I've been saying this for years: the best way to prevent terrorism is economic opportunity.  Peopl…

I've been saying this for years: the best way to prevent terrorism is economic opportunity.  People in the Middle East who have good jobs, or their own businesses, are going to be much less likely to go off to kill other people, throwing their lives away.  I've been saying it since shortly after 9/11.

I don't say this often, but State Department spokesperson +Marie Harf is right, and the conservatives criticizing her are mostly wrong.

That doesn't mean they critics have no point: it's true that some people will engage in violent jihad regardless of economic opportunity.  But far, far fewer of them will.

Simply put: a strong economy is one of the best predictors of peace.

We've seen this time and again.  After WWI, Germany had a terrible economy, which directly led to WWII.  Then we helped fix their economy, and since then, we've seen peace in Western Europe.  Same thing with Japan.  Almost all of the wars we've seen are in poor, desperate places.  And who thinks China will start a war with the U.S., when it has so much to lose?

And speaking of China -- yes, I am going here -- someone else who agrees with Harf and I is the beloved Alex Chiu, who invented immortality.  He noted that China couldn't support itself economically once it grew to a certain size, and we need a way of making sure its economic needs can be met.  He wrote:

"Teleportation must be invented. If we don't invent teleportation, China will throw nuclear bomb everywhere. Especially now everyone can live forever."  http://www.alexchiu.com/spacestation/teleport.htm

Indeed.

Yes, I’ll Say It: Marie Harf Had a Point

The State Department spox phrased it badly (“root causes”), but there’s something to consider here; if we don’t, the war will be endless.