It seems that we have some semantic wrangling going on here. What is
"terrorism"? Some people seem to believe that terrorism is any sort of
armed struggle that is not carried out by uniformed soldiers.
I disagree. There is a difference between armed struggle and
terrorism. The partisans resisting the German invasion of eastern
europe were not by definition terrorists. Some might have been, most
weren't. Just because they were shooting at German soldiers and
blowing up German property does not make them terrorists.
And the claim the the founding fathers of America were terrorists is
laughable. Founding the armed wing of the ANC is not terrorism,
although the ANC has at times engaged in terrorism. The Mujahadeen who
fought against the Russian invasion of Afghanistan were not by
definition terrorists. Unless we redefine any use of force as
terrorism. Causing, or attempting to cause fear is not terrorism,
otherwise any army that wins a battle is a terrorist army.
It is a defensible philosophical position to hold that all use of force
is immoral. And if all use of force is immoral, then it doesn't matter
WHY you are using force. So, one could hold that fighting against the
Nazis is just as bad as fighting for the Nazis.
But I think we can distinguish between terrorist acts and non-terrorist
acts. Admittedly, it is harder to distinguish between terrorist
organizations and non-terrorist organizations, since organizations can
engage in some terrorist acts but in the main do not.
Let's give an example. The invasion of Poland by Germany in 1938 was
not a terrorist act. But the extermination of an entire village in
revenge for the assassination of Heydrich was a terrorist act. So to
call Nazi Germany a terrorist country is accurate, but not every use of
force by Nazi Germany was a terrorist use of force.
Terrorism means the deliberate targeting of third parties. It is
deliberately engaging in atrocities in order to intimidate. And
terrorism has a political goal in mind. I would say that terrorism
requires an attempt to send a message via violence. This doesn't mean
that someone has to claim responsibility and send a press release, but
random violence, even if many people are killed, is not terrorism.
So, let's be more careful about what we label terrorism. Not every act
of violence is terroristic.
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Darryl
Think Galactically -- Act Terrestrially
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