Kerry hits on solution to ending war on terrorism.

This is a very long read…regarding our endless war ...And how we could end it soon if we ever walk our talk. 

The obvious need for the global rule of law and enforcement of human rights…for preventing the root causes of terrorism.

I’ve highlighted many paragraphs that are quotable.  My comments are in brackets where I though a whiff of reality was needed.

From: U.S. Department of State [mailto:usstatebpa@subscriptions.fcg.gov]
Sent: Friday, January 23, 2015 3:10 PM
To: chuck@igc.org
Subject: Secretary's Remarks: Remarks at the World Economic Forum

Remarks at the World Economic Forum  John Kerry. Secretary of State Davos, Switzerland          January 23, 2015 SECRETARY KERRY: Good afternoon, everybody. Klaus, thank you very, very much for not just a very generous introduction, but thank you for your extraordinary leadership here for so many years. I have enjoyed taking part and coming here for a great one-stop shop, and I thank you for this institution. And before I begin, I want to take a moment to say how I think all of us were saddened to hear the news that King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia had died. I am here today to talk about countering violent extremism, and King Abdullah had a long history of being a brave partner with us and with the world in his work, not just in counterterrorism, but in his work on interfaith understanding. I remember as a young senator meeting with him and listening to him and being encouraged by his commitment to putting together an interfaith conference and efforts to bring people together to create better understanding. And he saw that as a tool against extremism, and recently through his very strong endorsements of the anti-Daesh coalition in Jeddah, which has been a key to building the broad coalition that we have today, he’s made a special contribution. I was privileged to spend many hours with the king as a senator and particularly over the last two years. I saw him two months ago; he was obviously not well, but he was courageous, a great sense of humor even in the midst of all the crises. And the people of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and we will miss his wisdom, his partnership, and his friendship. I also listened carefully to the introduction of – by Klaus, and he indicated to me privately in the room just before we came out here that there’s obviously much on all of your minds. It is a moment of turmoil, a moment of upheaval – the world in transition. I, nevertheless, remain very optimistic about the possibilities. And I’ll share a few thoughts about that today. But we have to understand what we’re facing. Six weeks ago, a 14-year-old Nigerian girl was discovered in a crowded marketplace in Kano. She had explosives strapped to her body. But unlike a pair of companions, she had refused to pull the tab, saving herself and others. Two weeks later, a teenage boy approached a Shiite mosque in Baghdad. And unbuttoning his jacket, he told the guards, “I’m wearing a suicide vest, but I don’t want to blow myself up.” Last November, a young man defected from al-Shabaab because he was no longer wanting any part of it – as he put it, “a bunch of heavily-armed sociopathic militants.” He said they promised him money, a bungalow, and paradise. And instead, he said, “I had no life, no family, no future.” Well, ladies and gentlemen, those three examples represent just about the basic – most basic choice there is: between death and life, between destroying and building. And it ought to be an easy choice. And yet in Nigeria last month, a Boko Haram video showed thugs shooting defenseless people on the ground, with the narrator saying, “From now on, killing, slaughtering, destruction, and bombings will be our religious duty.” On December 16th in Peshawar, Pakistan, authorities intercepted a radio message between a gunman and his boss. Quote: “We have killed all the children in the auditorium. What do we do next?” The answer: “Wait for the army to arrive. Kill them, then blow yourself up.” A few weeks earlier, before pulling out of a town in Somalia, al-Shabaab buried a young woman up to her neck, and then they smashed her head with rocks. In Syria and Iraq, Daesh sells little girls into slavery. And it seems like every day I’m asked by people, “What makes someone decide to do some of these things? Why does someone decide to join a group like Daesh? Why would anyone leave their home and loved ones to fight for such a collection of monsters?” Well, the fact is there are a lot of explanations. Some say it’s because of long-held cultural grievances – a sense that a person’s creed or clan is under attack or has been disrespected or treated unjustly. Many point to the inclination to see the world in black and white terms and believe that they alone possess the truth. Others are lured by basic, material considerations – the promise of regular meals, a paycheck, the chance to plunder and loot. And then there are the mundane and personal choices: to escape boredom, go where the action is; be lured by a false sense of success; perhaps trade anonymity for notoriety, at least for a few hours, on the internet. In many cases, it’s almost certainly a combination of these inputs. But one thing is clear: If we’re going to successfully combat violent extremism, we better understand all of the factors, because we can’t change minds without knowing what’s in them. And we have to do so mindful of the fact that understanding and acceptance are not the same. When I was in Pakistan