The Debate About Terrorism Essay

Those people who choose to utilize terrorism typically are seeking change. An example of terrorism used to bring about change would be the struggle between Unionist and Republicans in Ireland. The Republicans who wanted an independent Irish nation free from British control were vastly out powered by the Unionist who wanted to remain tied to England. After various efforts to gain an independent Irish nation failed the Republicans eventually formed the Irish Republican Army (IRA) and utilized violence as a means to create fear and pressure (White, Jonathan. 2013. "Defining Terrorism in Modern History." In Terrorism and Homeland Security 3-27, Wadsworth Centage Learning pps

Of the many problems that society faces today, terrorism is one that is more serious. The presence of terrorism can be felt across the globe, which make this issue a global concern. In all countries, whether they are developed or in the process of developing, this issue is always up for debate in todays society. History has shown us the clear evidence that the presence of terrorism is very much real and has gone through tremendous changes over the years. Terrorism now has become more difficult to control, more widespread, and more lethal. In todays society, terrorism is a serious challenge because of its presence around the world. Terrorists create chaotic conditions leading to mass murder and destruction to undermine the stability of society,

The Central Intelligence Agency defines terrorism as “premeditated, politically motivated violence perpetrated against noncombatant targets by subnational groups or clandestine agents” (CIA). This term was specifically created to differentiate terrorism between other acts of violence. These doings of terrorism are not just any act but are specific acts of violence. A dominant reason behind terrorism tends to fall upon religious beliefs and culture ties.

Terrorism can be defined and viewed in many different ways. As discussed in “Terrorism and Political Violence,” by Alex Schmid, there are multiple frameworks in which terrorism can be defined (Schmid 2010, 197). In Schmid’s article, he discusses the five ways he feels terrorism can be looked at, terrorism as/and politics, terrorism as/and crime, terrorism as/and warfare, terrorism as/and communication and terrorism as/and religious fundamentalism (Schmid 2010, 197). This is interesting because it explores the concept of terrorism in different lenses, where each has its own motives, its own background and its own participants. This is important to understand because not every act of terrorism is done in the same light and for the same purposes. Just as any other crime, there are reasons behind the act. When studying terrorism, understanding motives makes all the difference, and understanding what is at stake for the attacker or the attacked helps fully conceptualize the matter.

Many agree that terrorism is a phenomenon that is hard to put a label on. Historically considered a crime it has deservingly become treated as an act of war in the post 9/11 world. Modern-day terrorism has blurred the boundaries between a crime and war and reshaped the traditional understanding of the concept of war itself turning the entire globe into a battlefield. Contemporary war is much less a confrontation of state armies fighting for territorial control, but terrorist, guerilla and paramilitary groups fighting military superpowers. Without much for the resources, terrorists were able to merge with the global civil society and threaten the state and international security by endangering and spreading the fear in the civilian population.

While terrorism dates back to around 1 BCE, it has become much more prominent in our everyday lives within the past few decades. We are constantly worried about the next attack, when it is going to happen, and where it will be. Whether it is physical or cyber, terrorism is one of the top concerns for the United States. Although it is extremely difficult to define, the U.S. Department of Defense describes it as “the calculated use of unlawful violence or threat of unlawful violence to inculcate fear intended to coerce or to intimidate governments or societies in the pursuit of goals that are generally political, religious, or ideological objectives” (Hoffman, 31). While it is hard for us to understand why someone would cause something as horrific as 9/11 or the Paris bombing, terrorists believe that they are doing good and helping the world. They are very methodical, have missions, rules and regulations, followers, and goals that they want to achieve. The goals of terrorism are to evoke fear, fight for religious, ideological, or political change, and to obtain worldwide recognition for what they have done.

Terrorism is notoriously difficult to define and is often used to mean different things by pundits, politicians and the media. The problem of defining terrorism has “hindered analysis since the inception of studies in the early 1970s”. It is therefore difficult to decide whether a particular organisation is considered a terrorist group. A widely used definition by Bruce Hoffman, a political analyst in the field of terrorism and counter terrorism, states that terrorism is violence or the threat of violence, against non combatants or civilians, usually motivated by political, religious or ideological beliefs.

