rvg, some couple of years later?

[Philippus Flavius Homovallumus]

Okay, I'll give you the cause. Suppose, the terrorist group is fighting to establish islamic caliphate across the globe. Their demand is simple: convert to islam, establish sharia or the bombings will continue.

Your response?

I still need to work out why all these young men are blowing themselves up. If the pattern holds, they'll be a majority from British Pakistani, so I'd look at what it is about the British communities in Pakistan that makes them want to kill the people they live next door to.

I know what you're doing, you're trying to get me to say there's a point at which I have to kill them all. There isn't, there are a few ideaological loons, but the majority of the footsoldiers will be disenfranchised young men. You enfranchise those young men and the support will dry up.

This is the same principle as Northern Ireland and South Africa.

"It's the economy, stupid."

Look at Libya and Egypt, you think people weren't angry before last year? Of course they were, but they had more to lose by fighting than not fighting. You need to offer people a better life than one they can get by violence if you want to have peace.

[rvg]

I still need to work out why all these young men are blowing themselves up. If the pattern holds, they'll be a majority from British Pakistani, so I'd look at what it is about the British communities in Pakistan that makes them want to kill the people they live next door to.

I know what you're doing, you're trying to get me to say there's a point at which I have to kill them all. There isn't, there are a few ideaological loons, but the majority of the footsoldiers will be disenfranchised young men. You enfranchise those young men and the support will dry up.

This is the same principle as Northern Ireland and South Africa.

"It's the economy, stupid."

Look at Libya and Egypt, you think people weren't angry before last year? Of course they were, but they had more to lose by fighting than not fighting. You need to offer people a better life than one they can get by violence if you want to have peace.

In the meantime, another bomb goes off...

[Philippus Flavius Homovallumus]

In the meantime, another bomb goes off...

We've been there before, in Northern Ireland.

Do you not know the history?

That's why you're not allowed to leave a bag unattended and you can't find any bins in central London.

gaelic already told you, they twice almost decapitated the British government - and we never caught half the blighters. The ones we did catch we eventually let out, the rest are now in government. We have something approaching peace in NI.

Even at the height of the troubles, with bombs going off every other week we didn't place anything like the restrictions we place on people today.

Of course, during all this time the IRA commanders were invited to Washington and spent St. Patrick's day with the CinC on your armed forces.

[rvg]

We've been there before, in Northern Ireland.

Do you not know the history?

That's why you're not allowed to leave a bag unattended and you can't find any bins in central London.

gaelic already told you, they twice almost decapitated the British government - and we never caught half the blighters. The ones we did catch we eventually let out, the rest are now in government. We have something approaching peace in NI.

Even at the height of the troubles, with bombs going off every other week we didn't place anything like the restrictions we place on people today.

Of course, during all this time the IRA commanders were invited to Washington and spent St. Patrick's day with the CinC on your armed forces.

So, suppose bombings in London become as frequent as in Baghdad ca 2006. Security is working overtime, most bombers are intercepted, but not all of them. Eventually Scotland Yard learns of a plan for twin suicide bomb attack on two high rise apartment buildings. They do not know where or when the attack will take place, but they have captured one of the people directly involved in the attack.

What would be your next step?

[Philippus Flavius Homovallumus]

So, suppose bombings in London become as frequent as in Baghdad ca 2006. Security is working overtime, most bombers are intercepted, but not all of them. Eventually Scotland Yard learns of a plan for twin suicide bomb attack on two high rise apartment buildings. They do not know where or when the attack will take place, but they have captured one of the people directly involved in the attack.

What would be your next step?

Question him until a crack appears in his story, that's all you can do. If you keep questioning he'll eventually slip up. Treat him well and he'll start to develop Stockholm syndrome, all human beings want to talk and so will he; if you get really lucky he'll flip.

I'm not going to torture him - it's pointless.

We've also been here before - we used to beat the Irish, the Africans, it just made them hate us more. The Troubles escalated because the British Soldiers deployed to protect Roman Catholics​ were too brutal, rather like the Americans in Iraq.

[rvg]

Question him until a crack appears in his story, that's all you can do. If you keep questioning he'll eventually slip up. Treat him well and he'll start to develop Stockholm syndrome, all human beings want to talk and so will he; if you get really lucky he'll flip.

I'm not going to torture him - it's pointless.

We've also been here before - we used to beat the Irish, the Africans, it just made them hate us more. The Troubles escalated because the British Soldiers deployed to protect Roman Catholics​ were too brutal, rather like the Americans in Iraq.

Kaboom. Too late. Now what?

[Philippus Flavius Homovallumus]

Kaboom. Too late. Now what?

Then he hated us too much, and we didn't catch him soon enough.

If we'd tortured him, he probably would have fed us false information, we would have wasted resources on that. Kaboom.

Oh, and now he hates us even more.

Lose lose.