Good vs. Evil

I've been meaning to link to this great article by Gershom Gorenberg for a few days now. It's pretty much a berated point now, but one of the great failings of the Bush administration's foreign policy has been the unencumbered embrace of a good vs. evil mentality. Gorenberg states it perfecty here:

...The neocons are Cold Warriors sorry that it was cold. Their policy vision is quasi-theological: Whether or not there is a God, there is most certainly a devil. The evil empire is gone, but the axis of evil is present. It would not do to compromise with the devil, or contain him. His territory must be pushed back, transferred to democracy and American hegemony. This way of thinking restores a sense of order when looking at the Middle East -- two sides, facing each other. Of course Saddam and Al-Qaeda were in cahoots: They are both bad, so they must be allies. In this conception, the new world order looks just like the old -- it is bipolar.

Terrorism is a tactic as oppossed to a theology. That is why the label "War on Terror" is so misleading. It would be like calling a campaign to fight child obesity the "War on Eating", except we don't want to stop children from eating, rather we would like to discourage overeating and the consumption of excess amounts of unhealthy foods. There is no doubt in my mind that terrorists are evil. However, terrorism is a tactic used in a greater campaign. The goal of that campaign is not necessarily evil. Many terrorist groups have legitimate causes. Unfortunately, the utilization of terror has the effect of deligitimizing those causes in the eyes of the world. We also must be careful as to what groups we label terrorists. Insurgents fighting against Americans aren't terrorists. Bush and the media seem to define anyone that shoots at an American utilizing guerilla tactics a "terrorist." One problem, we used the same tactics in the Revolutionary War, and we take credit for that. If China, Russia, and Europe banded together to invade America, I'm sure we would cheer when American militias shot RPGs at Occupation forces. We would have reason to cheer, after all, our used of guerilla tactics has enabled us to mount an effective resistance against the Occupation. This seems to get lost in the fray of our conversation.

Disclaimer: I shouldn't even have to write this, but, I feel I need to to clarify my stance in this post. I find terrorist groups such as Al-Qeada and Hamas abhorrent. I in no way sympathize with these groups or their tactics. While I disagree with the label "War on Terror" and some of the resulting consequences of the campaign against "terror", I do believe the terrorist threat is real and am pleased that it has been, and continues to be addressed. Moreover, while I oppossed the war in Iraq from the beginning and still do today, I support the American campaign in Afghanistan. I have friends and family that serve in the military. I have nothing but the utmost respect and admiration for their service and courage in the name of their country.