U.S. Government Shirks Responsibility and Claims bin Ladin No Longer a Threat

On Feb. 9, 2011, the U.S. National Counterterrorism Center announced that the greatest threat to American safety is no longer al-Qaida leader Osama bin Laden; it is now Anwar al-Awlaki, a Yemeni citizen* and Islamic preacher.

According to the American side, thanks to U.S. drone missile strikes in Pakistan over the past decade, the al-Qaida soldiers there have lost a great deal of their advantage. Bin Laden’s al-Qaida is at its weakest point in years.

Since 9/11, America has seen bin Laden as the number one terrorist. He has been listed as one of the FBI’s “Ten Most Wanted.” Awlaki is able to replace bin Laden because he can recruit terrorists on American soil. It is also said that he can speak English, is adept at using the web in propagating his views and has an ability to communicate directly with people.

Zuo Dandao (the author) comments: 9/11 thoroughly destroyed America’s confidence. America had always been a hegemonic power, and yet no country dared to challenge it. In the end, it was humiliated by a handful of terrorists. This is a source of shame for the American people. It is also why the U.S. government has been so aggressive and overbearing. When one thought that one was unmatched in the world, it is embarrassing to be proven so wrong. The U.S. government has no choice but to become the people’s outlet for rage, a tool for releasing their dissatisfaction.

The current administration is shouldering a pressure from the people that is new after the 9/11 attacks. Their response is to shift the people’s dissatisfaction with the government to another issue. Starting a war is a superb way to draw people’s attention away from critiques of the administration. The U.S. government points to a country, says it harbors terrorists, and the American people wholeheartedly flow there. Iraq has been stormed; the Afghan Taliban regime has been overthrown. These events, appearing to be successes for the U.S. Army, allow the people to renew their pride. But circumstances change with the passage of time. The American victors suddenly realize that the joy of victory was all a vain illusion. We see that Iraq is a mess after the war and remember the headaches that the Taliban wrought on the U.S. Army. At last, Americans awake from their futile fantasy: They begin to wonder, did we really win the war?

The more people question the true value of a war, the more we can see it for what it was — a failure. For this kind of failure, a government must make some sort of clear account to its people. That is why the figurehead of bin Laden was raised so high, because the government needed him to fulfill that obligation. If today they wanted to stir up the people’s hatred of bin Laden, the most they could get would be that the people would pay greater attention to the progress of the war on terror: Why can’t we raze terrorism? Why can’t the premier military force eliminate a couple small camps? It must be the government’s poor directions, right? Tactical errors? All these questions of accountability put the government under greater pressure.

By removing bin Laden’s title of “threat,” the authorities are playing shadowboxing tricks with the American people. And then the double-edged sword of public opinion gets pointed at China. Troops are frequently transferred to the East. America is a democratic society, but the American people’s ability to know the facts and their depth of understanding are not like what is publicized. In reality, every time U.S. Army strategy is altered, it is all a ploy to hoodwink the unwitting American public. The government is always the dog; the common people are just a group of sheep being rounded up.

The setbacks to the U.S. military by bin Laden and his ilk turned him into a burden for the government. By claiming he is no longer a threat and redirecting public opinion at China, the government is simply sweeping that burden under the rug.

*Editor’s Note: Anwar al-Awlaki holds dual citizenship in Yemen and the U.S.