When will we realize victory in the War on Terror?

CH (MAJ) William Beaver — Mon, 25 May 2015 15:56:14 -0400

How and when will we realize the point of victory in the War on Terror? Will it be lasting? What will it look like? Is it possible? Is it likely? What will be the final cost of victory over terror?

Response by GySgt Wayne A. Ekblad made May 25 at 2015 3:57 PM

GySgt Wayne A. Ekblad — Mon, 25 May 2015 15:57:36 -0400

Apparently, never ... every gain we make we just give away. To be perfectly honest, the "war on terror" is starting to look a lot like the "war on drugs" ...

Response by Sgt Aaron Kennedy, MS made May 25 at 2015 4:04 PM

Sgt Aaron Kennedy, MS — Mon, 25 May 2015 16:04:13 -0400

Simply put, how does one win a war against ideology?

Wars on Drugs, Wars on Poverty, Wars on Terrors make great soundbites, but how can they be accomplished? Or accomplished via the current metrics (at least).

Response by CPT Private RallyPoint Member made May 25 at 2015 4:18 PM

CPT Private RallyPoint Member — Mon, 25 May 2015 16:18:30 -0400

As long as men hold onto the ideology that one group of men is superior whether it would be genetic, religious, nationality there will always be terrorism. 2000 years ago Romans called them Zealots, a few hundred years ago India called them Thuggee (origin of thug), in America manifest destiny led Native Americans to commit acts of "terror" that war took from 1500 to about 1885 for the U.S. To finally eradicate terrorism from the America. Will there ever be a real victory...I don't believe there will be, however by being vigilant and relentless we can suppress it. I recommend we have a trial for them and if found guilty sentence terrorist to death instead of conducting prisoner exchanges.

Response by PO3 David Fries made May 25 at 2015 4:18 PM

PO3 David Fries — Mon, 25 May 2015 16:18:42 -0400

Honestly, I can't see how we can win. We are fighting zealots. That type of ideology can't be broken. We can win battles against them, but I don't believe that we can ever win that war.

Response by PO1 William "Chip" Nagel made May 25 at 2015 4:40 PM

PO1 William "Chip" Nagel — Mon, 25 May 2015 16:40:07 -0400

Never! Terrorism is not a Country, It is a methodology used by all to include armed forces "Shock and Awe". It is a methodology that preys on Fear. It is used my Terrorist Organizations, Militarys it is used by Individuals. Calling it a War on Terror, might as well call it a War on Scratching My Ass.

Response by CH (MAJ) William Beaver made May 25 at 2015 5:04 PM

CH (MAJ) William Beaver — Mon, 25 May 2015 17:04:12 -0400

Is this a war we can actually score a final victory, or a series of small victories?

Response by MAJ Ron Peery made May 25 at 2015 5:06 PM

MAJ Ron Peery — Mon, 25 May 2015 17:06:40 -0400

That's the problem with catchy names and "branding" military operations. The name creates a false expectation of success. Remember "The war to end all wars?" It didn't really do that. The Korean War never ended. We just have a cease fire. The War on Terror could also be called the War Against Evil. But evil will never be eradicated from the hearts of men until the Second Coming. There are no final victories in human conflict. Each generation does what it can to protect (or disturb) it's own time. How about we leave naming wars to the historians?

Response by 1LT William Clardy made May 25 at 2015 6:11 PM

1LT William Clardy — Mon, 25 May 2015 18:11:22 -0400

We can never win a War on Terror while we still allow our fears to justify the surrender of our liberties and responsibilities as citizens, CH (MAJ) William Beaver.

Response by LCDR Private RallyPoint Member made May 25 at 2015 6:17 PM

LCDR Private RallyPoint Member — Mon, 25 May 2015 18:17:44 -0400

Never. The idea itself of winning a war against st an ideology is flawed and stupid. We need to recoup, rethink, and redeploy forces with an objective that actually makes sense and is at least theoretically possible.

Response by SSG Kevin McCulley made May 25 at 2015 6:29 PM

SSG Kevin McCulley — Mon, 25 May 2015 18:29:53 -0400

When liberalism is destroyed.. not one moment before. Victory is impossible otherwise. Victory in any war is impossible as long as liberalism holds sway. Even if you manage to overcome it the next one that comes along will undo it.

Response by CPT Aaron Kletzing made May 25 at 2015 6:57 PM

CPT Aaron Kletzing — Mon, 25 May 2015 18:57:15 -0400

I won't say never...but it won't happen in my lifetime

Response by SrA Daniel Hunter made May 25 at 2015 7:03 PM

SrA Daniel Hunter — Mon, 25 May 2015 19:03:24 -0400

CH (MAJ) William Beaver With a different approach maybe. As Sgt Aaron Kennedy, MS points out, we are fighting an ideology. Frankly I think this battle is better suited to the CIA rather than the military. The only way to change that ideology is through means that likely violate the Geneva Conventions. We would have to deceive the enemy into believing the Mahdi had come and that he issued a fatwa for them to lay down their arms.

