Can we win the war on terror? If so, how?

2015-11-16T13:41:01-05:00

Response by CPT Aaron Kletzing made Nov 16 at 2015 1:41 PM

2015-11-16T13:41:53-05:00

Containment and some level of disruption is probably best we can do...unfortunately

Response by SFC Private RallyPoint Member made Nov 16 at 2015 1:56 PM

2015-11-16T13:56:08-05:00

NO we will not, this has been going on for a long , long time now and this will continue as long as we mix religion and politics together. Its a wholly war as they said and im not foreseeing an end to it any time soon.

Response by PO3 Private RallyPoint Member made Nov 16 at 2015 2:25 PM

2015-11-16T14:25:31-05:00

no way to completely WIN. but we can minimize it and contain it at best, and stay vigilant.

Just a class of history, The war on Terror actually start 1801 (First Barbary War). :) it never end ed and til now we still fighting the same bunch of enemies.

Response by Capt Richard I P. made Nov 16 at 2015 2:27 PM

2015-11-16T14:27:31-05:00

No more than we can win the war on ambushes or flanking attacks. Declaring war on a tactic is the height of silliness.

Response by LTC Yinon Weiss made Nov 16 at 2015 2:33 PM

2015-11-16T14:33:16-05:00

You can't win a war on a tactic (i.e. terrorism), not any more than you can win a "war on ambushes" or a "war on shooting". Now, if you want to win a war against Islamic terrorists, that is a different question. For that, and from my humble point of view, I would lay out 3 principles:

1) We have to recognize and admit to ourselves who the actual enemy is. We cannot win a 'war on terror' -- for we cannot win a war on a tactic that has always existed and that will always exist. We can't defeat an enemy if we can't even agree on who the enemy is. Let's get there first.

2) We must think in terms of decades and generations, not years and battles. We have generations of children growing up taught nothing but hate. We may win some of them back, but we have to accept that we will not undo that hatred for at least a generation or two at best. All of our military, diplomatic, and economic programs must be built with that frame of reference. Short term fixes are the last lines of defense, disrupting planned operations and dropping bombs on leaders, but let's not confuse these short term tactics for a long term strategy. Long term strategy is a multi-generational cultural and economic change. Not sexy and not very politically popular to say.

3) Muslim governments and institutions must take an active leadership role in this change. The values of respect for life must come through Muslim institutions, it cannot be forced upon from the West. Until this happens, there is no plausible victory.

Response by MSgt James Mullis made Nov 16 at 2015 3:02 PM

2015-11-16T15:02:34-05:00

Ultimately, I think the current spat of Islamic Terrorism will peter out when they run out of disaffected idiots willing to commit suicide and when their leaders learn that poking their heads up means sudden death.

Response by MAJ Ken Landgren made Nov 16 at 2015 4:41 PM

2015-11-16T16:41:42-05:00

I firmly believe ISIS' hold on parts of Iraq will embolden radical Muslims to further the cause of the Caliphate.

Response by 1SG Harold Piet made Nov 17 at 2015 5:59 AM

2015-11-17T05:59:17-05:00

There will always be Terror. We can defeat any Identified enemy. To do so we have to change our way of operating. Our politicians do not know how to wage war. They must Identify the enemy, decide the desired outcome, consult the Generals and Admirals, and turn us loose to do the job. The camera on the battlefield and the ROE is the same as a handcuff to the infantry. We will continue to lose until these desk jockeys in DC allow the military to run the war. Any country we take over we keep or give to an Allie any country we assist we make them pay the total cost of our assistance.

Response by PO2 Kevin LaCroix made Nov 17 at 2015 8:44 AM

2015-11-17T08:44:04-05:00

We cannot win the war on terror until we are no longer terrorized by it. We cannot stop people from being afraid. We cannot make the victims fight for themselves. Unless the victimized stop being victims, we have no way to win.

Response by SSG Robert Spina made Nov 17 at 2015 10:09 AM

2015-11-17T10:09:14-05:00

DEFINITELY WE TO TAKE THE GLOVES OFF THE RULES OF ENGAGEMENT INSURES WE ARE FIGHTING WITH ONE HAND TIED BEHIND OUR BACK STOP POLITICIANS FROM PROSECUTING ONE OF OUR WARRIORS FOR PUNCHING SOME TERRORIST DIRTBAG IN THE MOUTH GO IN THERE WITH THE FULL MIGHT OF OUR MILITARY AND PUT THEM ON THE BRINK OF EXTINCTION START GETTING TOUGH

Response by SGT David Shields made Nov 17 at 2015 10:35 AM

2015-11-17T10:35:28-05:00

WWII-style. Allied forces go in, and annihilate the enemy. Anyone who gets in the way dies. People need to realize the only way to deal with a society that breeds this kind of head/heartache for the rest of the world is to eliminate them. That region of the planet has caused problems (understatement) for the rest since Christ was a Corporal.

