Preventing future terrorism Harry Browne
How can we prevent future terrorist attacks?
The first step is a foreign policy that rests on a simple
principle:
We're prepared to defend ourselves, but we threaten no one.
Such a foreign policy should have four elements:
1. Non-interference
Our government should never interfere in other countries'
disputes, never arm foreign governments and never give terrorists a reason to
pressure our government.
The idea that our government acts to defend human rights
around the world is absurd. It replaces democratically elected governments with
dictators like the Shah of Iran or Augusto Pinochet. And it rarely comes close
to achieving any of its goals. Too often, Americans have fought and died for
nothing.
Any American who wants to fight for – or send money to – a
foreign government or revolutionary movement should be free to do so (even
though that's currently illegal). But our government should stay out of such
conflicts.
When the U.S. no longer imposes its way on foreign people,
those people will have no reason to fear us or hate us.
2. No foreign aid or military assistance
The Constitution doesn't authorize our government to use your
money to support foreign governments.
It's not only unconstitutional, it's unfair. As Fred Smith has
pointed out, foreign aid taxes poor people in rich countries for the benefit of
rich people in poor countries.
And by giving tons of money and military hardware to Israel's
enemies, the politicians can say we have to give massive aid to Israel to keep
it from being destroyed.
Every American should be free to send money or weapons to any
government anywhere. But you shouldn't be taxed for that purpose.
Without our government arming dictators, the dictators'
subjects would have no reason to hate us or fear us.
3. Security against attack
If the world's bad people want to conquer America, they'd have
to pulverize American cities until we submit to being occupied.
In 1983 Ronald Reagan said America should protect itself
against missile attacks. Unfortunately, he gave the job to the Department of
Defense – which is really the Post Office in fatigues.
And so, 18 years later, we're no closer to being protected
than we were in 1983.
We should rely as little as possible on politics and
bureaucracy to achieve anything. The government should simply post a reward –
say, $25 billion – to go to the first private company that produces a
functioning, fool-proof missile defense. We'd probably have it within five
years.
Will that make us 100 percent secure? Of course not. Nothing
will.
But it will make us far safer than we are today. And it will
eliminate a principal excuse for meddling in other countries' affairs, so that
foreign people have no reason to hate us or fear us.
4. Target the aggressors, not the innocent
Even with a missile defense, America could be threatened by a
foreign ruler.
But a Libertarian president would target the aggressor himself
– not his innocent subjects.
He would warn the ruler that an actual attack against the U.S.
would trigger the posting of a reward of, say, $100 million for the person who
kills the ruler. Everyone would be eligible to collect the reward – including
the ruler's guards and wives.
This response would spare both innocent foreigners and
Americans. Only those who try for the reward would be at risk. Americans
wouldn't fight and die invading a foreign country.
If you believe assassination is an unsavory act, what's the
alternative – killing thousands of people?
Once we stop bullying innocent foreigners, they will have no
reason to hate us or fear us.
Peace for all time
These policies will produce a strong national defense –
instead of the strong national offense we now have. And terrorists will have no
reason to attack us.
Then we must find a way to permanently stop politicians from
playing with loaded weapons.
Here's a start – a proposed Peace Amendment to the
Constitution:
Except in time of war as declared by Congress, the United
States will deploy no military personnel or weapons outside the boundaries of
the United States; will not provide money, military equipment or other resources
to foreign governments; and will not attack any foreign power. Upon any
violation of this article, Congress will immediately institute impeachment
proceedings against the president.
If such an amendment had been enforced over the past 55 years,
it would have:
Prevented the deaths of almost 100,000 American military personnel; Saved each American family thousands of dollars in foreign aid
– most of which went into the pockets of foreign dictators;
Saved a trillion dollars in unnecessary military costs; and
Allowed people around the world to like us for what we are,
instead of hating us because of our government's meddling.
And it's 99 percent probable that the Sept. 11 attack would not have occurred. This constitutional amendment is the only kind of gun control
that truly makes sense.
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