Quote:
Mike Defeated (Devin):
ter?ror?ism ( P ) Pronunciation Key (tr-rzm)
n.
The unlawful use or threatened use of force or violence by a person or an organized group against people or property with the intention of intimidating or coercing societies or governments, often for ideological or political reasons.
OK, so how is a pre-emptive war that is against international law NOT terrorism under this definition, taken from the lefty American Heritage Dictionary? |
Well, to be honest, I don't really like that definition. On the other hand, I don't particularly like the definition in use by the administration, even though I support them.
When I think of terrorism, I think "targeting civilians, " and I expect that that would have been the most common definition a couple of years ago. Now, though, "terrorism" has come to mean "unexpectedly attacking Americans," either combatants or non-combatants. So, the attacks of 9/11 and the USS Cole both count, as does the grenade attack by the American soldier on his own men.
Terrorism is the new buzzword. Anything we don't particularly like will be branded as terrorism, if possible. This is similar to how everyone had to "think of the children" a few years ago; find something that causes an emotional response, and run with it. This frustrates me to no end.
When you fight, you want the other guy to be terrified, end of story. From the boxer giving his opponent a wild look across the ring to the aircraft carrier launching missiles from hundreds of miles away, if you can instill terror in your opponent, it will be that much easier to defeat him. Terror is, or at least should be, a cornerstone of any competent military strategy.
What we are seeing today, with the soldiers dressed as civilians, the fake surrender, etc, are the same tactics employed by the Viet Cong way back when. Gorilla action is the only logical resort when faced with a clearly superior military force. When you look at it from our side, however, all we see is that those evil bastards killed some of our guys, and since "terrorism" is the word we are using for evil these days...
