Terror – a believed or real threat?
Ever since 9/11 – Denmark has been waiting for Terror to strike here. Denmark is a small country, and we are totally convinced that everyone wants to either be a part or destroy this fantastic country. We have the best recipe for meatballs, our danish (both the pastry and the language) is second-to-none… and a perfect target for mean terrorists to strike fear into the international heart.
We rushed to the defense of America and all the American values when they went to war against Iraque. For a short period of time, we are the police, the truth, the right-doers when everyone is frozen in terror. Okay, so we may have interpreted some of the facts a little to rightously… but the important thing was that we reacted! We did something… right?
For obvious reasons, we are now among the filthy three – the three countries that opposed the terrorist threat by going to war. And we are now a prime target for terrorist acts… uhm, or so we think. Of course if we begin to look at it with rational arguments… Denmark might not exactly be a prime target… we are too small, we have no great historical buildings or landmarks… okay, we have the Little Mermaid… standing about 4 feet tall, but she has been decapacitated too many times for me to keep track. But terrorists aren’t rational! They are mean people that do random crazy stuff to make us afraid…
Wait a minute… you are telling me that the terrorists of 9/11 didn’t know what they were doing? That the terrorists in the English Subway didn’t know what they were doing? My bet is that they knew exactly what they were doing. They planned it methodically, they selected really good targets and they carried out the attack with the precision of a well-oiled machine. They made sure to make the headlines all over the world. I believe it’s a part of a grander scheme – the terrorists carrying out these targets may not know the grand scheme, but they act without error and with deadly accuracy.
And I’m sorry to say – I don’t really think Denmark is on the top-20 list of prime targets. Much to the dismay of our national pride, Denmark has never really managed to make it’s mark on the map… some think Denmark is the capital of Sweden for goodness sake. Some will say that they know famous Danes… why yes, one of them was even in Lord of the Rings! Even in one of the leading roles… but still… It would be about the same as attacking one of the outlying farms long outside to the castle-walls in medieval times to strike fear into the heart of the lord of the castle… it’s in-efficient, it’s a waste of ressources.
And if there is one thing terrorists are, it’s efficient. With few means and only a handfull of people, they manage to do what even the most sofisticated units in the united armies cannot.
So, I’ll go back to sipping my tea and otherwise carry on with what I was doing before it happened. Of course, someone may decide that my small apartment or the local bus is a prime target, but then I’ll explode in ignorant bliss, and that’s not at all a bad way to go.