NationStates Jolt Archive

Terrorists cannot be appeased, but at the same time, in dealing with them, one must avoid counterproductive actions.

Terrorists are kind of like NationStates n00bs. They shout a lot in a very angry, random and incoherent manner, and threaten you with total destruction, and yet when they get down to it, they can't invade even the smallest and weakest of nations. The only nations they can actually invade are ones which in the real world have the equivalent of three weeks of inactivity. All they can do with any other nation is blow up some cars and trash cans and make a nuisance of themselves.

Now, how does one deal with a n00b in NS? You could completely ignore them, or "appease" them by allowing them limited involvement in what you're doing as long as they stay calm and stick to the script, but then they will only mess up your thread. You are not going to want to do that. But there is another even more harmful extreme which I want you to consider.

Suppose you are a massive powerful nation with a postcount in the thousands, a member of several noted alliances and proud owner of some highly respected and profitable storefronts. When you speak, your opinion is listened to by everyone in the forum. Suddenly, one day n00bs attack. Your reaction is to announce a War on N00bs. Your allies obviously tell you that you're being silly, but you flame them, abandon your old alliances and dedicate, for the long term, your entire foreign policy to the task of taking war to the n00bs and their total, lasting elimination. Now obviously your tanks and air force are going to smash their way through their host countries, but of course, they are god-moders, and so the minor detail that their country has been turned into a plain of ashes and glass is not going to make them stay dead and prevent them from making further attacks. They will claim the use of WMD and crack terrorist squads that exist mainly in the mind, while only killing a few thousand people in isolated incidents.

All the while, the rest of the forum will look on and exclaim "OMG LOL, he's actually fighting the n00bs!!!"

And therein lies an important lesson. Terrorists, like n00bs, crave attention, and want you to fight them with everything you've got. If you give them that, you will look like a fool, lose all your friends and they will have won. Everyone else will just shake their heads and mutter "Such a shame, he used to be good. What a tosser."

So how can one deal with n00bs constructively? Simple. Tell them to get bent, in-character rebuild whatever they have destroyed, and most importantly, refuse to be drawn into a long war with them which will only make you look like a total pillock.

Surely there is some way of applying this in real life? Now obviously in real life, there is a difference in that it is real people that have died in the terrorist attack. But one must be prepared to accept some casualties in the normal scheme of things, as the alternative is totally discrediting your nation, and the name of the game is the greater good of your nation, not seeking venegeance for a few people at the expense of your hard-won respect.

Lastly, remember - in real life, as in NationStates, the number of people killed in any given terrorist/n00b attack is much lower than your road accident fatalities for that month. There will always be a constant flow of terrorists/n00bs. You are not going to squander everything for that. Unless you really have lost it.

*claps* Indeed.

Wow, that is a good way of dealing with them!

Great, except you can't just DEAT Al Quaida with a button. :)

Great, except you can't just DEAT Al Quaida with a button. :)
In the real world, there is no Moderator. :wink:

NO! I WILL NEVER BELIVE YOU! THE N00BS MUST DIE!!!!!!!!!111111!!!!!!!

*h0a4ds of n00bz pil3 ov3r A0, az h3 screamz*
NOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Great, except you can't just DEAT Al Quaida with a button. :)
In the real world, there is no Moderator. :wink:

Maybe some nutcase call GW Bush thinks he's one for the world :wink:

i think you should become mod of the world grace. that way you can deat anybody you want. umm, and ban them from speaking publicly and stuff. and if they are reborn you can deat them again. and again.

yep. i have no idea why i just posted that. that was a good read tho TC.

Wow, TG, great!

* applauds, stands, applauds more *

Strange, this sank, and yet it is very relevant to much of the debate going on at present.

*gives a standing ovation*

*Claps* :D

That was great!

Since we are debating terrorism again, it is time to bump this.

Since we are debating terrorism again, it is time to bump this.

grace! you're here!

man its too long i read two post and fell asleep

Since we are debating terrorism again, it is time to bump this.
grace! you're here!
Kernel!!! :D

How have you been?

man its too long i read two post and fell asleep
Sigh. :roll:

Since we are debating terrorism again, it is time to bump this.
grace! you're here!
Kernel!!! :D

How have you been?

i've been doing a series of stick deaths...they're totally awesome.
i've been good, i guess. can't really complain but i probably will anyway.

how you doin', darlin'?

Makes sense; you cannot ever eliminate either group; new ones will keep springing up no matter what you do.

So do you want to spend you life obsessing, or move on?

