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Terrorism is one of those funny words. The kinds that are difficult to define because they're subjective: like freedom and justice.
I think, simply put, terrorism is the use or the threat of violence to support or advance a cause. Yes, this is subjective, but that's often the way of the world. We do not control how terror works.
Yes, even schoolyard bullies can be little terrorists. But I don't think they're so much of a concern to require entire state departments to monitor and act against them, nor do I think they pose a threat to the very fabric of nations. But that doesn't change the meaning of terrorism to me.
The meaning we derive from it is ultimately a question of scale.
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Knowing that death is certain and that the time of death is uncertain, what's the most important thing?
—Bhikkhuni Pema Chödrön
Humankind cannot bear very much reality.
—From "Burnt Norton," Four Quartets (1936), T. S. Eliot
Last edited by Baraka_Guru; 02-18-2010 at 03:12 PM..
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