Eldon-Online

Targets Of Terror - A Global Issue

Not for the first, or sadly even the second time in my Blogs do I repeat the phrase ... "coming to a city near you".

Attacks on innocent people - as in Barcelona and Cambrils - just cannot continue. Who gives these people the "right" to take other peoples lives? And in this case it came a little too close to home as very good friends were but 100m away from the Ramblas incident, and other friends just a little further. It was by chance they escaped any harm. And listen - it's not going to stop any time soon. Police and security services around the world stand very little chance of catching every little worm that creeps underground with the intent of doing harm to people - and believing that if they die in the process then they go to heaven, or whatever they call it. They want to destroy people - any people and if Muslims also get caught by this murderous intent, then the terrorists don't care. They also want to destroy places of worship - other than Mosques of course. Why? What is it that drives them?

Of course there are probably many simplistic reasons that we can all think of ... it is attractive to people from a rotten lifestyle with no hope of betterment, or no jobs through lack of education and the promise of a better life as promised to them by a person more educated than they are. Someone with the gift of persuasion.

And let's be frank, we have heard persuasive orators before. Hitler was one, as was the odious cult leader Jim Jones who led many people to their deaths. But if we are talking persuasion - and although I could not and would not put him in the same category as the other two but merely use him as a example - look how successful evangelists were; Billy Graham for example, although he preached love and forgiveness - not death and destruction. But persuasive none the less.

Does anyone have the solution? Long term education should be one possibility, but how long does that take to bear fruit - and who checks the content of the "education" anyway? In a rather novel twist I noted the other day an initiative being taken in Egypt where a group of Imams have established an "Advice Centre" on one of the cities Metro stations. It is they say "A means whereby they try to distinguish between the Islam twisted by extremist groups and the true meaning. It's hard" they say "as the extremists quote Koranic verses out of context. They manipulate it". It's a brave attempt and I wonder both how successful it will be and how long it lasts. But it's a tiny step. Look at the origins of this latest terrorist group, Moroccans - certainly not the first place in the world you would have looked, so terror spreads its wings.

Belief is a strange thing. I would much prefer to have things proved to me, which I don't think makes me a whole lot different from many other people, but if you can be persuaded to believe in something or in someone, I see there is an attraction. Christians have a strong belief in the teachings of Jesus, as do the followers of Islam. But unless I have totally misunderstood those teachings there is nowhere I can find that specifically suggests you need to seek out the destruction of human beings and property. If that had been the belief over the centuries, then the world would be in a dreadful state (okay - an even worse state!). This latest spate of terrorist attacks in general, and now lone wolf or small cell attacks is therefore generally new. And if it is new then there must be an opportunity to stop it by getting the right people to speak out against it. For respected leaders of a religion to condemn what is happening. To say that this is not the teaching of the Koran - but they need to do so now before it is too late. Parents need to be alert to the behaviour of their children and recognise that if they let their children go astray it will grown, to the detriment of the world.

Does the USA believe that these car attacks will not happen on their soil? I wouldn't count on it - and I wouldn't wish it on them either in the same way that I just hope it will stop, or our future generations are going to grow up in a very miserable world where Muslim communities will become isolated ... or worse, and fear will walk every street.

We must not allow that to happen ... we need a solution, now!

It Really Is Just a Numbers Game

I used to think it was only older people who developed a fixation with numbers - in particular focusing on age, with this thinking now being developed to even further degrees as the latest "miracle" drug or cure shows promise. The "fix" becomes even more pronounced as we are encouraged, at any age, to read the numbers on the packet of anything you have picked up off the supermarket shelf to see if it has too much sugar or salt or not enough meat.

But this age thing, in particular, is a worry on a number of counts. I have been surprised recently at the number of people who have become seriously worried, depressed even, at the prospect of turning 40. I am not knocking it - you can get depressed by whatever number you like, but 40 is still young. You still have - given a fair wind, decent health, reasonable genes, no world war or a road accident - over half your life to go. I have to say, turning 40 certainly didn't phase me - neither did 50 nor 60 although I confess to getting somewhat skittish at 70. But I wasn't about to bury my head in my hands and give up, say it was the end, and please bring my armchair and some slippers while I waited for the grim reaper. Particularly in my case where my hobbies (non-existent in the conventional sense) have revolved solely around being a part of the world at large, as my active interest in sport slowly succumbed to muscle tears and strains, and ultimately gave way to disinterest because I wasn't involved anymore. But that said I do have some ideas about what to do with my future time :-)

I read last week about the amount of discomfort being expressed in some quarters because the pensionable age is rising in Britain to 66-67. The protesters were saying that they had worked hard all their lives and it wasn't fair that they now had to wait longer until they retired and were able to take a break. So let's try and put that into perspective. When pensions were first introduced by Bismarck towards the end of the 19th Century, when the majority of our forbears worked until they were carried out feet first in a box if they hadn't been caught up in a war, and life expectancy was in the low 50s, it was decided that people who made it to 60 and were still working should actually be entitled to be looked after by others and allowed to stop working. I understand that if we applied that principle to today, where longevity in the developed world is well into the 70s - and with the developments in medical science probably making it a good deal higher, then we should probably only allow people a pension when they reach 105!!

