What is a war of terror? During the early days in Iraq, I became concerned by the looks in our troops’ eyes before we hit the road on a mission. The constant uncertainty was taking a toll. Our Soldiers were becoming weary of the unexpected. No moment, however serene, could be taken for granted. The world around them could explode at any time. The uncertainty was unnerving.
It occurred to me that this reaction was exactly what Bin Laden and the hate mongers would want. They had taken the offensive and we were doing exactly what they wanted us to do. We had given them control. They were dictating our feelings, and that was the clue.
The war of terror is a war of feelings. Al Qaeda is winning this war when we are afraid. When we are unable to sleep. When we are unable to concentrate. When we feel that life is out of control and we are helpless. As cruel as the tactic is, it is ingenious from the perspective of the militarily weak. You do not have to win big battles or philosophical arguments. You simply take people out of their lives. You keep them off balance. You slowly wear them down. Like a cancer, fear, the most insidious of weapons, eats away at sanity.
It is one thing to tell a person that he or she must assume responsibility for their feelings. It is one thing to say that no one can control your feelings but you. It is another thing to assume control. In an effort to take back control, I gave an order to all of our convoys. No one would get a free shot at the Thunderbolt Brigade. If fired upon from the side of the road, we would not run to safety. We would turn around and attack. No one would get a free shot.
I worried that this tactic might result in lost lives. But, I was certain that the loss of hope would be devastating over time. The message was simple. We cannot control what happens across Iraq. But, we can control the ground upon which we stand. Wherever we were, that land was under our control. We would take control of our environment.
There were several salubrious effects of this order. The morale of the troops improved immediately. They seemed more confident. Seemed to have more energy. Understanding what it meant to turn a convoy around and go back after a criminal, they were always at the ready. Their helmets were strapped tight. Their weapons were prepared for action. They were alert. They were confident. They meant to take care of the attacker at the point of attack.
What I did not foresee was the reaction the enemy would have to this change. The criminals along the side of the road could read bumper numbers. They knew which unit was going by. They could also read the attitudes of the Soldiers in the vehicles.
When we began to turn our convoys around and aggressively pursue the enemy, the enemy began to select other convoys for attack. In a nonlinear, asymmetric war, the enemy desires to apply relative strength against relative weakness. When you assume control of your feelings, you take control of the environment. You make the assailant along the side of the road fight from a position of weakness. Understanding this, the enemy was satisfied to watch our convoys go by and wait for a weaker target.
When I returned from Iraq and was assigned to the Joint Staff in the Pentagon, I labored to convey that the war of feelings had to be understood to adequately address the war. Most seemed to find the concept interesting. No one disagreed. But, in Washington, politics rules the day. The War of Terror meant something very different in that environment, and there wasn’t anything I could do about that.
THE WAR OF FEELINGS
What is the war against terror?
Should we pause and reflect
Unlike other wars, this one is more personal, more intimate
After all, terror is a feeling
a feeling of helplessness
a feeling of hopelessness
a feeling of dread
Bin Laden’s asymmetric warfare is out of the box
He has targeted the heart of the matter
His intent is cruel
as cruel as imagination will allow
In a battle of wills, he aims for the soul
We must never forget
We are talking about our feelings
and no one controls our feelings but ourselves
To fall victim to Bin Laden’s curse
We must agree to his terms
We must submit
We must never lose touch with the heart of the matter
Our feelings are our own
The War Against Terror is first won in the secret place
… the place where it was born