Thanksgiving Text Messages from Captives at Taj Provided More Reasons to Give Thanks

My wife and I were preparing for the arrival of family for our traditional Thanksgiving feast when we were interrupted by an email from her chief of staff, Cathy Hurwit. My wife is Jan Schakowsky, who is a Member of Congress.

Cathy had received an email from the daughter-in-law of two of Jan's constituents, Carol and Ben Mackoff. Carol and Ben had been holed up in their hotel room at the Taj Hotel in Mumbai, India. They had been there for over a day avoiding the terrorist gunmen that still stalked its corridors. Their daughter-in-law knew all of this because Carol had text messaged her details from her darkened room, half a world away. The daughter-in-law wanted Jan to make sure that everything possible was being done to free them.

Jan called the State Department's operations people for a briefing -- and also told them everything she knew. The Mackoff's relatives had already notified the consulate. The Indian Government was making plans to free them.

Then Jan sent a text message to Carol and reassured her that she was in contact with the State Department and would stay in touch with Carol until they were freed. That began a series of text messages that extended until early morning Chicago time.

Carol had seen armed men in the halls through the peep hole in the door. She and her husband had not responded to their knock on the door. They kept the lights off; ate food from the mini-bar and stayed in touch with the outside world -- including CNN -- via text messaging. It was harrowing. At one point they had to put a wet towel under the door to prevent smoke from the hall from seeping in.

At about 10:30 PM our time we got a text message from Carol. It appeared the people a couple of floors up had been rescued. At 2:00 AM we got the most frightening message of the day. "Jan, the final assault has begun. Hearing loud explosions + gun fire. I was told that 1 or 2 terrorists may be holding the same number of hostages. Good news from Oberoi Hotel...100 hostages released." Then nothing for over two hours.

Finally at 4:20 AM: "About to be rescued." And then at 4:54 AM: "Safely rescued by terrific Indian SWAT team." Carol and Ben had proven to be, smart, cool and brave under fire. They had survived what Indians are calling their "9/11."

Three things particularly struck me as we responded to the text messages and watched coverage on CNN.

First, experiencing terrorism -- attacks on innocent civilians -- from the stand point of the victims themselves really drives home in no uncertain terms that it is completely morally repugnant. There are still those who believe that suicide bombings, hostage taking and mass attacks on civilians are acceptable tactics -- that their ends are justified the use of terrorism as a means. Attacks on unarmed civilians by whatever means are never morally acceptable. The world has come to accept the view that the use of biological weapons, nerve gas and nuclear weapons are never acceptable tactics to win a war or resolve human conflict. The same must be true of terrorism in all its forms.

Second, our experience Thursday demonstrated once again how dramatically technology has forced us all into the same neighborhood. As we sat around our Thanksgiving table -- and our warm fireplace in Evanston, Illinois -- we were in frequent contact throughout the evening with people who feared for their lives in a dark hotel room on the other side of the World. At the same time very surreal and very immediate.

Finally, as we watched the pundits talk about this horrific attack, it struck me again how important it is that we are about to have a president that understands the complexities of South Asia, the Muslim world, and what motivates people to commit acts of terror.

We don't yet know for sure the motivations for this extraordinary, low tech -- but highly coordinated -- attack. Early on commentators wondered about connections with Al Queda. While there still may prove to be some "common interest" connection, it is likely that this is a very different brand of terrorist and it is very important that Americans understand the difference.

Al Queda and other apocalyptic Islamist radicals do not have traditional political goals. They are religious extremists. They seek a worldwide religious Caliphate. They are all about the purification of the faith and elimination of apostasy. Bin Laden's narrative focuses on how the "Great Satan" -- the United States - and the West in general -- intends to destroy Islam, and dominate Islamic lands. And it focuses heavily on the degree to which the governments and religious authorities in Muslim nations undercut and dilute the tenants of Muslim fundamentalism.

The War in Iraq and much of Bush's foreign policy has served to legitimate their narrative. It has driven many young Muslims into Bin Laden's hands and his apocalyptic vision.

We will never "convert" or "satisfy" hard core Islamists like those in Al Queda. To defeat them we must certainly destroy their hard core. But most important we must undercut their narrative and provide hope and possibility to millions of Muslim and other Third World young people. That will be the policy of the new Obama administration. That's why Al Queda is so unhappy to have Barack Obama as President.

But the activists who lead the insurrection in Iraq, or those in Hamas or Hezbollah have a different motivation. They do seek political goals. They use suicide bombings and other unacceptable forms of terror to win change of government or conquer territory.

The Mumbai terrorists most likely intended to incite a war between India and Pakistan in the hopes that that war would ultimately lead to Pakistani control over the disputed territory of Kashmir. Their attack was aimed at terrorizing the largest City in India and forcing the Indian Government to precipitously escalate tensions with Pakistan. Their model was less likely to be Osama Bin Laden than Gavrilo Princip, the killer of the Arch Duke Franz Ferdinand whose 1914 assassination in Sarajevo provided the spark that set off World War I. Princip was a member of the Black Hand Movement that wanted Serbia to be independent of the Austo-Hungarian Empire. World War I did indeed produce and independent Serbia.