As George W. Bush said in the state of the union address: "OMFG!!!11 OSAMA HAXXORS!!! I SHOT HIM LIKE MILLION TIMES AND HE DID NOT DYE WTF!~!~!!!~" Maybe HE is a n00b.

i've been doing a series of stick deaths...they're totally awesome.
i've been good, i guess. can't really complain but i probably will anyway.

how you doin', darlin'?
Feel free to complain.

I have been OK, been doing some work, also have a UN Resolution at vote. I think you would like it.

As George W. Bush said in the state of the union address: "OMFG!!!11 OSAMA HAXXORS!!! I SHOT HIM LIKE MILLION TIMES AND HE DID NOT DYE WTF!~!~!!!~" Maybe HE is a n00b.
Yep, I think you might be onto something there.

A year-old nation with thousands of posts, who still n00bs and stat-w*nks.

Lastly, remember - in real life, as in NationStates, the number of people killed in any given terrorist/n00b attack is much lower than your road accident fatalities for that month.

Except, you know, on September 11, 2001.

...

So the point's a bit moot there. But otherwise, I concur.

Bravo!

i've been doing a series of stick deaths...they're totally awesome.
i've been good, i guess. can't really complain but i probably will anyway.

how you doin', darlin'?
Feel free to complain.

I have been OK, been doing some work, also have a UN Resolution at vote. I think you would like it.

would i now? gah...

A fine plan, when you are attacked pat your enemies on the head, tell them "good job" and wait until they do it again. While you go about rebuilding and do nothing more they won't grow more aggressive, more capable or more bold. That's unthinkable. Closing your eyes and ignoring problems always solves them. Just suffer the mass-murders to avoid offending your allies. :roll:

As George W. Bush said in the state of the union address: "OMFG!!!11 OSAMA HAXXORS!!! I SHOT HIM LIKE MILLION TIMES AND HE DID NOT DYE WTF!~!~!!!~" Maybe HE is a n00b.

Well, he's only been in office for like, three days NS time. The US has the pop bug, we should only have 8mil.

A fine plan, when you are attacked pat your enemies on the head, tell them "good job" and wait until they do it again. While you go about rebuilding and do nothing more they won't grow more aggressive, more capable or more bold. That's unthinkable. Closing your eyes and ignoring problems always solves them. Just suffer the mass-murders to avoid offending your allies. :roll:

I'm sure we could deal with (ice) them without all the hoopla and mass hysteria the US is currently throwing out.

A fine plan, when you are attacked pat your enemies on the head, tell them "good job" and wait until they do it again. While you go about rebuilding and do nothing more they won't grow more aggressive, more capable or more bold. That's unthinkable. Closing your eyes and ignoring problems always solves them. Just suffer the mass-murders to avoid offending your allies. :roll:
Like I said, a massive, respected nation squandering its reputation to devote itself to fighting n00bs. Once everyone in the forum is ignoring you, you're stuffed, and pride gets you nowhere.

man its too long i read two post and fell asleep
Sigh. :roll:
well its true :wink:

This is a mutual appreciation society thread, so I'm not gonna get involved. :P

A fine plan, when you are attacked pat your enemies on the head, tell them "good job" and wait until they do it again. While you go about rebuilding and do nothing more they won't grow more aggressive, more capable or more bold. That's unthinkable. Closing your eyes and ignoring problems always solves them. Just suffer the mass-murders to avoid offending your allies. :roll:
Like I said, a massive, respected nation squandering its reputation to devote itself to fighting n00bs. Once everyone in the forum is ignoring you, you're stuffed, and pride gets you nowhere.

Perehaps, pride is bad.(Although I am not wholely conviced) What about self-preservation? I don't know how some people have failed to notice the prevalent and dangerous shift in terrorists tactics. These aren't our fathers terrorists. Incedents of terrorism are no longer cases of a few radicals smuggling weapons onto planes, hijacking them and holding the passengers and crew hostage and making demands that noone is going to meet. Now, the attacks are more random, more destructive, preceeded by no demands, have wide-spread acceptance in the Muslim community, occuring more often and more deadly. If ignored, how long until terrorists are killing thousands routinely? Or millions, perhaps billions with biological weapons? I'm not sure what is the right thing to do, but I don't think ignoring it is the answer.

A fine plan, when you are attacked pat your enemies on the head, tell them "good job" and wait until they do it again. While you go about rebuilding and do nothing more they won't grow more aggressive, more capable or more bold. That's unthinkable. Closing your eyes and ignoring problems always solves them. Just suffer the mass-murders to avoid offending your allies. :roll:
Like I said, a massive, respected nation squandering its reputation to devote itself to fighting n00bs. Once everyone in the forum is ignoring you, you're stuffed, and pride gets you nowhere.