last week and I had intended to go out to the school to pay tribute to those kids and their families but we were unable to fly because of the weather, Pakistani officials instead showed me time-stamped photos of the sequence of the military school’s assembly hall before and after the December 16th assault. And at first, I looked and I saw this picture of an auditorium with school kids all dressed in their smart uniforms, sitting there attentive, their faces filled with the joy of listening and watching. And minutes later, the scene changed horribly from a learning center into a killing chamber. There was blood everywhere, broken eyeglasses, scattered textbooks, torn jackets, small lifeless bodies piled on each other, sprawled across a chair on the floor. And on that day, the school’s principal, having already been escorted to safety, returned to try and save her students. And when she was challenged by the assassins, she pointed to the children saying: “I am their mother.” Her last words. So let me be clear: There are no grounds of history, religion, ideology, grievance, psychology, politics, economic disadvantage, or personal ambition that will ever justify the murder of children, the kidnapping and the rape of teenage girls, or the slaughter of unarmed civilians, whether for ideology or for some false religious assertion – none. [unless we declare war…then such deaths as collateral damage is acceptable.]  And no matter the input – (applause). (Inaudible). (Laughter.) No matter the input, this kind of atrocity can really never be rationalized; these kinds of actions can never be excused; and they have to be opposed with every fiber of our being. They have to be stopped. [Even if we have to wage war to do it?] And while obviously there are many international priorities that demand our attention, I never imagined the number of simultaneous crises that we might possibly be able to face, which we are [NOT], by the way, I believe, managing far more effectively – Ukraine, other things – than people are prone to automatically see. But we can’t shy away from this reality that terror networks in some places are operating with near impunity, and imminent danger in others, and a potential threat everywhere. And a few of these networks, such as Daesh and Boko Haram, are attempting to govern land. That’s a first-time event in this transition to these terror groups. And they’re looking to expand. And greatly adding to the risk of the so-called – are the so-called lone wolves and copy cats. And it seems that terrorists are now competing with each other for recruits and perpetrating evermore macabre crimes. [wait until they get their hands on nukes, biological weapons, drones, cyber skills, or genetically targetable viruses…] Now need I remind you the 20th century was defined by the civilized world’s struggle to develop the rule of law as an alternative to chaos, disorder, and dictatorship. [because the primary US organization that was doing it -- gave it up after 9-11].  And today we are witnessing nothing more than a form of criminal anarchy, a nihilism which illegitimately claims an ideological and religious foundation.  [But instead of dealing with them as criminals, we decided to wage war against them giving them a warrior status].   Against this enemy, we are increasingly organizing and fighting back, but in doing so we have to also keep our heads. Obviously, the biggest error that we could make would be to blame Muslims collectively for crimes not committed by Muslims alone – crimes that the overwhelming majority of Muslims oppose, crimes that their faith utterly rejects, and that Muslim leaders themselves have the greatest ability to address.  [But waging war unfortunately may result in the deaths of some of those Muslims as Collateral damage.  Sorry!  Our bad.  Couldn’t be avoided without risking more of our own lives.] Religions don’t require adherence to raze villages and blow up people. [War does that for them]. It’s individuals with a distorted and an even ignorant interpretation of religion [and the rule of law] who do that, abetted by networks [and nations with volunteer armies] of individuals who have a different agenda and who incite and finance those actions. And we will certainly not defeat our foes by vilifying potential partners [Iran, Pakistan, Israel,…] or by suppressing the very freedoms that terrorists try to destroy. Unless we direct our energies in the right direction, we may very well fuel the very fires that we want to put out. [as we have done so far by waging war instead of law.] So what should we do? [Try something different than war?] Well, the first step is to make clear that the civilized world will not cower in the face of this violence. Violent extremism has claimed lives in every corner of the globe, and Muslim lives most of all. We are each threatened, regardless of faith, ethnicity, homeland, or tribe, and so it is imperative that we each – all of us – respond. There’s no room for sectarian division; there’s no room for anti-Semitism or Islamophobia; and no way forward except to demonstrate to the terrorists that every time they try to divide us, they strengthen our resolve. Like the million souls that last week spoke with a single voice in the streets of Paris, we must act as one. And the place to begin is quite simply by defeating Daesh. [With war. ] Why? Because they are better armed, better trained, better funded, and have been more able to hold onto territory than any other terrorist group in history; because they directly threaten the peace and stability not of one group in Iraq, but of every single country in the region; and because they have further overtly threatened to take their threat around the globe and are working to do so. [Because we just aren’t willing to commit to the global rule of law just yet]. This is a threat to the entire structure that we have worked so hard to put in place since the end of World War II. [where national sovereignty reigns supreme over human rights].   