V does blow up buildings and he does kill police officers when they attack him but he is not a typical terrorist. He is using terror against the government who also themselves are using…
During his presentation and in his book Erick Stakelbeck takes us through the world of Islamic terrorism. He recounts his experience interviewing al-Qaeda terrorist leaders and his conversation former al-Qaeda operatives and associates of Osama bin Laden. During the presentation Stakelbeck tells us how the international…
In reference to your point about the Revolutionaries, I was actually discussing this with my sister a few days ago. Technically speaking, Revolutionaries can be considered terrorists--they tried to instill fear in the British government (for example, the Boston Tea Party) for political purposes (specifically protesting taxation). In fact, according to an article titled, "Boston Tea Party Was Act Of Terrorism? Texas Public Schools Teaching New History Lesson," some schools in Texas are even examining it as such. Specifically, teachers are instructed to read the following prompt to their students:…
They also attacked the government. To understand the classification of the FLQ being declared terrorists, it is important to look at the original meaning of terrorism and non-state terror. Terrorism is defined as the use of violence and/or the threat of violence against civilians to achieve a political purpose and produce a psychological effect. The FLQ used one particular strain of terrorism, non-state terror. Non-state terror is defined as the use of violence and/or threat of violence against the state and is designed to provoke change within a state.…
Between a terrorist and a freedom fighter they are different, yet have similarities. To make it clear what each is, a terrorist is someone who puts harm and fear towards people on purpose, and an example of a terrorist is the infamous September 11, 2001 attack on the World Trade Center. That is not the only way to define terrorism or terrorist, there are multiple ways to explain. This is just one of many ways of explaining it. A freedom…
Although they are closely related in meaning, terrorist and revolutionary differ in their connotations. Terrorist describes a person who uses violence for political aims, and the word is often used by the American government to describe foreign-born men and women who oppose the American people. Revolutionary describes a person who is engaged in or promotes a political revolution, and the word is used daily to describe a drastic change.…
“A terrorist is one who sows terror,” says Elshtain. She means that the victims of terrorist attacks are subjected to terror, or great fear. The purpose of subjecting a group of people to such fear varies but usually aims to destroy the morale of a people in its attempt at some religious, political, or ideological goal. Crucial features of inducing terror are its randomness and its attack on civilians as opposed to combatants. This elicits fear in every person because they are afraid for their personal safety in their day to day lives, as opposed to fearing only for our soldiers. To determine who is a terrorist, we must ask who they are attacking. Do they mainly target combatants in the field or bases, do they try to destroy military equipment and are they open to negotiations? If so, we should not label them terrorists for simply being enemy combatants. However, if they are deliberately targeting noncombatants with the intention of killing as many civilians as possible, they are clearly terrorists.…
Determining between John Brown being a terrorist or a freedom fighter is a difficult task. All throughout Brown’s life, his actions made him a terrorist rather than a freedom fighter. His actions speak louder than his words. All in all, John Brown will be known as a…
On September 5, 1972, a group of terrorist from Germany went on a crucial mission. The group was called Black September. They kept their identity hidden. Many believed they attacked for political reasons. After watching “One Day in September”, I believe that terrorism is a form of political commentary. I believe that if terrorist attack it’s because they want something from the government.…
Terrorists do not participate in formal war; instead, they attack civilian populations or landmarks. Terrorists believe that they have no option other than violence when they are fighting a government. Peaceful alternatives are either non-existent or ineffective. Many terrorists act the way they do because of a firm belief in their religious values or ideals. John Brown believed he was doing the work of God by abolishing slavery. In the light of the above definition, and John Brown 's actions, he was a terrorist.…
A terrorist group is when someone is using violence and especially…
Imagine, you have a terrorist in custody, and this terrorist knows the location of a bomb that will detonate and end thousands of American lives, is it ethically justified to torture this terrorist in order to obtain the critical intelligence needed to locate and disarm the bomb, saving thousands of lives? This is a scenario called the ticking time bomb scenario, it may be an extreme scenario, but none the less, it is possible, would you let ethics get in the way of saving those people’s lives? This is a very shadowy corner of the human psyche, there is no black and white when it comes to situations like this, only endless shades of grey that bleed into each other endlessly. Many people’s idea of torture is inflicting devastating bodily harm on a person’s body, and that is what the dictionary says it is, but in these modern times, the main element of political torture is the presence of fear, no bodily harm is necessary in some cases. The most commonly used method of torture is water boarding, which simulates drowning, and has been a key element in preventing insurgent operations. Many people argue that torture yields faulty or incomplete intelligence, but there are documented situations where torture has aided in saving lives. This is only my opinion, torture is made illegal to POW 's, medical personnel, and any others captured by a hostile country by the Geneva Convention, but as we have seen by Kristian Menchaca and Thomas Tucker, our enemies don 't care. How far would you go to save a life?…
Many historians believe that the pre-Civil War antislavery activist John Brown would be considered the first American domestic terrorist. Terrorism is defined as using fear through violence to achieve a goal, especially for political purposes. It is obvious that Brown had these qualities. Even before coming into light as an antislavery extremist he had an incident at his home where he barricaded himself and two of his sons with muskets to avoid losing the home. In this example no shots were fired, but this would not be the case in the future. After a string of failures in the work force, Brown began having fantasies about being “God’s messenger, a latter-day Moses who would lead his people from the accursed house of slavery.” (Pg. 355) He began working in the Underground Railroad and giving public sermons about abolishing slavery by any means. But it wasn’t until the Pottawatomie Massacre that Brown could have been dubbed a terrorist. This and Harpers Ferry were the two major acts that history remembers John Brown for. These actions would classify Brown as a domestic terrorist during the pre-Civil War era. But of course he was not the only one, and he diffidently wasn’t the first. There are accounts of American domestic terrorism stretching all the way back to the American Revolution. Even in his own time, John Brown cannot be rightly classified as the Father of American Terrorism. There were others like Nat Turner, Thomas Higginson, and even Preston Brooks could have all been considered American terrorists. Many of these people used their connection with God as reasoning for their actions, just as Brown did. So this would classify Brown as a terrorist, but not necessarily the Father of American Terrorism…
Terrorist" is a word used so often and so loosely that it has lost a clear meaning. Currently, the term "terrorist" is applied to the use of force most often on the basis of whether the speaker agrees with the goal of the violence. The expression "One man 's terrorist is another man 's freedom fighter."…
In our society today, many people want to be safe and secure. This is understandable, being that there have been many terrorist attacks, shootings, bombings, and much more. But is safety and security a good reason to sacrifice freedom? Napoleons society seemed to be dealing with the same question – security or freedom? They believed that as long as they were safe, they wouldn’t mind what the government did. It seems to be that same way in America today. As long as the government keeps us safe, we don’t mind what they do. But is that really freedom? Or are we saying we are willing to give up our freedom for safety? I’m not sure, and neither was Napoleons society.…