Woah, wait, we respect him?

Now, the attacks . . . have wide-spread acceptance in the Muslim community.
Um, no. I live in an almost entirely Muslim part of my city. I am the ethnic minority, hehe. And you should have seen how they partied when Saddam Hussein got caught. I cannot imagine from where you are getting your impressions.

And I never said terrorism should be ignored, on the contrary, you should re-read my topic post. But I did say that a long war and telling allies to p*ss off would make you look stupid, and looking at America's efforts today, it has made that mistake.

Arrr, perpetual warfar be good clean fun, lubbers!

O' course it cost us an eye an' a leg...small price ta pay fer battle an' booty!

Now, the attacks . . . have wide-spread acceptance in the Muslim community.
Um, no. I live in an almost entirely Muslim part of my city. I am the ethnic minority, hehe. And you should have seen how they partied when Saddam Hussein got caught. I cannot imagine from where you are getting your impressions.

And I never said terrorism should be ignored, on the contrary, you should re-read my topic post. But I did say that a long war and telling allies to p*ss off would make you look stupid, and looking at America's efforts today, it has made that mistake.

From a poll by the Pew Instsitute. The question was something like "Do you condone suicide attacks against the enemies of Islam?". It was asked only to Muslim respondants and ,with the execption of Lebanon, in nations that are not overwhelmingly Islamic, the question was not allowed to be asked in Egypt. In Lebanon, 80% approved of them. Everywhere else, it was slightly more or slightly less than than half. How many do you think would have approved in nations where Islam is the official state religion and all other religions are out-lawed? I'd guess much like Lebanon's 80%. So. yes wide-spread support. Chearing the ousting of Saddam is not a condemnation of terrorism.

A note: the poll was taken in early 2002, before a single shot was fired in the latest war in Iraq. So, blaming Bush hardly seems fitting, either.

The question was something like "Do you condone suicide attacks against the enemies of Islam?".
Loaded question, mentioning "enemies of Islam"! They should have asked something neutral, like the West, or maybe specific countries such as America, Israel, etc. The affirmative response rate would have dropped. Posing the question like that seems like a deliberate attempt to skew the findings, unless the Pew Institute people have in all seriousness forgotten their undergrad politics stuff.

It's like the difference between "Is it right to bomb Nation X?" and "Is it right to strike back?" You get the answer you ask for.

The question was something like "Do you condone suicide attacks against the enemies of Islam?".
Loaded question, mentioning "enemies of Islam"! They should have asked something neutral, like the West, or maybe specific countries such as America, Israel, etc. The affirmative response rate would have dropped. Posing the question like that seems like a deliberate attempt to skew the findings, unless the Pew Institute people have in all seriousness forgotten their undergrad politics stuff.

It's like the difference between "Is it right to bomb Nation X?" and "Is it right to strike back?" You get the answer you ask for.

To those who approve of suicide attacks aren't all non-Muslim the enemies of Islam?

To those who approve of suicide attacks aren't all non-Muslim the enemies of Islam?
Not necessarily. That's a ridiculous assumption. It is perfectly possible to approve of suicide attacks against Jews and Americans, and yet not have any particular animousity towards anyone else just because they are not Muslim. People cannot be put into boxes like that. There are many complex shades of opinion out there.

To those who approve of suicide attacks aren't all non-Muslim the enemies of Islam?
Not necessarily. That's a ridiculous assumption. It is perfectly possible to approve of suicide attacks against Jews and Americans, and yet not have any particular animousity towards anyone else just because they are not Muslim. People cannot be put into boxes like that. There are many complex shades of opinion out there.

Certainly, extremists are known for thier discernment and choosing thier targets carefully. Bali, Istanbul, Madirid and other such attacks on Americans and Israelis prove that.

The question was something like "Do you condone suicide attacks against the enemies of Islam?".
Loaded question, mentioning "enemies of Islam"! They should have asked something neutral, like the West, or maybe specific countries such as America, Israel, etc. The affirmative response rate would have dropped. Posing the question like that seems like a deliberate attempt to skew the findings, unless the Pew Institute people have in all seriousness forgotten their undergrad politics stuff.

It's like the difference between "Is it right to bomb Nation X?" and "Is it right to strike back?" You get the answer you ask for.

To those who approve of suicide attacks aren't all non-Muslim the enemies of Islam?
It is possible to feel that a cause is worth dying for without considering all non-Muslims enemies of Islam... even for Muslims.