Social Science and the "War on Terror"
“Knowing the Enemy,” by George Packer (The New Yorker, Dec 18, 2006), is a fascinating article about the social science needed to prevail against Islamic terrorism, which the author argues is best characterized as a counterinsurgency.
Richard Braakman • February 4, 2007 8:41 AM
You’re right, it is fascinating.
I find the term itself, “global counterinsurgency”, particularly interesting. Insurgency against what? American rule? It’s never specified, but I can guess. It implies an attitude that I think is still part of the problem.
I’m glad, though, that the vision of counterinsurgency offered in the article is less horrific than the historical standard.