Terrorism

6 Pages 1560 Words

The Good, the Bad, the Terrorist? Terrorism by nature is difficult to define. Acts of terrorism conjure emotional responses in the victims as well as in the practitioners. No two writers agree on what is terrorism. Even the U.S. government cannot agree on one single definition. The old adage, One man's terrorist is another man's freedom fighter is still alive and well today (Terrorism Research Center: Definitions 1). Although many people believe that terrorism is evil, it is merely misunderstood because there is no set definition. Terrorist are responsible to most of the freedom movements in every country. Terrorist have used violence to get their point across to the public. These acts are often necessary for the success of the movement or cause. The use of this violence can be justified in several ways. You can't make an omelet without breaking some eggs has been used by terrorist to describe their actions. Terrorism has been used by governments and against them. It has been used as part of a campaign by guerrillas who have widespread support and by small groups. Terrorism has been used in societies where grievances can be expressed freely and where free speech is suppressed. In a well organized guerrilla campaign, for example, the main goal might be to destroy the governments military forces. The violence is limited to acts which will achieve that objective. This might be destroying a factory which is making arms, or putting out of action part of the government army, or bombing an airfield so that it cannot be used by government aircraft. In some cases, the use of terrorism appears to be a reaction to the disintegration of law and order. A stable society has normally evolved peaceful ways of keeping order and handling disputes between its members without violence. Once law and order breaks down, as they do in civil wars, members of society have to defend themselves in different ways. There may be in a situation where government forces...