It’s a threat to nation-states. [It’s not such a serious problem threatening poor people in Africa, Iraq, Syria or Palestine.] It is a threat to rule of law. [Because some nations like ours just refuse to give up the right to wage war when our special interests are at stake.]  And freeing Iraq from its ruthless occupiers is the critical, crucial first turning point. [in preserving our access to cheap oil]. Now just four months ago, Daesh was trumpeting plans for seizing Baghdad. To many, they seemed unstoppable. You remember those days only a few days ago? Some media reports frantically predicting that Iraq might fall and Daesh was about the drag the entire Middle East back into the Dark Ages. But then two things happened, and not by accident. In Iraq, a new government was assembled that is intent on reform. Iraqis themselves came together, determined to move to a different future, determined to earn the confidence of all of their citizens. [at least I dreamed these things]  And you just heard from Prime Minister Abadi who we met with yesterday in London. And second, we forged together – all of us – an international coalition, 60-plus members strong now, with a mandate to disrupt, degrade, and ultimately defeat Daesh. [via war] President Obama and the United States are proud to say we’re deeply involved in leading both of those developments, but we acted in partnership every step of the way with our Arab friends, European allies, [military industrial complex] and others from across the globe [who continue to believe that war is the path to peace]. And since September, our coalition has pursued a carefully crafted, comprehensive strategy to weaken Daesh on multiple fronts. We have launched some 2,000 air strikes, disrupted Daesh’s command structure, undermined its propaganda, squeezed its financing, damaged its supply networks, dispersed personnel, forced them to change tactics. [Someday we hope to do the things that will kill their ideology but right now we prefer waging war that only feeds it]. Today in much of Iraq, Daesh’s momentum has dissipated. [as they regroup, wait for more recruits and new weapons].  And with coalition support, Iraqi forces have retaken Mosul and Haditha dams. They have retaken territory near the city of Tikrit. And in Syria, Daesh has seen its command facilities attacked, its oil infrastructure damaged, and its siege of Kobani blocked. No large Daesh unit can [overtly] move forward aggressively without worrying what will come down from the skies now. And progress also continues in the political arena. Yesterday at this coalition meeting we held in Paris, Iraqi Prime Minister Abadi described the steps that his team is taking – I know he described some of them to you today – to bring the country together. Reform efforts have been launched in the judicial and other sectors. After years of delay, Baghdad and the Kurdish region have finally reached an accord on oil. The Iraqi Army is becoming more inclusive and professional. Iraq is strengthening ties to its neighbors, who are reciprocating with open arms and helping hands – yet another warning sign for Daesh. But yes, we need to be cautious – and we are. Even while the changes are taking place in Iraq – and those changes are unmistakable – they are not yet irreversible. And there is much yet to be done. And even though we have slowed Daesh’s momentum and pushed it back in some areas, we’re not satisfied yet with the pace of our progress. And General John Allen and his team are visiting regularly. We’re starting training in a matter of days at three additional sites and we are already training in Iraq itself and it is making a difference. But to succeed, the Iraqi Government must enhance and expedite its outreach to Sunni communities, the coalition must remain united, and the world must see Daesh for what it is, not for what it claims to be. Daesh pretends to be presiding over a paradise for Muslims, [as we pretend to be supporting the global rule of law] the self-declared new caliphate [vs our self-declared coalition]. But in fact, the areas under its control are languishing. [as our is in Yemen, Syria, Nigeria, Egypt, Iran, Lebanon…] In many places, there are shortages of clean water and insufficient supplies of food and medicine. [but we ignore most of them unless they are in oil rich areas]   In Mosul, militants have seen their pay slashed by 75 percent. Fighters trying to defect have been executed. Children are forced to witness and even participate in the torture of prisoners. [Even worse torture than we do]  Teenagers have been crucified. All of which emphasizes the degree to which Daesh is guilty of shamelessly deceptive advertising: [unlike our capitalist corporations]  the advertising about its path to paradise, like that promised by al-Qaida, Boko Haram, al-Shabaab and similar groups, is in fact a road to nowhere [just like unregulated capitalism]. But our challenge, the one I want to talk about today, is in fact bigger than just Daesh. And I want to talk about it with this audience because all of you are opinion leaders and all of you need to help make choices in order to do what we need to do to turn the corner. In the weeks to come, we have to not only continue moving ahead with urgency to eliminate Daesh as a threat to international security, but we also have to strengthen Somalia, intensify our effort to defend [defeat?] violence in Nigeria, which I will go to in a couple of days, and strike at the tentacles of al-Qaida in Yemen, [before they own the country] the Maghreb, and wherever else they appear [unless they are in the US…then we wage law…not war]. There is nowhere that you can leave as an ungoverned space with this crowd, and believe me, there is nothing to negotiate. [just like on Capitol Hill in the US].  