My Take on 'Imperial Hubris'

Michael Scheuer, the "Anonymous" who has authored Imperial Hubris: Why the West is Losing the War on Terror, is an equal-opportunity critic whose condescending dismissals of almost everyone he writes about undermines what appears to be a basically serious and important look at America's war with al Qaeda. Among those Scheuer accuses of "moral cowardice," "hubris," or general incompetence are the Clinton Administration, the second Bush Administration, the upper echelons of the CIA, the FBI, America's general staff, and others I may have forgotten.

In Scheuer's universe, it seems, almost everyone in the US government, but him, has been wrong about the nature of the threat posed by al Qaeda and the appropriate American response to it.

It isn't that Scheuer doesn't possess credentials for a thorough understanding of these issues. From 1996 to 1999, he headed the task force that analyzed the bin Laden-group for the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA). He worked within the agency for twenty years.

But the attitude with which Scheuer writes reads like "sour grapes," an impression reinforced by his recent decision to leave the agency and officially "out" himself as Anonymous, author of this book and Through Our Enemies' Eyes: Osama bin Laden, Radical Islam, and the Future of America.

The key points of this book seem to boil down to a few:

That bin Laden and crew appeal to a mainstream Islamic notion, the idea that when Islamic lands or institutions are threatened, it's legitimate for Muslims to engage in what Scheuer calls defensive jihad. By pinning their murderous campaign to what is seen as a legitimate tenet of the Islamic faith, al Qaeda gains legitimacy in the Muslim world.

That America's response to the attacks of September 11, 2001 have been misdirected, half-hearted, and ineffectual. Scheuer believes that, in a criticism that echoes the very one made by President Bush of the position taken by John Kerry in the recent election, the Bush Administration has been far too inclined to approach bin Laden's group as terrorists guilty of violating domestic law. But, Scheuer insists, America isn't chasing a latter-day Mafia; it's at war with al Qaeda.

That al Qaeda is more than a group of terrorists. While the group clearly is not a sovereign nation, it does exercise much of the power that such nations possess.

That the Bush Administration's decision to go to war in Iraq was irrelevant to the war with al Qaeda and in fact, created new opportunities for al Qaeda and aligned groups.

That the current government's declared intention of establishing US-style democracies in Muslim and Arab nations runs contrary to the foreign policy traditions established by George Washington while he was President and that of perhaps America's most successful secretary of state, John Quincy Adams, who served under President James Monroe. The Bush Administration's policies, Scheuer suggests, are more akin to those of Democrat Woodrow Wilson. (Scheuer dismisses Wilson, too, calling him "inane.")

Whether one agrees with Scheuer or not, his points are worthy of examination due to his credentials. They are harmed because so often, he seems like the smartest kid in the class who, with a smirk on his face, is certain that he knows it all and isn't averse to reminding you of it.

Perhaps the most useful element of the book is its last chapter in which Scheuer presents what he calls "a few suggestions for debate." Some are obvious. Some are provocative. He suggests "guidelines for consideration" in debates regarding our approach to the war with al Qaeda:

1. Relax, it's only a war, unique like all others
2. Stop celebrating death and defeat (i.e., constant comemorations of 9/11)
3. Accept that we are hated, not misunderstood (i.e., by many in the Muslim world)
4. Get Used to and Good at Killing (this is chilling to me!)
5. Cant [politically correct cliches] will kill us
6. Professional soldiers are paid to die
7. Others will not do our dirty work
8. Do the checkables [information that can be confirmed] and demand expertise
9. Do not deal with bin Laden as a terrorist [rather, as the head of a pseudo government that can inflict great harm against the world]
10. Demand energy self-sufficiency
11. End the Fifth Column of senior military and intelligence retirees
12. Recognize that much of Islam is at war with America
13. A time for discriminant international involvement

Whether one agrees with Scheuer or not, his book is something that I believe all thoughtful Americans should read. Along with the 9/11 Commission's report, it can help us to view and make decisions about events in our world with greater understanding. At this point in international history, that's something that all of us need, I think.

If you've read this book, I truly would appreciate your take on it.