This form of terrorism uses the same morally unacceptable tactics as those employed by Al Queda. In both cases, America must strongly condemn its use. But our approach to battling the perpetrators of this terror should be very different.

In both cases the world community should help track down and eliminate those who planned and carried out the attack. But to permanently stop the use of terror as a tactic in the disputes in the Middle East, Iraq, and South Asia, the United States should do everything in its power to help settle the underlying political disputes that are at the root of those conflicts.

The last thing that America -- or the World -- needs in South Asia is a shooting war between India and Pakistan -- both nuclear powers. Such a war is exactly what the Mumbai terrorists sought to achieve.

The United States should do everything it can to prevent such a war and reduce tension between India and Pakistan in the short run -- and to help resolve the 61 year old dispute over the status of Kashmir in the longer run.

This Thanksgiving, Jan and I were both very thankful for the safe release of Carol and Ben Mackoff. But we were also thankful that on January 20, our country will once again be led by a President who understands that security in the 21st Century requires that America actively attempt to resolve the conflicts that divide humanity, and that "preemptive war" does nothing but play into hands of those who preach division and hate.

Robert Creamer is a long-time political organizer and strategist, and author of the recent book: Stand Up Straight: How Progressives Can Win, available on Amazon.com.

Comments

[johnfriedrich]

thank you Annis for posting the Raffi link on honoring children, and UN link on rights of a child. if these precepts were made policy, the world would be a much different place. given current state of war, terrorism, violence, climate change, economic meltdown, and needless suffering of impoverished people worldwide, we need the more fundamental, revolution of values represented in these documents.

[J3KSLITT]

I wonder if these senseless attacks on citizens might be a wake-up call that we are ALL in this. I know I tend to ignore the atrocities after a respectable grieving period. I find myself continuing my life as if nothing has changed. These brutal attacks need a response other than temporary outrage and disgust from the citizenry of the world. We need to wake up and stop pretending our present lifestyle is working. Consumerism to the point of trampling a human being to death needs to stop. The media that acts as the drum beat of our society needs to write more responsibly. Overall, care as a core value of humanity needs to be fostered, not fear and greed.

[EngineerBill]

I think that John Kerry was unfairly maligned for many things back in 2004 but the most unfair was his (correct) assertion that terrorism should be handled as a criminal manner. Bush and the Neo-cons rejected this and instead used the war meme. The results of that strategy speak for themselves. Once we treat terrorism as a criminal enterprise we can begin to effectively deal with it. Rolling up these terror cells, getting young men to turn away from being thugs (e.g. Saudi Arabia's program) will eventually solve the problem.
Maybe the Obama administration should try to create something like a South Asian NATO (SATO?) made up of Pakistan, India and Afghanistan. Even historic enemies can unite to fight common a common threat like terrorism.

[BabsfromKansas]

"What difference does it make to the dead, the orphans, and the homeless, whether mad destruction is wrought under the name of totalitarianism or the holy name of liberty or democracy?" - Gandhi

[prudd]

Robert - thanks for the article.

Regarding foreign policy, I agree that Obama is much much better than Bush because he has a much more complex and nuanced understanding of geopolitics. And yet ... there is something insidious and unsettling in your piece. Your conclusion seems to be that America must come and help Afganistan and Pakistan and India - like a big daddy, is it?

I hope that Obama's nuanced understanding can trump your Ameri-centric view and usher in a truly new and truly progressive view: let America listen and perhaps help when asked. And let America understand that religious fanaticism may stem from America's own foreign policy and that to truly help is to begin to address how that policy has helped to create dispossession and poverty and anger and ultimately, violence.

[whitspur]

Very excellent article, from one who had friends on PanAm Flight 103.

You may be interested to know, however, that the word you are seeking is tenet, not tenant.

A tenant is a person who hold a lease.

ten·et
n.
An opinion, doctrine, or principle held as being true by a person or especially by an organization. See Synonyms at doctrine.

[Jay2000]

I do not agree with the following note:

The Mumbai terrorists most likely intended to incite a war between India and Pakistan in the hopes that that war would ultimately lead to Pakistani control over the disputed territory of Kashmir.

The problem is we keep on refusing to recognize the game being played by Pakistan. The military, ISI, Jehadi groups all co-operate and work towards a goal. The goal is to terrorized non-believers (called infidels).

Lashkar-e-Taiba is an organization that is working with Osama Bin Laden on various Islamic causes. They are being accused of doing this despicable act.

I encourage people to look at it.

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/12/01/opinion/01kristol.html

"The Ideologies of South Asian Jihadi Groups," from the April 2005 issue of Current Trends in Islamist Ideology. It"s by the respected journalist and diplomat Husain Haqqani, who, as it happens, is now Pakistan"s ambassador to the United States.

Lashkar-e-Taiba, Haqqani explains, is a jihadi group of Wahhabi persuasion, "backed by Saudi money and protected by Pakistani intelligence services." He notes that "Lashkar-e-Taiba has adopted a maximalist agenda for global jihad." Indeed, the political arm of the group has conveniently published a pamphlet, "Why Are We Waging Jihad?," that lays out all kinds of reasons why the United States, Israel and India are "existential enemies of Islam."