These are the front line battles I’ve just listed, and they require that we not waver in our solidarity or our courage [unless American lives are at risk]. Eliminating the terrorists who confront us today actually only solves part of the problem. We have to do more to avoid an endless cycle of violent extremism, a resupplying on a constant basis. We have to transform the very environment from which these movements emerge. [That’s where the enforcement of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights’ can help…and we are at least thinking about it]  And that’s why we are committed to enlarging our strategy in ways that respond effectively to the underlying causes, as well as the visible symptoms of violent extremism. That’s why we’re developing an approach that extends far beyond the short term, and which cannot be limited to the Middle East or to any other region. We need – all of us – to take these steps so that a decade or two in the future, when the economic forum meets and you hear from leaders, they’re not standing up here responding to a new list of acronyms to the same concept, but different players. We cannot have our successors come back here to face the same questions and the same challenge. The terror groups may have those different acronyms in the future and they may be targeting different countries, but if we don’t do what is required now, then I guarantee you the fundamental conflict will either stay the same or get worse. As my counterparts in the Gulf states and North Africa have told me over and over again in graphic anecdotes – and by the way, in South Central Asia and in East Asia and elsewhere – they tell me that the terrorist leaders are planning for the long term. They tell me about how they grab these young kids, pay them a little bit, get into their heads, then they don’t have to pay them. Then they become the acolytes and they go out because they’re brainwashing the very young. They are creating networks flexible enough to survive even after commanders are eliminated and operational centers are crushed. And they see themselves as ready to fight to the death. So let me tell you in response, we need a commitment for the long term. We have to take more risks. [with your soldiers] We have to invest more resources. [in our military because foreign aid is considered humanitarian rat hole filler] We need a global partnership that legitimately implements this broader strategy, and that is why President Obama is hosting a summit in Washington at the White House on the 18th of February in order to exchange ideas and galvanize support for what is needed on the road ahead.  [its unfortunate CGS is in such a quandary regarding their survival and fearful of saying what really needs to be said]. Now inevitably there will be, yes, a military component to the strategy. [Can we limit it to swat teams capturing suspects for trial and killing ONLY those who resist?] You have to be ready to defend yourself and take the fight to wanton killers of innocent people who give no quarter. As President Obama emphasized last May in his speech at West Point, we must – and we will – work constantly to improve the counterterrorism capabilities of our local partners. But ultimately, this fight is not going to be decided on the battlefield. The outcome is going to be determined in classrooms, work places, houses of worship, community centers, urban street corners, in the perceptions and the thoughts of individuals, and the ways in which those perceptions are created. It will be determined by our success in creating prosperity that is widely shared. Measures of growing GDP will only matter if they translate into greater opportunity for those currently denied a fair chance. Just go back and look at the story of that Tunisian fruit vendor who started what happened in Tunisia when he got slapped around by the police and rebelled against the corruption and felt he had nowhere else to go but self-immolation. This future will be determined by accountable and accessible political and justice systems, so that people everywhere feel they can be protected by the government – not fear it – and that they can express themselves and have their voices heard. In short, we have to do a better job of creating alternatives to violent extremism – alternatives that are as credible, as visible, as empowering, and broadly available as we can make them. Start with the basic issue of governance – obviously not the most exciting topic, and no one’s going to spend millions of dollars to make a movie about the delivery of social services or tax policy or judicial reform, and the effectiveness of a parliament. [Ask David Lionel…he can do it for a small price] But exciting or not, we have learned the hard way that ungoverned or barely governed spaces on the world map are an open door to chaos and to disorder that breeds terrorism. Chaos in