Response by MAJ Ken Landgren made Nov 17 at 2015 1:10 PM

2015-11-17T13:10:32-05:00

I believe the first step is to kill Isis in Mosul and outlying towns. That is their caliphate, center of gravity, power projection platform, and emboldens foreign terrorists.

Response by SSG Private RallyPoint Member made Nov 17 at 2015 2:50 PM

2015-11-17T14:50:19-05:00

We're fighting boogeymen so companies that can get rich off prolonged military engagement will profit. Afghanistan and Iraq was not about terror. We could have stopped the antagonists a long time ago and we can stop many of the things happening with Daesh today if we wanted, but companies like Boeing, L3, etc will not let that happen.

Response by Sgt Dennis Blume made Nov 17 at 2015 3:38 PM

2015-11-17T15:38:19-05:00

Couldn't have said it any better! Thanks!

Response by SPC Byron Skinner made Nov 17 at 2015 3:43 PM

2015-11-17T15:43:21-05:00

Sp4 Byron Skinner, Interesting question, I didn't know the US had declared war on 1.9 million people, which would be rather foolish if you stopped and though about it. Believe it or not this is shaping up just like Vietnam, but with a whole lot more at steak. As mentioned in a post earlier this is an issue of left over colonial activities by both France and Britain, the US is not involved, has no interest, outside of supporting allies. Dozens of military scholars for over a century have dealt with the issue of insurgency and none have yet come up with a way that a national military can defeat insurgent groups. Other then the use of biological weapons like Small pox. The best way is to detach ourselves form governments that have no origins from the people and start talking and doing business with The Islamic State. They want to buy Tide, we want to sell Tide. I know this makes no sense to the military mind set.

Response by PO1 Bill Adams made Nov 17 at 2015 4:15 PM

2015-11-17T16:15:55-05:00

First you have to realize that the enemy wants to turn the entire world into a muslim world. This is their stated goal. It's a part of their belief system. ISIS has established the caliphate (at least their caliphate) and intend to spread the rule of the caliphate worldwide. The only way to win this phase of the "war on terror", is to end the leadership of ISIS, and decimate the rank and file soldiers of ISIS.

Sadly, this will have the same effect as stomping on an ant bed. You kill off some ants, but the other ants just go on doing what they do. Another group will soon rise up and start another caliphate. We pretty much decimated AlQueada, but then ISIS popped up.

This has been happening again and again since the 7th Century. And will continue to repeat until Islam is no more, or a caliphate rules the world.

Response by SFC Larry Jones made Nov 17 at 2015 4:16 PM

2015-11-17T16:16:44-05:00

LTC (Ret) Ralph Peters, a frequent guest on Fox News, says the way to do it is to kill them, keep on killing them, and kill them until they are all dead. In his words, that is the only way to defeat terrorism/ISIS.

Response by SSG Johnny Arya made Nov 17 at 2015 4:24 PM

2015-11-17T16:24:56-05:00

It's hard, soldiers and generals are just tools for implementations.. Religion, ideas, beliefs, politics , history and economics are the causes of warfare.. we can kill all that do not believe in our ideas and beliefs, as long we believe our God will forgive us for the warfare that we wage.. Have the blessing from our government for the missions.. Hopefully history will show that our propose was good.. Can't answer that .. Just know that if you are the sword .. Be very sharp and just come home safe.. You will be scared with memories but that is war..

Response by PO2 Gerry Roberson Sr. made Nov 17 at 2015 4:29 PM

2015-11-17T16:29:53-05:00

It seems TOO simple, but my feel is that taking away the root reasons WHY anyone even considers going the terrorist route is at the heart of a substantive start the possible solution. I'm not talking about pat answers, I'm talking about THEIR grievances, as they see them, based on their own worldviews. When we, as Americans look on, we have these tendencies to view the thing thru an "American filter", replete with jingoistic language, iconography, and symbology. When we were attacked on 9/11, it seemed to me personally that the announcement of who the perpetrators were so soon before Al Qaida themselves said, "HAHA, we got ya!", was rather pat. When I asked more questions about just who was behind the attacks, and who was behind them, and moreover, who was behind those backers, I was deemed an unpatriotic, tinfoil hat-wearing, conspiracy theorist. I ask more questions because to me being patriotic means not robotically accepting whatever "the government" tells me without asking questions. I don't mean in military situations where a set of orders given are up for discussion, I mean in a thing of this magnitude being pursued as cops would pursue leads(follow the money, who benefits from this crime, etc.).

