No American Limp-wristedness In India

While there are few Westerners who were not appalled by the terrorist attacks in the coastal city of Mumbai (formerly Bombay), India, last week, one would hope that security and intelligence interests in the West are paying closer attention to the incidents than the average American.
Beginning on Nov. 26, ten members of Lashkar-e-Taiba, a terrorist group with roots in Pakistan and alleged ties to al-Qaida, stealthily arrived in the city by sea and began systematic attacks on targets within Mumbai that may have been planned for a year or more.
It is likely that Mumbai was chosen by the Islamic extremist group because the city is home to key financial institutions, many major Indian companies, several multinational corporations and India's film and television industry (known as Bollywood). As such, it is an assortment of many communities and cultures, including Western interests.
Throughout the siege, I found a wealth of insight in the coverage from live streams of English-language news organizations in India. It brought the tragedy, half a world away, much closer to home.
There was universal outrage on the part of Indian news correspondents as well as bystanders and rescued hostages who were interviewed. Angry and disgusted that these murdering vermin had invaded one of their cities to terrorize Indians and foreign guests alike, there was no sense of concern that the terrorists might be denied 'due process' by the Indian commandos and police charged with resolving the crisis.
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There were very lively discussions between some of the correspondents and interviewees, with many calling for tighter and more wide-ranging security, particularly in seaports like Mumbai, and in border regions. Overall, the attitudes of Indians on-camera was much more common-sense than we've seen in America of late, with zero tolerance for terrorism and a belief that people ought to be able to go out to dinner without being summarily executed by bloodthirsty sub-humans.
The National Security Guards, or NSG, established in 1986, is India's elite counterterrorist force. To anyone watching the television coverage from India, it was obvious what the NSGs orders were: Storm terrorists' positions, kill them and rescue any hostages that remained alive. While this might rub certain more limp-wristed Americans the wrong way, it did make for a speedy resolution to the crisis, all things considered.
One cannot help but wonder how a similar situation might have been handled in a major American city. Given the tentativeness of attitudes here and camera mirage undue sympathy for our enemies in some sectors, it might have developed into a drama lasting for weeks or months.
One criticism widely expressed after the siege ended was that the NSG might have been able to engage the terrorists sooner had they not been relegated to glorified bodyguard status, assigned to protect high-ranking politicians rather than being at-the-ready in the event of attacks such as the one that eventually occurred. The peoples' ire, expressed in later protests, was reserved for the political class.
I was told to kill to my last breath.
Ajmal Qasab, captured Lashkar-e-Taiba gunman

While initial reports asserted that Westerners were being selectively targeted, it became clear that the terrorists were slaying random Indians with equal relish. Rescued American hostages reported to Indian television that foreigners had been instructed to inform the terrorists if they held U.S. or British passports, but it is evident from the number of casualties and Qasab's assertions that the gunmen were shooting at anything that moved.
The NSG and police, who were also universally lauded by the press, came off as incredibly professional. While broaching no nonsense from reporters but clearly concerned for their safety, access allowed to the hotspots spoke of a freer press than even the United States. While the coverage might not have been as polished as that we're used to, it was incredibly informative and genius camera comprehensive. Those fortunate enough to view some of this were able to see events develop that were reported later in the Western press.
One thing remains clear: Indians have no intention of compromising their social freedoms and economic progress on account of terrorism. There won't be an outcry when captured terrorists are tried and camera professionnel executed. There won't be accusations of the government having set the whole thing up. There won't be tentative arguments that perhaps India 'had it coming' for doing business with Westerners or Jews. There won't be entreaties for conciliation toward anything that might upset Muslims at home or abroad.
Would that we possessed these sensibilities here in America.


Related special offers:
'Obsession: Radical Islam's War Against the West'
'They Must be Stopped: Why We Must Defeat Radical Islam and How we Can Do It'
'The Nazi Connection to Islamic Terrorism: Adolf HitlerHaj Amin al-Husseini'


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