Once we would have sought out terrorists like Al Zarqawi and disposed of them.  This ex drug runner is the worst active terrorist around right now.  An evil animal who must be stopped.  They need to draw him out, let it be known that westerners consider him a 'coward' who hasn't the guts to come out and fight, show him dressed in women's garb, allude to his diminished manhood, make him angry, he will make a mistake.  Bingo.  But where is James Bond when you need him most?

 

Unfortunately the liberal leftist elements in both the US and here have successfully minimised the power and effectiveness of organisations like the CIA and MI's 5 and 6.

 

After Vietnam the anti-war movement was ascendant and forced huge cuts in the CIA and other 'national security' budgets.  These were accelerated even further after the Ollie North revelations in the mid 80's.  (I have photos of unmarked (but US) helicopters refuelling at Belize on their way down to southern Central America).

 

Defence cuts in the UK were also instrumental in significantly downsizing our own security agencies throughout the 70's and 80's too.

 

Big mistakes.  The human 'listening networks' built up over decades have been lost forever and it is going to take a long time to replace these important intelligence assets.  Satellites and hi-tech can't do what the (well paid) informer on the street can.

 

If we still had these assets, people like Zarqawi and Laden would have been captured long ago, if not made to disappear before they had the chance to become notorious.

 

Bring back the good old Cold War days when the world was a much safer place!!

 

Jeff Bull