	Mueller, John. "Simplicity and Spook: Terrorism and the Dynamics of Threat Exaggeration" Paper presented at the annual meeting of the International Studies Association, Hilton Hawaiian Village, Honolulu, Hawaii, Mar 02, 2005 Online <.PDF>. 2008-02-24 <http://www.allacademic.com/meta/p70917_index.html> ABSTRACT It has been common to exaggerate and to overreact to foreign threats, something that seems to be continuing with current concerns over international terrorism. This paper assesses threat exaggeration and overreaction from Pearl Harbor to the post-Cold War period and applies that experience to post-9/11 fears of, and policies toward, international terrorism. Alarmism and overreaction can be harmful, particularly economically. And, in the case of terrorism, they can help create the damaging consequences the terrorists seek but are unable to perpetrate on their own. Moreover, stoked by the terrorism industry, many of the forms alarmism has taken verge on hysteria. The United States is hardly likely to be facing an existential threat in the sense that it will be toppled by dramatic acts of terrorist destruction, even extreme ones. The country can, however grimly, readily absorb considerable damage if necessary, and it has outlasted more potent threats in the past. A reasonable policy might be to seek to reduce fears about what may well prove to be quite a limited problem. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~ Real world Intelligence agencies play their cards very close to their chests and any real threats are not heard of until the arrests are made. __________________ "Too thick to change, and too old to care" http://www.geocities.com/senojekips/Index.htm Last edited by senojekips : March 20th, 2008 at 22:37.