Response by Maj Private RallyPoint Member made May 25 at 2015 7:08 PM

Maj Private RallyPoint Member — Mon, 25 May 2015 19:08:23 -0400

My understanding is that a principle of war is to have an attainable objective, which implies that objective can be defined. How would one go about permanently eradicating terrorism, killing all the terrorists? Such zero-sum thinking is asinine.

Response by LTC Yinon Weiss made May 25 at 2015 7:23 PM

LTC Yinon Weiss — Mon, 25 May 2015 19:23:09 -0400

This may be a news flash for some people, but US military stopped fighting a "War on Terror" several years ago. The term is not used by any politicians in charge, and it's not used in any military planning or operations. It is simply no longer a relevant term in military operations... which is a positive change, since I agree with many others here that declaring a war against a tactic is not an effective way to win. It would be similar to declaring a war on ambushes. How can you win a war against a tactic?

"We must define our effort not as a boundless 'Global War on Terror', but rather as a series of persistent, targeted efforts to dismantle specific networks of violent extremists that threaten America." - President Obama

http://www.usnews.com/news/articles/2013/05/23/obama-global-war-on-terror-is-over

Response by PO2 Skip Kirkwood made May 25 at 2015 7:37 PM

PO2 Skip Kirkwood — Mon, 25 May 2015 19:37:20 -0400

As general as the question is, probably never. There always have been, and probably always will be, groups that use terror tactics to further whatever their political ends may be. IRA terror attacks, Islamist terror attacks, drug cartel terror attacks. Classic "whack a mole" - while we are fighting one, another one pops up somewhere else. With a different ideology, different reasons, similar tactics.

Perhaps if we ever grow a spine, and make a national policy decision to flat out eradicate any group that uses terror as a weapon against the USA.

Response by SPC Jan Allbright, M.Sc., R.S. made May 25 at 2015 8:12 PM

SPC Jan Allbright, M.Sc., R.S. — Mon, 25 May 2015 20:12:41 -0400

What are the victory conditions?

Response by MAJ Ken Landgren made May 25 at 2015 9:41 PM

MAJ Ken Landgren — Mon, 25 May 2015 21:41:16 -0400

Not completely. There is too much hate.

Response by PO2 Josh Rymer made May 25 at 2015 10:46 PM

PO2 Josh Rymer — Mon, 25 May 2015 22:46:36 -0400

All the wars that we are in right now are not wars to help the collective, that are wars to oppress the collective. And then they set us against each other. The rich against the poor, the black vs white, the people who belive they have a right to put what they want to in their own body vs the people who think they have the right to tell people what they can put in their body the American vs the terrorist etc.. All it is, is a game to the government to let sheepole vote and pass and elect people that have already been selected against the true will of the people. Just look at all these wars, who are the people who are responsible for starting them? The federal government. If you can't tell by now I don't trust the government. From nsa spying to the NDAA to forced unaffordable non health care to department of homeland insecurity. Just the thought that homeland security is "nessacery", get under my skin. The 2nd amendment is the original homeland security. This is the civilian national force that is just as strong just as well funded that obama was talking about. In the words of Benjiman Franklin "those who give up liberty for security deserve neither and lose both"

Response by SGT Private RallyPoint Member made May 25 at 2015 11:40 PM

SGT Private RallyPoint Member — Mon, 25 May 2015 23:40:10 -0400

CH (MAJ) William Beaver, the final cost of this war will be too many lives lost over a war that has been going on since Adam and Eve.

Response by TSgt Kenneth Ellis made May 25 at 2015 11:45 PM

TSgt Kenneth Ellis — Mon, 25 May 2015 23:45:06 -0400

Not as long as Muslims worship death more then they do life.

Response by SGT Jeremiah B. made May 26 at 2015 12:01 AM

SGT Jeremiah B. — Tue, 26 May 2015 00:01:39 -0400

I don't think the "war on terror" or even the fight against Islamic Extremism is fixable militarily. We know enormous amounts about what breed it through decades of working in developing nations. Bombs don't fix the root causes of extremism. They exacerbate them.

So yeah, knocking out terrorist networks is doable and necessary, but the broader strategy has to be economic and social. The only way to end the endless stream of terror recruits is to make other alternatives more appealing.

Response by Cpl Jeff N. made May 26 at 2015 6:41 AM

Cpl Jeff N. — Tue, 26 May 2015 06:41:29 -0400

I think it was originally explalined as being a multi-genarational war. Granted, you do not have a war against an idea but the idea resides in certain places and in certain groups. We chose initiallty that Iraq and Afghanistan were places those ideas rested and went after them there. We have since expanded into places like Syria, Libya, Yemen and others.

