COLLAPSING ECONOMIES A BIGGER THREAT THAN AL QAEDA

Anyone who has taken any of my courses that deal with international relations and security issues will not be surprised by this statement:

... the U.S. intelligence community now says the failing global economy is a bigger threat to U.S. security than al Qaeda or the spread of weapons of mass destruction ...

It turns out that while we are still bogged down by two wars the Director of National Intelligence, Dennis C. Blair, who is also a retired Navy admiral, told Congress that "the longer it takes for the recovery to begin, the greater the likelihood of serious damage to U.S. strategic interests."

How does this happen? Real simple.

People who have no money, no jobs, and no hope become discontent with their lot in life. If there are no options, scapegoating begins. They look for convenient targets to cast blame for their predicament. Political extremism and race-baiting are not far behind. The darkness of despair breeds contempt and panic. People begin to doubt what they thought they knew and search for answers. Demagogues and emotionally bankrupt tyrants know how to play on these fears. It doesn't take a genius to figure out how this story has ended in other countries ...


It's really that simple.

- Mark