Power, Borders, Security, Wealth: Lessons of Violence and Desire from September 11

America’s ‘‘war on terror’ ’ and Al Qaeda’s ‘‘jihad’ ’ reflect mirror strategies of imperial politics. Each camp transnationalizes violence and insecurity in the name of national or communal security. Neoliberal globalization underpins this militarization of daily life. Its desire industries motivate and legitimate elite arguments (whether from ‘‘infidels’ ’ or ‘‘terrorists’’) that society must sacrifice for its hypermascu-line leaders. Such violence and desire draw on colonial identities of Self vs. Other, patriotism vs. treason, hunter vs. prey, and masculinity vs. femininity that are played out on the bodies of ordinary men and women. We conclude with suggestions of a human security to displace the elite privilege that currently besets world politics. yToday is a week, and seven is of heavens, gods, science. evident out my kitchen window is an abstract reality. sky where once was steel. smoke where once was fleshy FSuheir Hammad, ‘‘first writing since’’1 On September 11, 2001, terrorists struck at the heart of the capitalist world-order. The attack and its targets demonstrated with horrendous efficiency that neither global wealth (World Trade Center (WTC)) nor military might (the Pentagon) could defend against low-tech, human sacrifices when mobilized. For this reason, September 11 has generalized a sense of insecurity that transcends the American state. Three conventions established since the end of the Cold War now seem suspect: for example, ‘‘U.S. power reigns supreme,’ ’ ‘‘borders dissolve in a globalized world,’ ’ and ‘‘liberal capitalism secures prosperity, democracy, and stability for all.’ ’ All ask now: ‘‘Whom can we trust?’’