But look, it is what it is. The media are fully of advertisements extolling the latest means of living longer and longer. This involves it seems exercise in various degrees of vigour, with which I do agree, but depending on the particular week you are in, it extols the virtue of a particular product that has been described as a miracle towards living longer, but which is found two weeks later to be the complete opposite. And on that subject I was only reading today about a miracle cure for cancer that nearly killed the user!!

Really, we are blessed by being given an opportunity to live - and yes, I agree some are more blessed than others by virtue of where they are born and to whom. And if we can stop Messrs, Trump, Kim, ISIS and Al Qaeda from waging war on the world at large we stand a reasonable chance of living longer. And does the body become more frail? Yup. Do our brains become less active? - Well ... maybe. In some cases yes, but in the case of our bodies and our brains there are things we can do to assist. Miracle foods? Supplements you take daily? The latest exercise craze? For me - moderation is a word that comes to mind. In just about everything. You look at what gets served in restaurants these days in the developed world - portions that are too large. We are eating because it is there - not because we need it. Everything we do, should be done in moderation although I do confess to having trouble finding a suitable definition from time to time.

But stressed about age? Is there a great deal of point in doing so? Every day when you wake up you should expect to get through it and to make the most of it, at whatever age you are. Even if you have been dealt a rough set of cards - make the most of them. Be brave and look forward. Add the two numbers of your age together. If you are 65, think of yourself as being 11. Wasn't that a good time? Re-live it, and live for the day.

Who's Bluffing Who?

"I don't know", as Teresa Norton used to say in her newspaper column some years ago, "maybe I'm nuts", but am I the only person in the world who has no real idea what is happening in this war of words between the USA and North Korea? Everyone has a "view", but I'm not sure on what such views are based.

I was always told that if you make threats, there comes a time when you have to carry them out or be seen as weak.

So, the USA is saying to the young, inexperienced despotic leader of a country that still believes it is at war "Do something like that again - and we will destroy you". Meanwhile, the young leader who either possibly believes he's finished anyway, or who is totally convinced of his infallibility and therefore can't lose, continues to push. He doesn't carry out precisely his earlier threat but comes somewhat close. What does the USA do then; send yet another warning, or act? Or, does he keep us waiting by saying - okay "I'm good to go - but not yet" - as he just seems to have done. Perhaps as a result of getting out of bed on the right side this morning - but then we have the next day.

This "game" of brinksmanship is becoming dangerous for the whole of mankind. I do not want to even think about who is going to blink first because unless there is a peaceful settlement I see this ending in tears all round. In the case of North Korea the deaths of many totally innocent but brainwashed, undernourished, ill-educated people who have no idea what truth looks like. Collateral damage may well spread to South Korea, given the proximity of the North Korea border to Seoul, or fallout could affect China and Japan. This will set wheels in motion that could be almost impossible to stop.

And the irritating thing about it all is that we - that is you and I - can do nothing about it. How comfortable does that make you feel?

It seems there will be many in America who applaud President Trump's "tough" stand, and say that anything the USA does is only in defence of its borders and safety. Okay, I get that - but how is it that the President is saying one thing, openly and publicly, thereby provoking an open challenge to someone who doesn't really care and who is clearly enjoying the attention, while the President's closest advisors seem to be saying "the best solution is a political one, and that is what we need to achieve". The rest of the world, it would appear, is in agreement with the sentiments expressed by the advisors. One man tweeting threats, versus a few billion people who think there is something wrong with that methodology. A President, let us not forget, who has only just and under pressure, read from a script a statement condemning the white supremacists in the USA.

There is no doubt a huge amount of complexity here - there always has been as far as North Korea is concerned. As I said, the North still believes it is at war and that while the Korean war ended for the rest of the world in 1953 this was not reflected by the North. A political or economic solution whereby the South absorbs the North (a la Germany - East/West) is not feasible - the South could not afford it for a start, but even if there was a cooperation agreement between the North and the South, Japan would become very nervous because if there is anything on which the "Koreas" agree it is a burning sense of ill-will towards the Japanese. (I was going to write hatred - I am not sure today if that is still so prevalent). But it has surely not gone unnoticed that Japan has significantly increased its defence spending. Then if the USA were to somehow take control of North Korea - not something would appeal to the Chinese at all - you would have a situation where US troops could be camped on China's border - which would not be tolerated.

There are no easy answers. Think for a moment about the psyche of North Korea's leader. A man who with no compunction has had his brother killed, his closest uncle killed - and who does not really bother about what the world thinks. In the opposite corner you have someone who - from a relatively safe distance, depending on whether the reports of North Korea's nuclear capability are accurate or not (remember, only one agency has so far reported this to be fact) who is prepared to make threats which, if not supported by actions, are going to indicate weakness.

If North Korea backs down fully - and at this stage it looks like a very big if - I suggest it will almost certainly be because China has done something positive. Of course President Trump will claim credit for "forcing China's hand" even though China has been concerned for a very long time about the behaviour of North Korea but have acted behind the scenes.

Call my bluff, a long running series on British radio, was described as a duel of words and wit. In this particular global version there's plenty of words and zero wit. This is a more ruthless version where rather than getting points you will be counting success by bodies.