In its bid to gain some influence in cyberspace, and maintain its teetering hegemony in the world, the United States military is reported to be planning the development of software which will allow its personnel to adopt multiple fake personas, or “soft puppets” to promote its cause and world view. This gives new meaning to Shakespeare's famous line in Julius Caesar when Marcus Antonius, who wants retribution for his friend's murder, declares: “Cry ‘Havoc!' and let slip the dogs of war.” It appears these “soft puppets” will communicate exclusively in Arabic and Farsi with real live citizens of the region in online chat rooms. Responding to the news, one commentator joked that an American soldier certainly can't introduce himself in a local Arabic chat room saying: “Hi, I'm Bob from the CIA.” But there is a serious side to all this cyber warfare talk: The US government will next month decide whether any cyber-attacks on the US can be declared an act of war. If this proposal is passed, it would have wide-ranging ramifications. All the rules of war would surely then apply. Details are still fuzzy, but theoretically, a 19-year-old youth sitting in his bedroom in some middle class city, hacking into the Pentagon's website, would then be considered an enemy combatant and could be “taken out” by special forces in a raid. It is understandable that the US, like any other government, wants to have influence in cyberspace, particularly against those trying to take down critical State infrastructure, but this seems a little over the top. And a critical question on the “soft puppets” is this: If the US government is not allowed to spy on its own citizens, using American companies like Facebook and Twitter, then what makes it legal in other parts of the world? This smacks of a double-standard that the US is being repeatedly accused of around the world, and is much like the legal limbo in which prisoners in Guantanamo Bay find themselves, despite promises from the US president that this would change. To win the hearts and minds of people in this part of the world does not require subterfuge. It needs an even-handed and fair approach. The vast majority of people here simply want to raise their families in peace and security. And releasing ambiguous plans on cyber