Afghanistan [after Charlie Wilson’s war and US congressional refusal to fund education there] created an opening for the Taliban which, in turn, provided a home to al-Qaida. In Somalia, [after we bugged out of there after losing about two dozen soldiers] anarchy provided a vacuum that al-Shabaab tried to fill. In Nigeria, Boko Haram has taken advantage of the government’s inability to secure its territory and provide for its people. In Syria, Daesh wouldn’t exist if a so-called president wasn’t respected – was respected instead of reviled; if he wasn’t attracting terrorists for the purpose of his removal. In the Central African Republic, the government was too weak to prevent horrible violence between Christian and Muslim gangs. In Libya, Ansar al-Sharia is both a product of the government’s demise and a cause of it. And in Yemen, governance has been challenged by an al-Qaida-affiliated terrorist organization that has launched attacks inside and outside of the country, by a secessionist movement in the south, and most recently by a rebel group in the north that has now spread across the country and challenged the sovereignty of the entire state. [That’s where we draw the line.  Protecting that sovereignty…but only if the nation is on our side.] And to understand better how this vicious cycle is perpetuated, let me offer an illustration. A few weeks ago, one of my assistant secretaries shared with me a conversation that he had with members of a minority group in a country that has been hard hit by terror. The diplomat asked their opinion of the extremists and they all expressed disgust. They all wanted them gone. But when asked whether they would report a terrorist recruiter to the police, every single one of them said no, because they were afraid the terrorist would bribe his way out of prison and come back and kill them. They worried, as well, that they would be arrested and also therefore forced to pay bribes. For them, silence seemed the only choice. And for us, it should be obvious: that circle of paralysis is destructive and dangerous. [even in our own legislative process and unlimited financing of campaigns.] The hard truth is that too many people in too many places see themselves as trapped in a world where, as they told my assistant secretary, “The terrorists bully us; the police rob us; the government ignores us; and the West doesn’t see us or wants to kill us.” Now whether or not these perceptions are accurate, they exist – and that is a challenge for all of us [but we are grand at ignoring such challenges as long as we can keep our national sovereignty]. Despite the huge investments that we have made in fighting terrorism militarily and [the pittance] through law enforcement, we need to do more to prevent the list of embattled countries from growing. We should begin by identifying the zones of greatest vulnerability, the places that have not yet descended into chaos – places where governing institutions are weak, grievances are few, and the potential for terrorist infiltration is high. [like on the Moon or Mars?]   These may be near current hot spots [the Sun], the Horn of Africa, segments of the Swahili coast, the area around Lake Chad, and certain parts of the greater Middle East or parts of south central – there are plenty of places to identify. And we then need to tailor our efforts to meet the specific needs that we have identified. [cause we really don’t care what the real needs are.  That might cost too much money] For example, teach minority groups in their own language; train young people in marketable skills; prevent radicalization inside prison walls; encourage police and judicial systems to actually treat people fairly [except in Ferguson MO]; and address the feelings of alienation and exclusion. And given the scope of the challenge, a few modest programs here and there obviously are not going to get the job done by themselves. And quite frankly, government resources alone will not be enough. [Because we are already tapped out spending on old people and new weapons systems]. We all know that massive private funding goes to the extremist groups. [like the Tea Party and the Wall Street traders]. In one of our significant lines of effort – we have about nine, five to nine major lines of effort that we are working on in our coalition strategy. One of them is stopping the financing [of terrorists…not US political campaigns]; one is stopping the foreign fighters [if they are threatening US troops]; one is obviously the military efforts [in every country]; another is humanitarian [when we have spare change]. But one of them, significantly, is to do the work of countering these extremist groups – enlisting mullahs, imams, clerics, grand muftis, people all around the world to come together and to speak out as the grand mufti of Saudi Arabia did recently when he said that Daesh is an order of Satan. That’s what the street has to hear, and that’s what we need to work at. But we need to put resources into helping to build the enterprises that can counter these extremists. And using many of the same mechanisms that we use to deal now with global challenges like disease and famine, Ebola, AIDS, poverty – we need to start funneling more into the fight against violent extremism and the organizations that are leading this effort. The bottom line is we need everyone involved – governments, foundations, philanthropists, NGOs, corporations, faith leaders, the private sector. And that’s what we’re going to talk about at the White House on February 18th. But our collective