Terrorism
...World Trade Center on September 11th. And let us all remember that it will likely happen again. Such is the nature of revenge that this war will never be won, but instead will be fought for as long as there [are] people with revenge in their hearts. May whatever god you worship forgive us all. May God teach us forgiveness, understanding and peace." William Jefferson Clinton (Wikipedia, 2006)
Terrorism is any violent act perpetrated to cause distress in a population. At least, that is one definition. In 1988, the United States Army did a study and found that over 100 definitions of terrorism have been used. This is why many news sources avoid using this term and instead use the terms bombers or militants. Acts of terrorism are not intended to only discriminate against or do away with those who are killed, injured or taken prisoner. It is used to frighten and persuade the societies to which they belong. Modern terrorism has come to be defined partly by the prominent power of the mass media that terrorists designate in their efforts to go into detail about and then broadcast feelings of intense fear and anger. As a sort of unusual warfare, terrorism is designed to deteriorate or replace political landscapes through submission or compliance as opposed to rebellion or direct military action. In 2004, a United Nations panel described terrorism as "any act intended to cause death or serious bodily harm to civilians or non-combatants with the purpose of intimidating a population or compelling a government or an International organization to do or abstain from doing any act" (Wikipedia, 2006). Terrorist acts are usually deemed as random and executed with disregard for human life. The term terrorism is often used to declare that the political violence of an enemy is morally wrong and unfounded. According to the most common definition, terrorists are actors who do not...
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