Reality Dislocation?

“It is entirely possible that the true and authentic reality is being drowned out by countless superficial information bits noisily and breathlessly presented in propaganda fashion. Consequently, one may be entirely knowledgeable about a thousand details and nevertheless, because of ignorance regarding the core of the matter, remain without basic insight … Arnold Gehlen labeled it “a fundamental ignorance, created by technology and nourished by information . . . … the place of authentic reality is taken over by fictitious reality; my perception is indeed still directed toward an object, but now it is pseudoreality, deceptively appearing as being real, so much so that it becomes almost impossible any more to discern the truth.” (Josef Pieper - Abuse of Language, Abuse of Power,” 1974)
“Whether it be the intrusion of hackers, a major explosion at the World Trade Center, of a bombing attack by bin Laden, all of these greatly exceed the frequency bandwidths understood by the American military . . . This is because they have never taken into consideration and have even refused to consider means that are contrary to tradition and to select measures of operation other than military means.” (Col Qiao Liang, Col Wang Xiangsui, Unrestricted Warfare, 1999)
Josef Pieper’s quote (above) has been used to suggest that intense concentration on data bits in support of models can degrade discernment over the “core of the matter” to the point where reality dislocation occurs. Has the dominance of the social sciences in the conduct of the counter-terror effort since 9/11 pushed that effort into Pieper calls pseudoreality (or the Matrix’s identities as the Blue Pill universe)? A few questions to consider when answering:

Did we win or lose in Afghanistan?
Did terrorism succeed in reducing American power and prestige along lines forecast by the Islamic Movement?
Has America’s response been reduced to incoherence because of it?
When answering the question, please account for the observations of the two Chinese colonels from Unrestricted Warfare, as posted above.

Full Answer Section

     

The dominance of the social sciences in the conduct of the counter-terror effort since 9/11 has led to a focus on data collection and analysis. This is important work, but it is important to remember that data is not the same as understanding. As Pieper warns, we can be "entirely knowledgeable about a thousand details and nevertheless, because of ignorance regarding the core of the matter, remain without basic insight."

In the context of the counter-terror effort, this means that we can be so focused on collecting and analyzing data that we lose sight of the big picture. We may become so obsessed with the details of particular terrorist plots that we fail to see the broader patterns and trends. This can lead to a failure to understand the enemy's motivations and goals, and to develop effective strategies to counter them.

Did we win or lose in Afghanistan?

The answer to this question is complex and depends on how you define "winning." If you define winning as militarily defeating the Taliban and al-Qaeda, then the answer is that we lost. The Taliban is now back in power and al-Qaeda is still active in Afghanistan.

However, if you define winning as preventing another 9/11-style attack, then the answer is less clear. It is impossible to know for sure whether another attack would have happened if we had not invaded Afghanistan. However, it is clear that the invasion did not eliminate the threat of terrorism.

Did terrorism succeed in reducing American power and prestige along lines forecast by the Islamic Movement?

It is difficult to say definitively whether terrorism succeeded in reducing American power and prestige. However, there is no doubt that the 9/11 attacks had a significant impact on the United States. The attacks led to the War on Terror, which has cost the United States trillions of dollars and thousands of lives. The attacks also damaged America's reputation in the world and made it more difficult for the United

Sample Answer

    Josef Pieper's quote about the "fundamental ignorance created by technology and nourished by information" is a prescient warning about the dangers of our current information age. In a world where we are constantly bombarded with data and information, it can be difficult to discern what is real and what is not. This is especially true in the context of the counter-terror effort, where the enemy is often invisible and the information landscape is cluttered with disinformation and propaganda.