security, and through it – I mean, this collective security is not divorced from everything that every single one of you is trying to do, because the collective security brings you the stability that allows our economies to grow and to flourish, that allows innovation to take place and education to take place. And what we have to do is recognize that we have to bring this together into a holistic strategy, and it depends on all of us stepping up to deal with it. No one is divorced from this. So let me tell you, historically – this is important – when we have believed we need to do something, we found the money. We did it. We found the resolve. We made things happen. Almost 75 years ago – we’ll celebrate the 70th anniversary of the end of World War II – when the United States and our allies made stopping fascism a priority, we found the $3.6 trillion to pay for it. In the decade-plus since we went to war in Iraq, we found the several trillion to pay for it, too. And let me just note: Imagine the difference it would have made if instead of spending trillions on a war we didn’t have to fight, we had invested that money in one that we do have to.[like a symbolic war against waging war]. Just yesterday, the European Central Bank announced they have plans to purchase more than a trillion dollars’ worth of public and private sector bonds as stimulus. They perceived a clear need to combat inflation and stagnation, and so they found the money. Leader after leader in country after country has said that fighting the scourge of violent extremism is a global priority. Well, let’s prove it. We have to get serious about investing in the things that really make a difference. And make no mistake: If we don’t make those investments today, we will pay far more for it down the road. As extremists assert their reign of terror wider and broader, more violently, remember the stakes. In recent years, the Taliban attacked more than 1,000 schools, denying people education. Is that the future? Are we content to allow that to happen somewhere? Does that make a difference to all of us, or doesn’t it? Boko Haram’s principal tactics are to butcher teachers, kill boys, and kidnap girls. In all of the areas under its control, Daesh has shut down classrooms, entire societies have been disrupted – countless opportunities lost for young men and women who deserve the chance to pursue their dreams. Just imagine what the threat level would be and what life would be like if we do not choose to do what is required of us now. Pakistan’s Malala, who was shot in a school bus, says that her most ardent wish is for the children of her attackers – boys and girls – to get a real education. And one of the major sources of hope in Afghanistan today is that millions of girls who once were denied schooling – in 2001, when we went in, there were about less than a million kids in school in Afghanistan, and almost none of them girls – today, there are more than 7 million and about 40, 45 percent of them are girls. But still there exists a large and growing gap between the multiple of people entering the workforce and the availability of jobs in key regions. Already, the global youth unemployment rate is at a record level, above 12 percent on average, but much higher in developing lands and in near-failing states. In some countries – and I hate to say this, but including in Europe – as many as 60 percent of young people are both out of school and without regular jobs. Each one of these men and women, my friends, is a story that will end either in frustration or opportunity. And the outcome of the race between hope denied and hope fulfilled will be one of the most significant factors to shape the world that we will live in and that our children will inherit. So we need to do much more in the areas of vocational education, training in modern technology, ensuring the workforce the participation of women and minorities, and no one here can tell me when you look around the world, much of which is living on less than two dollars and even one dollar a day, that there aren’t schools to be built, roads to be built, hospitals to be developed, and children to be educated. And there is an amazing amount of money to be made and work to be done in the doing of that enterprise. Economists tell us that a 50 percent cut in youth unemployment would increase global economic output by $3 trillion. It would also sharply reduce the pressure on young people to pursue socially destructive options, including terrorism in some cases, and crime. It has now been more than 20 years since the first World Trade Center bombing and more than 13 since 9/11. In the time since, we have seen acts of terrorism from Madrid to Mogadishu, Bali to Boston, London to Mumbai, Algeria to Jerusalem, and many, many points in between. [and we just keep waging war like its finally going to work]. And we have responded with determination [ignorance, stupidity, hardheadedness] and guts. Thousands of military personnel and police from dozens of countries have paid the ultimate sacrifice already in this confrontation [using war]. Intelligence and security officials work around the clock in order to keep us safe. [by eliminating any level of privacy]. In the battle of ideas, President Obama, the late King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia, King Abdullah of Jordan, Pope Francis, Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, Ayatollah Sistani, many others have tried to point the way. Working with international partners we have already taken some important steps, yes. We’ve created a Global Counterterrorism Forum and established a Fund on Community Engagement to develop local solutions. In Abu Dhabi, thanks to the Emiratis, there is an International Center for Excellence in Countering Violent Extremism, and it is engaged in training and dialogue and research. There are many other initiatives. But we have yet to fully implement all of the tools available to us to win this battle.  [The only thing we haven’t tried is the global rule of law putting human rights above national soverighty]. And at the beginning of my remarks, I mentioned two 14 year olds – a Syrian boy and a Nigerian girl – two children who, when faced with the starkest choice imaginable, bravely and thankfully chose life. [too bad we don’t have the courage to choose life and abandon war] It’s pretty simple: [yes.  Go on]  We face choices of our own every day. We can continue along the road [to war and oblivion] that we have been traveling or shift gears onto a path that will demand more from us militarily [in the form of swat teams], politically [in the form of democracy and protection of human rights], economically [investments in human capital], and socially [laws that are just]. We can sit back and we can assure ourselves that somehow it may not touch us – you, wherever you are – that the threat of violent extremism is somehow hopefully containable – you can think that, if you want – or we can go forward with a truly comprehensive and long-term strategy to destroy its very roots. And in the doing so, make far better for far more people in far more places than we are prepared to today. [why didn’t we think of that?] So in making this choice, we might reflect on the claim that some have made in recent years, especially due to events in the Middle East, that the entire international system is somehow unraveling. My own view, my friends, is very different. In the course of my travels, I don’t see an unraveling; I see just the opposite. [cause I have body guards, lifelong pension and health care… and the US military at my back] I see nations working together to negotiate new and far-reaching trade pacts, to bring an end to the Ebola epidemic; to seek a peaceful resolution to the threat posed by Iran’s nuclear program; [we just need to bomb the into submission if the murderious sanctions don’t work] to restore peace based on law in Ukraine and having come together around sanctions and held together and made a difference; to reach an ambitious, global [enforceable] agreement to address climate change with a recent agreement between China and the United States that begins to set the targets to try to make the Paris negotiations this year a success; with efforts to curb the strife that plagues the Central African Republic, Colombia, and the Democratic Republic of Congo and other places. I see countries sharing ideas about the post-2015 Millennium Development Goals, determined to move beyond the impressive gains that we have made already [but never really meet the actual goals]. We are making progress in reducing extreme poverty. We know the tools that work [we just don’t want to fund them], and we’ve learned a lot of those that don’t [but will continue to fund them because they have connections on capital hill]. We’re expanding access to primary education, increasing life expectancies, fighting back against HIV and AIDS, improving maternal health, aiding child nutrition, and growing the middle class in countries that have through history never enjoyed even a glimmer of prosperity. And while I have focused at length purposefully today on the very real threats that violent extremism poses to us, the truth of the matter is that we have faced even more significant threats in the past – and we have prevailed. Statistics show that even with these increased acts of terror, a smaller percentage of people today are dying violent deaths than at any point in modern history. [That could change with one biological weapon or limited nuclear exchange but we feel lucky] But one of the principle reasons we are achieving this progress is because we’ve never been content to settle for the status quo [except for national sovereignty]. We are where we are because we, especially this group here, are builders [of weapons not laws]. We’re the descendants of innovators and doers who survived slavery, plagues, global conflicts, depressions, fascism, totalitarianism, and the Holocaust. We are the inheritors of an activist tradition that is utterly unafraid of great challenges [at influencing government for ourselves] and, in fact, is most effective when we are put to the test. So now, it’s our turn. The rise of violent extremism is a challenge to the nation state and the global rule of law [if it really existed] . And the forces that contribute to it and the dangers that flow from it compel us to prepare and plan, to unite, and to insist that our collective future will be uncompromised by the primitive and paranoid ideas of terrorists, but instead it will be built by the universal values of decency and civility, and knowledge and reason and law. [Someday…we hope]. That is what we stand for. [not what we do or spend money on].  That is where we stand. [and refuse to go no further]. And with the images of Paris and Peshawar fresh in our hearts, no one should doubt that we are going to stand together [and continue to ignore human rights violations in Nigeria, Saudi Arabia, Israel/Palestine, North Korea, Fergeson MO…]. Thank you all very, very much. (Applause.) 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