Response by SGM Private RallyPoint Member made Nov 17 at 2015 8:46 PM

2015-11-17T20:46:50-05:00

Historically (or should that be religiously?) the first murder was Cain killing Abel. We have been fighting murder ever since. Should we surrender because we haven't eliminated it?

Crime? The Untouchables, the FBI, the Secret Service, and millions of officers in thousands of police departments have been fighting crime for centuries. We haven't won. Does that mean we lost?

We probably cannot win the war on terror any more than we can win the war on poverty or the war on drugs. But we can lose it. This is a test of national will, and that's one of the very hardest tests for any democracy to face. And it's probably tougher on the US, because collectively we have the attention span of a 4-year old.

Still, as long as we are willing to fight back, we CAN NOT lose. Because that is what a test of wills is about. Are you willing to submit or will you keep fighting?

As for my suggestion of how to win the test of wills, I have a few suggestions:

1) For every 1 person killed by terrorists, another battalion of troops will be activated for a year and conduct search and destroy missions on terrorists and their training camps.
2) For every dollar paid in ransom, $100 will be spent on armed UAVs and smart bombs, which will then be dropped on a terrorist base.
3) For every video featuring an atrocity, CNN/Fox/AP/Reuters/whoever will be invited to completely cover the search and destroy mission of a terrorist base.

I'm sure I missed a few good ideas, and would appreciate it if the readers could fill them in.

Response by LTC Private RallyPoint Member made Nov 17 at 2015 9:05 PM

2015-11-17T21:05:12-05:00

The first step would be to stop fueling it.

Response by MSG Gerry Poe made Nov 17 at 2015 9:07 PM

2015-11-17T21:07:06-05:00

Yes, there can be victory in the fight on terrorism, it starts with getting our leaders on track with being proud of this great nation again. When U have pride and believe in a cause, strategy becomes clear. Everyone starts supporting the cause and starts supporting victory.

Response by SFC Private RallyPoint Member made Nov 18 at 2015 1:22 AM

2015-11-18T01:22:29-05:00

NO. Terror has always been there and always will be on some level and from anywhere by any individual or group of individuals. Simple answer is, NO. We or someone will always have terror to deal with on some level. There's always going to be someone who commits an act of terror and someone who stands up against that terror. The good vs evil fight shall continue on some level regardless of politics, military, etc. NO.

Response by SFC Private RallyPoint Member made Nov 18 at 2015 7:09 AM

2015-11-18T07:09:48-05:00

Withou following the red herring (terror as a tactic vs entity) down the rabbit hole...

No. We can't. Two very simple, unchangeable reasons; the religion factor (on both sides), and the human factor.

Response by FN George Woodruff made Nov 18 at 2015 7:17 AM

2015-11-18T07:17:33-05:00

Not with the current tactics being used by those in power. Until the leadership of our country is willing to do what it takes to win this war and recognize it for what it is half measures...make that quarter measures...will not get the job done. It may require a change in the Administration before we get down to taking the necessary steps to stop the nonsense! I wonder how many American lives will be lost to terror attacks on our country and elsewhere before this happens. One is too many!

Response by SSgt Alex Robinson made Nov 18 at 2015 8:12 AM

2015-11-18T08:12:32-05:00

Yes we can win the world here. The problem is the American public has no stomach for prolonged battle that they don't understand. We must take the fight to the terrorists and dispatch them before they come to our country and do us harm. This will be a long drawnout prolonged affair that unfortunately we will not be able to see the results of for many years. In short kill the terrorists before they kill Americans.

Response by SFC Donald York made Nov 18 at 2015 10:10 AM

2015-11-18T10:10:43-05:00

It is a complicated issue for some in leadership positions of how to win the war on terror. The best way is to gather the best and most trusted intelligence then strike the enemy with the most shock and awe you have and do not let up until you have defeated them.

Response by SSG Audwin Scott made Nov 18 at 2015 11:21 AM

2015-11-18T11:21:11-05:00

Terrorism is just like a thief in the night, you never see it coming! These people prepare and plan for years to do their attacks, so are there ways we can reduce terrorism should actually be the question, but to win, I don't think so.