Terrorism is a word that can be defined in many different ways. Differences in the definition depend upon the entity defining the term, and many times the definition varies based upon who is victorious in a given conflict. Compare the simplistic definition of Walter Laqueur (1987, 1999), who defines terrorism as the illegitimate use of force to achieve a political objective by targeting innocent people, with the definition found in Title 22 of the United States Code, Section 2656f (d), which describes terrorism as “premeditated, politically motivated violence perpetrated against noncombatant targets by subnational groups or clandestine agents, usually intended to influence an audience.” Likewise, Alex Schmid offers a complex definition that conglomerates 13 elements common to most definitions of terrorism.

According to Coaty’s War on Terror, terrorism can be divided in three different levels: individual, state, and international environment. During the French revolution, terrorism was developed the first time, and some groups of people gathered to clean the evils of monarchy. They want to overthrow the weak government and establish a new one that can bring them a better life. After that, terrorism was expanded to the Soviet, and it became the best tool for them to control people, including their lifestyle and their own privacy. Under the Soviet’s control, terrorism has been developed and spread to many other countries around the world.

Terrorism is defined as a threatened use of force by a group or individual based and operating entirely within the United States or its territories without foreign direction committed against persons or property (Terrorism 2002- 2005: FBI). Terrorism has opened to numerous interpretations, most of them being from conflicting point of views. Understanding the term terrorism is often difficult from a semantic point of view. Understanding it require a holistic and sensibility and is more realistically achieve through a relative cultural, political, and historical understanding of this phenomenon. This associate itself with the complexity of understanding terrorism in the terms of its distinction of criminal activities. Townshend (2002)

Terrorism has existed for many years and was known to have begun as early as the first century when a group of Jews who wanted to overthrow the Roman leader and did so by committing acts of murder. As time and society evolved terrorism became even more widespread, progressing throughout the globe. Terrorism has evolved since the early years after the death of Christ, with the rise of Islam, and into the 21st century during a time that terrorism is at an all-time high. Given the increased coverage of terrorism throughout the world is due to the upsurge of financing that is received by many extremist’s groups. Gaining these methods of terrorism is not hard and often times results in innocent individuals or organizations being illegally extorted

Terrorism in the twenty-first century has some similarities and differences from terrorism in the twentieth century. Terrorism is, in its broadest sense, the use or threatened use of violence in order to achieve a political, religious, or ideological aim. Also useful to remember that because the two entities involved, the terrorists and the terrorized, are on the opposite end of the political, religious or ideological continuum, the same act is viewed by them differently. There is much sense in the phrase one man’s terrorist is another man’s freedom fighter.

“Terrorism” is best defined as the threat or use of violence, often against the civilian population, to achieve political or social ends, it intimidate opponents. It can also be defined as a policy of calculated and coercive intimidation, designed to achieve a strategic objective by sowing fear among non-combatants. Its definition does not depend on the objectives that are sought, or whether it is a government or opposition group. Though the distinction between “terrorist” and “freedom fighter” usually inspires debate on the legitimacy of their ends, terrorism is fundamentally a matter of means. This is like saying that there are “good terrorist” and “bad terrorist.”

Terrorism is a major growing problem in today's society. Over the last fifteen years, new terrorist organization networks have sprung up from all over the world. Many governments have had little success in shutting down organizations attempts to harm innocent people. Many people do not understand why people resort to taking actions such as bombing, hijacking, and suicide missions. It leaves many people wondering how these organizations justify their attack on innocent and warm hearted citizens.

One common misunderstanding about terrorism is it is a new and unprecedented phenomenon. In actuality, terrorism is not an ideology or means of modern times. Terrorism can be highlighted throughout the history of mankind, with some historians even dating it before any records of militant armies. Whether it was one lone individual or small bands that attacked their enemies. Terrorism rings throughout history whether its the killing of leaders or potential challengers to a throne, to raping and plundering villages and spreading panic throughout the victim’s land. Although the manner and goals of terrorism have evolved since, terrorism still revolves around the use of force against people (or significant property or landmarks) in order to