The April 14 kidnapping of almost 300 girls from a school in Nigeria was an act of such deliberate barbarity that it cannot be allowed to stand. This was a conscious attack on civilization itself.

At the same time, it offers an opportunity to unite behind a common effort to rescue the victims – and the United States the chance to show its power can be brought to bear without going to war.

The girls were taken by a group called Boko Haram, which means “Western education is a sin.” Often called an Islamic sect, in truth, it represents nothing more than repression, tribal and religious animosities and the psychotic narcissism of its leader, Abubakar Shekau.

The question is what to do about it. A war-weary United States is not about to invade Nigeria. There may be a role for the U.S. military through drones, satellite intelligence or logistics. But any assistance should be keyed to helping Nigeria quell Boko Haram and carried out long-distance. American “boots on the ground” should be out of the question.

It would be better to respond by doing exactly what threatens the likes of Shekau – educating and empowering girls and women, in Nigeria and worldwide.

Nothing improves a society more than bettering the lives and status of girls and women. And nothing so terrifies retrograde criminals like Shekau. It may not be as dramatic as an airstrike, but in the end, it is more effective.