Week 4: Distinctiveness of 911 Attack Lecture 9: “Asymmetrical Warfare”

24th February 2003 (Monday)

Structure of Lecture 9: Introduction to the Distinctiveness of the 911 Atta

ck Asymmetry Type A:

Military Vs Civility Asymmetry Type B:

Low-tech Vs High-tech Osama Bin Laden’s Perspective on Asymmetry Conclusion: Was it so “asymmetrical”?

PART IIntroduction to the Distinctiveness

of the 911 Attack

“Language 101” and 911’s Uniqueness

George W Bush: “A Threat with No Precedent”…

Actor Event Venue Tool

Timing

Different Perspectives on its Uniqueness owing to Different Personal Backgrounds…

Actor – the Planner

Al-Qaeda and Osama Bin Laden: The “Shadow Leader”

“Desperately seeking for enemies” A Non-governmental Organization inst

ead of a Country From 2-dimensional World to 3-dimension

al world

… more on week 10

Actor – the Target

USA as the World Hegemon American Exceptionalism

Casualty: 3,044 lives Financial Loss: 33-36 billion US dollars Dramatic Analogy in everyday life Romanticism of Osama Bin Laden

Venue (I)

Attack on American “Homeland”

1776-1783: War of Independence

1812-1815: Anglo-American War 1814: Fall of

Washington, D.C. Burning of White House

and the Capitol

Venue (II)

1916: Mexican guerrilla war Pancho Villa Raid on Columbus (New Mexico)

1941-1945: Second World War 1941: Pearl Harbor Incident 1942: Japanese Incendiary Bombs in Pacific

Northwest A “Safe Haven” during Cold War

Tools (I)

Donald Rumsfeld: “Asymmetrical Warfare”

Asymmetry: “lack of mathematical balance and symme

try” Political Concept

of Give and Take

Tools (II)

Asymmetry Type A: Military Warfare Vs Common

People

Asymmetry Type B: Low-tech Primitive Weapons Vs

High-tech Modernized Weapons

Timing

Accidentalism Vs Incrementalism Dramatic Setting (“September 11”) Media Coverage’s Impacts on Moder

n Warfare End of the World, WWIII, Ghost Stori

es…

… more on Wednesday

PART IIAsymmetry Type A:Military Vs Civilian

Identities of 911 Attackers and Victims

Hijackers: Murderers/ Military Soldiers Planners: Military Commanders Pentagon Victims: Military officers World Trade Center Victims:

Common people (non-militant) Internationalized (multi-national corporations)

The Editing Strategy of Politically Incorrectness Emphasis on WTC (Asymmetrical) Tune down on Pentagon (Symmetrical) The Article #23 Analogy

War Codes and Charters Ancient War Codes: “Just Wars”/ Chevaliers

Ancient China: Confucius Vs Legalists Ancient West: Christianity Vs Machiavellian

United Nations Charters Geneva Convention International Court of Justice (the Hague)

Protection of Common People at Wars Against Exploitation of Women and Children Against Exploitation of War Prisoners

PART III Asymmetry Type B:

Low-tech Vs High-tech

Low-tech Primitive Strategies

Hi! Jack… Everyday life weapon: pocket

knifes, folks, box-cutters… Commercial Plane Vs F19 The “Shoe Bomber” Psychological Attack

Martyrdom

High-tech Modernized Strategies

Star War (Strategic Defense Initiative, SDI) President Ronald Reagan (1983) Aim: to destroy Soviet nuclear weapons IN

SPACE Hollywood movies: “Star War I, II, III”… Purpose: to keep American cities save Effect: collapse of USSR?

“Star War II”

Ronald Reagan and the Bush Family National Missile Defense System (NMD

s) George W Bush (2000) Target: Russia, China, North Korea Launching the New Cold War before 911? Sino-American Spy Plane Crushing Incident

(May 2001) The 911 Irony The Two-front war of Bush after 911:

NMD continued against High-tech enemies Office of Homeland Security against Low-te

ch enemies

The 911 Balance Sheet

Lives: 3,044 World Trade Center: 2,650 Pentagon: 125 Planes: 269 Hijackers: 19 Turnover: 160 times

Financial Cost: USA: US$33,000,000,000 Al-Qaeda: US$1,000,000 Turnover: 33,000 times

Assigned Readings

Main Text: Lawrence Freedman: “A New Type of War” (B&D P.37-47)

Supplementary Text: Christopher Harmon. Terrorism Today. Chapter 2: Strategies (P.44-75).

PART IV Asymmetry in the Views of

Osama Bin Laden

Common People are Innocent?

The Concept of Democracy Eligible voters choose the ones in power to re

present their interests Full Democracy:

Universal Suffrage + Open Election The Concept of Civic Responsibility

Responsible for government’s actions?

Laden’s Perspectiveon Democracy ^o^

Americans are “guilty” because: They voted for the bad government who is evil to

wards Muslim brothers; They supported the bad government’s every actio

n; They did not overthrow the bad government

Common people are part of the US bureaucrats; Attack not asymmetrical

Gross Imbalance of World Power

Unipolarity: Unprecedented since the Roman Empire (27BC-476AD)

US Dominance Political/ International Economic Science and Technology/M

ilitary Culture/ Ideology

Osama Bin Laden: What can I do in terms of the “American Asymmetry”?

Guantanamo Bay Scandal

War against Taliban (2001)

Mistreatment of “detainees” in Guantanamo Bay (US base in Cuba) Lack of Legal Justice Refusal to Apply Geneva

Convention Torture and other Abuses

Criticism of Human Rights Activists

Past Asymmetry of American Attack

Vietnam War (1965-1975) Greatest Disaster of the American

Foreign Policy since WWII Anti-war Movement Chemical Weapons Vs Biological

Opponents Gulf War (1989-1990) + Post-Gulf

War Sanction Vs The Poor Iraqi Estimated number of dead: millions

PART V Conclusion –

Rethinking about Symmetry

Asymmetry = Political Correctness

Political Correctness Unbiased, value-free, factually-descriptive e.g. “value-adding,” “voluntary departure”… Asymmetrical Warfare = a Politically Correct t

erm in the United State? Subjective definition of Asymmetry

Bush’s definition Vs Ladin’s definition

Rationale of Asymmetrical Warfare

Asymmetry as a Tactic to Redress the Existing Asymmetry

Taoist Philosophy again North Korea’s “Mad Diplomacy”

President Kim Jong Il Re-activation of Nuclear Testing Withdrawal from Nuclear Non-prolifer

ation Treaty Open Conflict with USA What else can they do?

A Classroom Analogy

Classroom analogy: how to get good grades by students with no backgrounds? Method A: Work Hard Method B: Give Up Method C: Asymmetrical

measures…

~~The End~~

Thank you for attending