Response by LTC Private RallyPoint Member made Nov 18 at 2015 2:41 PM

2015-11-18T14:41:19-05:00

I believe that one can effectively counter an insurgency, but not win the war on terror, it is a tactic. To defeat an insurgency one must be willing to commit to the long haul both Diplomatically and Militarily. I think that so often we want to win quickly, get in and out, and that is not the way to do this. You must be willing to affect a generation of individuals, only then will you have a chance of defeating an insuregency. Terror will always be used as a tactic of a smaller force or a group trying to use fear to their advantage.

Response by Cpl Michael Long made Nov 18 at 2015 4:27 PM

2015-11-18T16:27:46-05:00

As such, terrorism can never be gotten rid of. Any time even one individual wants to terrorize another, it can be done. However, the current stategy being implemented by our government will only guarantee to "hamstring" our military's abilities. If we are to have any success at forcing the current "Islamic Extremist" groups to refrain from their planned courses of action, a modified version of Golda Meir's "Wrath of God" plan would need to be implemented.

Response by SPC David S. made Nov 18 at 2015 4:39 PM

2015-11-18T16:39:37-05:00

Yes - However this will take secular reforms along the lines of those in 1924 after the fall of the Ottoman Caliphate. This reformation is going to have to come from within the Muslim community as anything else will be perceived as an act of aggression and only reinforce the current extremist ideologies.

This however is beyond the scope of the military's domain - We can only be used to enforce policies.

Response by SPC George Rudenko made Nov 18 at 2015 4:54 PM

2015-11-18T16:54:43-05:00

Forget calling it war, call it fight. Terror will always exist; but the foes will change

Response by SSG Private RallyPoint Member made Nov 18 at 2015 6:30 PM

2015-11-18T18:30:50-05:00

While I understand the concept of talking and that there will always be terrorism in the world, the solution to this problem is quite simple.

#1 realize that there is a problem
#2 Identify where/ who the problem is.
#3 Authorize the removal of the problem
#4 Let the military do what it is that we do.

Simply put, Washington DC has decided that they are more capable of making tactical decisions that the upper echelon of military leadership. I am so damn tired of hearing Washington, and MANY military leaders say, that we cant win a war against terror, Well, if we go in and kill, maim, demoralize the enemy long enough, then they will loose the will to fight. It seems to me that these pukes are winning the war just because the government and the people are loosing the will to fight. I say it is time to stop cowering....It is the time to fight...and WIN.

Response by LTC John Shaw made Nov 18 at 2015 6:48 PM

2015-11-18T18:48:51-05:00

MSG Private RallyPoint Member Putting aside the tactic and getting to the heart of your question...Yes we can and we will or die trying.
I think it will take more outrageous event before all people figure out that LEFT and RIGHT don't matter, we are all US citizens or citizens of a country and we will accept our differences and fight the real enemy. Leadership of all countries need to start labeling Islamic Extremist/Radical Jihadist = Nazi and (this is hard for the LEFT) understand that no external action is influencing their behavior.
1) First you need leadership who has an unwaverable commitment to Kill/Destroy every person who takes action on the desire to establish an Islamic State dedicated to the destruction of all others.
2) As citizens we must call out the moderates who support the extremist by excusing their action. If you saw the video of the Turkey v Greece game where the crowd booed the minute of silence for France and started yelling Allah Akbar, this is the moderates excusing the extremist behavior, there is no excuse.
I don't understand why the LEFT will excuse violence and allow Islamist to kill/murder under Sharia law and excuse it under multiculturalism. We all need to call out the inconsistent logic and take the fight to the Islamist.
3) Ensure secularism, we need to act immediately to stop any establishment of Sharia law in the states, these folks must become citizens and take an oath to uphold and defend the constitution. This is the same enforcement of church and state that many on the RIGHT complain about, but it is a common value we must enforce.

Response by Col Lyman Faith made Nov 18 at 2015 8:43 PM

2015-11-18T20:43:13-05:00

The War of the Running Dogs: How Malaya Defeated the Communist Guerrillas 1948-1960
This is an interesting read.

Response by SSG John Jensen made Nov 18 at 2015 11:28 PM

2015-11-18T23:28:53-05:00

there are Muslims who have adapted their religion for modern times - they mostly live in the US and northern Europe and some Islamic countries have elements of it (Turkey, Indonesia) the refugees in Europe want to have that life away from the violence and they can be modernized - Old school christianity has the same issues with modern life that the radical muslims do, but most of christianity has reconciled the differences - the fundamental difference with democracy is my demand to make fun of all polititians, priests, all of you, gods, children of gods, prophets, etc. etc. - if you want them to evolve, send the peace corps and the Future Farmers of America, if you want to catch the bad guys send the FBI, the military can logistically support all of those, no one in the world can do logistics like the US Military, and we can have variety of combat forces to support the FBI. Bring even more refugees over here, esp. ones with relatives over there. You want to screen out the likely terrorists??, even better, bring those young men over, but only if they're with their families: mom,dad, younger siblings, (people who will tell us if their son is being strange)

Response by COL Charles Williams made Nov 19 at 2015 12:05 AM

2015-11-19T00:05:21-05:00

Yes, if we go all in... Total War/Absolute war... on their terms...

