U.S. facing tough choices on terrorism
By Don Johnston
Newsline staff writer
In the wake of the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center in New
York and the Pentagon in Washington Sept. 11, the nation is going to have
to face some "uncomfortable options" in domestic and foreign
policy to combat terrorism, according to Jay Davis, former head of the
Defense Threat Reduction Agency (DTRA).
Davis, who left DTRA in July to return to the Lab as a fellow in NAI’s
Center for Global Security Research, spoke to the Livermore Rotary Club
Wednesday on "Terrorism: An Insider’s View." Prior to serving
as founding administrator of DTRA, Davis was associate director for the
Lab’s Earth and Environmental Programs Directorate from 1994 to 1998.
DTRA was formed within the Department of Defense in 1998 to consolidate
the efforts of three agencies in addressing the threat from weapons of
mass destruction.
Emphasizing his views on last Tuesday’s attack were personal comments,
Davis said the attacks were not a simple matter of an intelligence failure.
"As we’re structured we don’t have the tools to detect
things like what happened last week.
"We’re the most open society on the planet," Davis said,
noting that unlike many other nations "we don’t collect intelligence
information on our own citizens."
Suggesting later in his talk that "legal relief" might be needed
in some areas for intelligence gathering, Davis said as things stand now,
"Internet vendors can collect information on you that intelligence
agencies can’t."
The very nature of our open society, in which "foreigners enjoy the
same civil rights as citizens," allows a situation where "the
other side gets to pick the place and time" of an attack.
To address these and other vulnerabilities, measures are now and will
be put in place that will impact our lives, he said. "Air travel
will be less fun for the rest of our lives."
Foreign residents are also likely to encounter "a less pleasant experience"
entering the country, Davis said.
"We may have to address some uncomfortable domestic options,"
he said, including institution of a national identity card, diminished
rights for foreigners, more intrusive security measures and "extensive
costs to the economy."
The nation will likewise face some uncomfortable foreign policy options
as well, Davis said. "We are going to have to deal with the causes
of terrorism, not just the symptoms."
Along the same lines, he said "we’re going to have to understand
foreign societies on their terms not ours.
Foreign policy will need to be guided by a "less simple morality"
and "more pragmatism," he said.
Davis added that the United States has reached the end of the "zero,
zero" policy of no American casualties and no collateral foreign
casualties in conflict. "We will pay the price and we will extract
the price."
Noting that we’re dealing with a "very sophisticated opponent,"
Davis said the war against terrorism is "very different from dealing
with a nation state."
"The thing about terrorism is that we have the weapons but not the
target," he said. "All this works against countries, but it
doesn’t work against terrorist cells."
The "uncomfortable options" the nation faces "are a proper
subject for a national debate," Davis said. "These are very
important issues. But we’re the best in the world at this."
In his opening remarks, Davis said his interest in terrorism goes back
to his days as a doctoral student in nuclear physics at the University
of Wisconsin in 1971. "My perspective is colored by my past,"
he said. "My own laboratory in Sterling Hall at the University of
Wisconsin was destroyed by a terrorist bombing 31 years ago. These things
kind of mark you."