It was a good week for Counterterrorism as a topic

MORE CONTENT, LESS 'GREAT MAN' OF POLITICS / 'GREAT DEFENDER'

The International Center for Terrorism Studies at the Potomac Institute for Policy Studies held a conference that was available via C-span (unfortunately it is not available for replay..arg!).

US Politicians are behind - far behind. This likely has to do with the wrong conceptual footing that was the gambit of the haplessly phrased "War on Terror" that has infected domestic politics since. As with any journey, if your first steps are in the wrong direction, it takes double the time and effort to re-do them.

Whatever the case, one can hardly imagine a US Senator today giving the kind of far-reaching and perspicacious speech given by The Honorable Gustavo Manuel de Aristegui y San Roman (Member of the Spanish Parliament and Spokesman in the Foreign Affairs Parliamentary Commission for the Popular Party). I haven't been able to find a transcript, but all we'd need is a few good Senators with this breadth of comprehension to get back on track.

Such speeches and comprehension start to pave the way for a transition from 'brain storming' about counterterrorism to crystallizing some worthwhile public diplomacy (I mean, almost anything to replace the "We're gonna win the war" rhetoric might be an improvement).

HOW TO GET THE GROOVE BACK

Brookings offered up a redux of the Politics of National Security. Those who are interested in an in-depth look at how politics-as-usual or politics of the unusual are denying the public interest, the common good, and arguably national security itself can peruse a transcript.