[BlueZoo]

Great column but a bit simplistic in its views. The attack in Mumbai goes far deeper than radical terrorists trying to gain control of Kashmir. The Lashkar-e-Tiibi (LeT) who claim responsibility for Mumbai's horror is filled with thousands of very young Indians and Pakistanis who live in abject poverty. The LeT leaders/masterminds are the religious extremists but these kids who follow them are looking to anyone who give them a reason to rail against their lots in life. The kids are uneducated, many do not get beyond 4th grade in school, and have gone too many nights with empty bellies, watching as family and friends die of malnutrition. While none of this justifies what they do, it does justify it in their minds. Until the world awakens to the fact that poverty and hunger can be great motivation in terrorism, we will continue to see many more Mumbais and for that I despair!

[Jay2000]

This is incorrect. All the 10 terrorists who came to Mumbai and killed mercilessly are all English educated and fluent English speaking young men. All those involved and captured terrorists in India responsible for terror in other incidents seem to be software professionals and university educated radicalized muslim youth. The young men involved in several bombings in London were all Pakistani descent, very well educated and came from middle class. How do you explain this? It is the power of ideology, a radical islamic ideology that tells them to kill all non-believers or infidels as they call.

[johnfriedrich]

Great article Bob! Glad to hear that Carol and Ben survived that harrowing situation. Your analysis and prescriptions are spot on. I agree with MistahCharley's observation that U.S. bombardments of Afghan wedding parties and other killings of civilians has, as you state, "driven many young Muslims into Bin Laden's hands and his apocalyptic vision."

To demonstrate that deep change has come to the United States, the aerial bombardment of wedding parties in Afghanistan and villages in Iraq should be stopped by the Obama Administration. We should lead the world in helping every child to get the healthy food, water, medicine, and education they need to survive and thrive. Such investments in friendship and compassion -- for just a fraction of our bloated military and war budgets -- would win back the hearts and minds of people everywhere, and marginalize terrorists more than any bomb-based, enemy-producing strategy ever will.

I wrote a piece on this theme, titled, "Thanksgiving Prayer for All the Children," published here:
http://www.commondreams.org/view/2008/11/26-9

[annis]

http://www.unhchr.ch/html/menu3/b/25.htm

[annis]

http://www.raffinews.com/child-honouring/covenant-principles

[MamaBird62]

Glad to hear these folks escaped to safety. What a terrible tragedy for Mumbai. I've appreciated your wife's work on investigating Blackwater and other Iraq war contractors. I hope she stays on the case and that with a new administration, we will begin to see some accountability.
Happy holidays to you and yours.

[eveningprim]

thanks for this story- i grew up in evanston illinois and it made me feel the literal closeness of this story even more. indeed, my christmas gift will come on january 20.

[TXfemmom]

Pakistan knows a lot about who the terrorists may be and who may have aided them. They should come clean and make their ISI do the same.

They should alert the United States, the Indians, and the world to the identities and locations, if known, of those who have visited Pakistan or communicated with the militants and terrorists within Pakistan so they can be hindered in their goals within Pakistan and abroad. Pakistan has been a half-hearted ally in the terrorism fight and if they don't wish to be torn asunder by the effects of the terrorism at home and abroad, then they simply must begin to truly cooperate in that regard, at least. Oh, and do something to interrupt the money trail to the terrorists. They, better than anyone know where the skeletons are hidden.

[rugbymom]

Thank you to you and Jan for changing course on your Thanksgiving to help and comfort a couple on the other side of the planet. Someone said recently that privilege means you have the option of changing the channel. You chose to stay with Carol and Ben through a long night. I'm sure their waiting time was made easier by knowing that someone with political access was watching out for them. But more than that, just having another human being to communicate with would help calm the nerves. Thank you for doing it on behalf of all of us.

I also agree with the first comment about US responsibility for military forays that kill civilians. I hope Jan will be among those pushing the President-elect to wind down the occupation of Afghanistan as well as Iraq, and to issue rules of engagement that tighten up on bombardment of targets likely to house civilians.

[MistahCharleyPhD]

I would like to emphatically agree with and underline the first conclusion here, that "Attacks on unarmed civilians by whatever means are never morally acceptable." Very true.

Unfortunately, our own country is one of the most frequent violators of this ethical norm. Wedding parties attacked by bombs are innocent victims whether the bombs are delivered in Jerusalem by someone who dies with the victims (the low-tech cheap way) or dropped on Afghanistan from multimillion dollar airplanes or remotely piloted drones (the American way).

The "War on Terror" meme reinforces our tendency to dismiss or justify the mass murder we are complicit in by framing the struggle as "war" - in which civilian casualties are "inevitable." The conspiracies we confront are not state actors, and making whole populations pay the price is both wrong and stupid.

May the Creative Forces of the Universe stand beside us, and guide us, through the Night with the Light from Above (metaphorically speaking) - and have mercy on our souls, if any.