Response by CPT Private RallyPoint Member made Nov 19 at 2015 7:31 AM

2015-11-19T07:31:07-05:00

MSG Private RallyPoint Member We can't win a war against an ideology "terrorism", the scope is too broad. We can win a war if we identify the enemy we want to wage war on and we're not bogged down by ROE.

Response by SPC Rudy Hawkins made Nov 19 at 2015 7:19 PM

2015-11-19T19:19:34-05:00

Alot of these answers (comments) are really funny. First of all, you are confusing a "war on terrorism" with a war against a religion. One thing that is over looked is that you can kill all the terrorists that carry out the acts of violence, but there will still be terrorism, someone else will take their place, and it will always be a continuous cycle. What people don't understand is "TERRORISM IS A PHILOSOPHY" !!!! You cannot kill a philosophy with bullets and bombs !!! A negative philosophy will have to die out and what kills it is rational ideas and concepts of agreement. Yes, bullets and bombs may give temporary relief, but not real peace. I honestly don't know if there really is a true answer to terrorism, but until there is, many lives will be lost !!!

Response by TSgt Kenneth Ellis made Nov 19 at 2015 9:00 PM

2015-11-19T21:00:24-05:00

You mean can we win a war with Muslims who prefer death to life? This is not like any war. They want to distroy our way of life.

Response by COL Charles Williams made Nov 19 at 2015 10:53 PM

2015-11-19T22:53:57-05:00

Yes, if we first decide we are actually at war, and then decided to execute total/absolute war to achieve our war aims... But first, we need wars aims.

Response by LCDR Private RallyPoint Member made Nov 20 at 2015 2:02 PM

2015-11-20T14:02:34-05:00

Kill them all

Response by Sgt Private RallyPoint Member made Nov 20 at 2015 2:09 PM

2015-11-20T14:09:30-05:00

We can win, but our government and the American people have to understand and accept that this will take a long time. It will also cost a very large amount of money, and we will suffer the loss of more American lives. I still feel bad about what happened in Vietnam, and since, so I wonder if our country has the resolve to see this through?

Response by TSgt John Temblador, PI, CIPA made Nov 21 at 2015 1:34 PM

2015-11-21T13:34:21-05:00

https://youtu.be/QXIcgUVVnZU

Fla. Prof Says Muslims 'Procreate Like Mushrooms After the Rain,' 'The Problem is Islam'

CAIR-FL Seeks Review of UCF Courses Taught by Anti-Islam Prof (TAMPA, FL, 6/17/13) - The Florida chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-F...

Response by MAJ Private RallyPoint Member made Nov 21 at 2015 9:36 PM

2015-11-21T21:36:30-05:00

Violence of action and place the fear in them that they are not going to Heaven with their virgins.

Response by SPC Andrew Griffin made Nov 23 at 2015 12:23 PM

2015-11-23T12:23:32-05:00

Very Complex question!

Response by MAJ Ken Landgren made Nov 23 at 2015 4:21 PM

2015-11-23T16:21:04-05:00

I don't think we can stamp out terrorists, but we should be able to destroy ISIS strongholds if we had the guts and fighters.

Response by 1LT Christopher Sorge made Nov 23 at 2015 7:28 PM

2015-11-23T19:28:18-05:00

The Romans had an effective yet brutal method we may wish to consider. Any place in the world we are called to police and clean up we support a native based government but only in return for tribute and allow the rules of engagement to be free of political correctness to allow our soldiers the ability to get the job done. This way we pay for our military conflicts and enable our service members to do their jobs. This is of course my personal viewpoint.

Response by Denis Voloshin made Nov 24 at 2015 4:36 AM

2015-11-24T04:36:59-05:00

The war on terror would be won by eliminating the sources of those terrorism groups, incl. ISIS.
Don't be surprised to find the evil roots in London, though.
Since war always needed ideology and money. Guys on the photograps are holding AKs and are being trained, supplied with provisions, etc... Who paid for that?

Response by MAJ Ken Landgren made Nov 24 at 2015 1:45 PM

2015-11-24T13:45:09-05:00

I do believe beating them will require cutting off their supplies and money, jets, infantry, and armor.