On the eve of the anniversary of Sept. 11, 2001, students and professors alike piled in to Jerome Greene Hall to hear Philip Bobbitt, Herbert Wechsler Professor of Jurisprudence, offer his uniquely interdisciplinary approach to considering the current war on terror.
With an American era coming to an end, and the country’s next leader arriving on campus later today, Bobbitt’s talk on whether it is possible to fight a war on terror could hardly be more poignant. Discussing the contrasts between the American approach to and perception of terrorism, Bobbitt highlighted ways in which American misunderstanding has led us down a long and dangerous road and, potentially, a dead end.
Introduced as the “Renaissance man of the Law School” by fellow law professor Richard Gardner, Bobbitt began his talk—entitled “Can We Combat International Terrorism Consistently with International Law, the US Constitution and American Values”—by introducing his subject with “Poem for the End of the Century” by Czeslaw Milosz. He used Milosz’s words to launch into the theme of unrest and problems of the future.
Bobbitt then focused his talk on misconceived notions about terrorism, asking the room to reflect on how pervasive the ideas are. “Is there anyone in this room who doesn’t hold at least one [of these]?”
Bobbitt argued that nation-states still dominate our concept of warfare, though in the case of terrorism, increasingly smaller groups are ready for action. “It is nonsense that we cannot fight a war on terror,” he said, arguing that we need to alter our military approach.
Terrorism, Bobbitt says, does not fit into the narrow molds of “20th-century nation-state culture,” because nation-states are “more devolved [and] decentralized.”
“When we think of war, we think of vast armies, tank battles, large carriers ... long-range weapons ... but warfare itself is changing.” Bobbitt warned. “Even victory will change ... we think of pretty girls kissed, sailors throwing hats in the air ... [but] winning a war is the achievement of the war aim.”
Bobbitt also discussed how terrorist groups like al-Qaeda outsource their dealings to old-style groups, complicating the issue of how to think of combating terror.
“Tomorrow is a terrible anniversary” admitted Bobbitt, adding that this country had been tested, disclosing that he did not know what the future held, except to point out “but this we can say—we will all be tested again.”
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