Saturday, February 18, 2006

Define me, come on its just words

"I have been writing about terror for 25 years, ever since the Reagan administration declared its War on Terror. I’ve been using definitions that seem to be doubly appropriate: first, they make sense; and second, they are the official definitions of those waging the war. To take one of these official definitions, terrorism is “the calculated use of violence or threat of violence to attain goals that are political, religious, or ideological in nature...through intimidation, coercion, or instilling fear,” typically targeting civilians. The British government’s definition is about the same: “Terrorism is the use, or threat, of action which is violent, damaging or disrupting, and is intended to influence the government or intimidate the public and is for the purpose of advancing a political, religious, or ideological cause.” These definitions seem fairly clear and close to ordinary usage. There also seems to be general agreement that they are appropriate when discussing the terrorism of enemies.

But a problem at once arises. These definitions yield an entirely unacceptable consequence: it follows that the US is a leading terrorist state."

Norm Chomsky

4 comments:

R said...

what's the difference between terrorism and defence?

Bob Daktari said...

good question, lets ask two experts

*hands mic to Osama and George W*

both look confused by the question

Anonymous said...

Yes we Americans are, so don't piss us off or your little island may become a test firing range. You pussy.

Bob Daktari said...

Bullying the little guys is really a rather unattractive trait

Thanks for your enlightened comments