Categories
Perspectives

Terrorism and life

As we sift through the carnage and horror of last Friday’s terrorist attacks in Paris we are already seeing the ugly underside that humans all too frequently exhibit.  Republican candidate Donald Trump calls for American mosques to be closed.  Other presidential hopefuls, and several state governors, have stated that will stop Syrian refugees from being […]

Categories
Perspectives

What do we really know about what happened in Paris?

We live in an age of instant information.  This is largely a good thing.   We can learn about what is happening  around the world almost instantaneously.  What used to take weeks or months to come to our attention now takes minutes.  That is a very good thing when it comes to human tragedy.  Earthquakes, […]

Categories
Perspectives

Lessons from France – part 3

A few days ago I stood overlooking what was no-man’s land outside the little town of Auchonvillers in the Somme department of Picardie.  In a battle that became known as Beaumont-Hamel, the morning of July 1, 1916 saw the slaughter of most of the Newfoundland Regiment (it later received the title “Royal”): of the 780 […]

Categories
Perspectives

Lessons from France – part 1

In the wake of the attacks in Paris on November 13, we have already seen a wide variety of responses on what this all means and what do we do now.  French President Hollande has called the barbarity an act of war and vowed a crushing reply to the Islamic State.  We shall see what […]

Categories
Perspectives

Brothers in arms?

Last week I was asked to speak at the Canadian Military Intelligence Association annual conference in Ottawa. The speakers’ list included the Canadian National Security Advisor (and former Director of CSIS) Richard Fadden and Chief of Defence Staff General Vance. The day was well attended by members of the Canadian intelligence community. On the tables […]

Categories
Perspectives

Two countries, two elections, same tactic, two outcomes

I have already blogged about the use of fear by the governing Conservatives in the most recent Canadian federal election.  Voters were showered with warnings that the Islamic State was everywhere (and may be coming to a bedroom near you) and that only by returning Mr, Harper and his crew would Canadians truly be safe. […]

The Threat From Within

Recognizing Al Qaeda-Inspired radicalization and terrorism in the West This textbook examines what drives Al Qaeda-inspired radicalization to violence, how to detect it, and how to confront it. The chapters discuss behaviors and ideologies that are observable and tangible in radicalized individuals or those on the path to violent radicalization. These behaviors are drawn from […]

Categories
Perspectives

Terrorist back scratching

When we study and analyse terrorist groups, we tend to look at them in categories – Islamist, right-wing, nationalist, single issue, etc. – rather than as a whole. True, eminent scholars such as David Rappoport have written magisterial works that examine multiple terrorist strands across time, but the current trend is to put boundaries around […]

Categories
Perspectives

Mr. Harper and national security – a report card

Now that Stephen Harper is an ex prime minister, we can be sure to see dozens of articles on his legacy as our leader (in fact, they started to appear hours after he lost the October 19 election).  Depending on your political stripe, he is either a great PM or one of the worst.  There […]

Categories
Perspectives

Narrative and the defeat of IS

If there is one thing that terrorist groups like the Islamic State are good at doing, it is getting their message out.  Videos, blogs, tweets, online magazines like Dabiq,  photos and other social media promote the group’s goals, strike fear in the hearts of many and at the same time draw Westerners and others to […]