Our largest misconception appears to be that the folks in that region actually wanted freedom and liberty. Some do but not enough of them are willing to get after it. They had the best chance in their recent history of attaining it and have done little to secure it.

We have to stay after the groups and nations that harbor them. ISIS is their natural reaction to our strategy. They are creating their own nation state (caliphate) out of the smoldering embers of Syria and Iraq. They seem to have few nations that will willingly harbor thier brand of murder and terror so they have to create one.

This is an asymetric enemy that is morphing and changing their strategems and tactics but their idealogy is the same and rotten to the core. They have to be killed, either there or here when they arrive. I prefer there.

Response by SrA Edward Vong made May 26 at 2015 9:16 AM

SrA Edward Vong — Tue, 26 May 2015 09:16:26 -0400

The "War on Terror" may have ended already, however the security and defense against terrorism will be ongoing as long as there are enemies upon us.

Response by SPC John Decker made May 26 at 2015 12:45 PM

SPC John Decker — Tue, 26 May 2015 12:45:59 -0400

The answer to the first question will give the other answers. In my opinion, we will realize victory when we let the Generals and other military people design and implement the tactics and strategy we use. When the politicians shut the hell up and let the military do what the military knows how to do.

Response by MAJ Ken Landgren made May 26 at 2015 1:56 PM

MAJ Ken Landgren — Tue, 26 May 2015 13:56:16 -0400

Successful insurgencies have peer sized forces. We need to kill most of them. How stable the country will be depends on their military, people, and government.

Response by 2LT Private RallyPoint Member made May 29 at 2015 2:35 PM

2LT Private RallyPoint Member — Fri, 29 May 2015 14:35:46 -0400

I remember GEN Dempsey saying that the WOT will end when the people who believe in the current radical ideologies die out. In like 30 years.

Response by SSG Dave Johnston made Sep 24 at 2017 3:02 PM

SSG Dave Johnston — Sun, 24 Sep 2017 15:02:05 -0400

Terrorist do this:
http://mideastweb.org/osamabinladen1.htm
https://www.theatlantic.com/…/2…/08/twenty-years-war/496736/
https://www.theatlantic.com/…/2…/08/twenty-years-war/496736/
…an this…
http://www.september11news.com/
http://www.history.com/topics/9-11-attacks
Congress declares War on Terror/Terrorist, 18 Sept 2001:
https://www.gpo.gov/…/pkg/PLAW-107pu…/pdf/PLAW-107publ40.pdf
ISIS does this:
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/…/The-enemy-Nearly-SEVENTY-arres…
http://www.newsweek.com/how-isis-smuggles-terrorists-among-…
http://thehill.com/…/262316-isis-has-targeted-refugee-progr…
http://www.naturalnews.com/052242_refugee_program_ISIS_USA_…
President D.J. Trump does the following to safeguard America:
https://www.whitehouse.gov/…/executive-order-protecting-nat…
https://www.federalregister.gov/…/protecting-the-nation-fro…
The left and the courts react by:
https://www.cbsnews.com/…/hawaii-judge-blocks-trumps-new-t…/
https://www.usatoday.com/…/report-federal-judge-r…/97466178/
http://www.breitbart.com/…/several-states-sue-trump-over-n…/
http://www.breitbart.com/…/several-states-sue-trump-over-n…/
http://nypost.com/…/judges-blocks-trumps-second-immigratio…/
http://www.cnn.com/…/virginia-federal-judge-revi…/index.html
18 U.S.C. 2381:
Whoever, owing allegiance to the United States, levies war against them or adheres to their enemies, giving them aid and comfort within the United States or elsewhere, is guilty of treason and shall suffer death, or shall be imprisoned not less than five years and fined under this title but not less than $10,000; and shall be incapable of holding any office under the United States.
(June 25, 1948, ch. 645, 62 Stat. 807; Pub. L. 103–322, title XXXIII, § 330016(2)(J), Sept. 13, 1994, 108 Stat. 2148.)
http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/bdquery/L…
Article III Section 3 clause 1&2:
Treason against the United States, shall consist only in levying War against them, or in adhering to their Enemies, giving them Aid and Comfort. No Person shall be convicted of Treason unless on the Testimony of two Witnesses to the same overt Act, or on Confession in open Court.
The Congress shall have Power to declare the Punishment of Treason, but no Attainder of Treason shall work Corruption of Blood, or Forfeiture except during the Life of the Person attainted
You decide.

Osama Bin Laden - Fatwa- Background and Declaration of War against the Americans Ocupying the two...

Osama Bin Laden - Background, Fatwahs and Declaration of War against the Americans Ocupying the two Holy Places