Hijack

A plane is hijacked with terrorists aboard and they are demanding the release of several convicted criminals in custody and I am faced with a decision on how my nation should respond. There are basic moral principles involved with the personnel and their family members. On the other hand, giving into the these demands will show them that we do have a weakness. With the way that the world is today, I would decide to ignore the terrorists’ demands. Why would I come to this decision? Would moral thoughts affect my overall decision? What is my country’s actual policy on terror?

When it comes to my own beliefs and morals, I firmly believe in preserving all human life. I do not believe that all violence is necessary but like I said, in today’s world, you have to make strong and touch decisions. Some might believe that losing one hundred passengers is better than several thousands. Down the road if terrorists, meaning Islamic "Extremists", truly believe that by causing harm to the Americans and losing their lives for a more rewarding after life, then there is nothing or no one who can stop them. I, myself, just retired from the military so I have been informed about the U.S Counter terrorism polices. I have to say for this country to protect itself with these policies like making no concessions to terrorists and striking no deals have to be up held. In today’s world, it is not like World War I and II where we were up against specific foes where we had a pretty good idea of what it would take to achieve this task. This war in Iraq is totally different. In simple terms, we are fighting in the middle of a civil war in which we are getting shot at by both sides. I believe that if we pulled out completely right now, it would be a catastrophe and be a safe haven for the terrorists that we are discussing right now. The United States Government believes that paying ransom or making other concessions to the terrorists in exchange for the release of hostages increases the danger that others will be taken. Its policy therefore rejects all demands for ransom, prisoner exchanges, and deals with terrorists in exchange for the release of hostages. At the same time, it will make every effort, including contact with representatives of the captors, to obtain the release of the hostages.

So, after all is said and done, maybe because of the eight years in the Air Force and being deployed to places like Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Pakistan, and South Korea, I tend to support my commander and chief.