I have a problem cause I just want to say one man’s patriot is another’s terrorist or just go look it up.
Terrorism is a problematic word. Some adults use it to mean “violence I dont like”, but that’s just a kind of lying.
I dont like discarding words, however, so here are two workable definitions for you:
- An act of war against a civilian target without a formal government direction.
(Broadly covers most mainstream reporting and legal criminal enhancements)
- Any violent act against a stranger intended to change the political opinion of the attacked.
(Very specifically targets the action without regard for the actor.)
Also, while this may be obbious, my dislike for any definition of terrorism as just “bad violence” means I need to acknowledge that sometimes terrorism is a morally right action. Guy Fawkes, John Brown, and intentional riots would be plausible examples of the same.
Those seem like legal definitions because at the root of it it’s (IMO) “applying severe fear to coerce someone to act to avoid further acts of severe fear (usually in favor of the fear actor).”
Terrorism is war for the poor and war is Terrorism for the rich.
Jimmy doesn’t like it when his class talks about wizards. He’s asked them to stop, nicely and then very angrily, but the class said they will not stop.
The next time someone started talking about wizards, jimmy put gum in that kid’s hair, and stomped on their foot. Everyone is now scared that if they talk about wizards, Jimmy will hurt them.
Jimmy used hurting someone to scare everyone else to do what he wanted them to do.
————————
When a child is 9, it can be difficult to discuss the nuances of whether violence is justified or not. Perhaps the wizard’s were racists, or bigots that discriminated against people with immutable traits that Jimmy has. Perhaps Jimmy disagrees that the wizard’s support allowing warlocks to also be called wizards, stating that he believes this is a moral wrong. Giving a black and white answer to politically motivated violence is impossible, and providing context and nuance at that age is difficult at best.
The ultimate message should be that harming others should never be the answer. As they grow up and learn more about historical context, they can connect that back to the definition of hurting someone to get what you want.
deleted by creator
We are talking about a 9 year old here. Should we show them videos of the Israeli’s sniping children, point, and say “that is terrorism”?
Read the fucking room.
deleted by creator
Plain and simple its violence against civilians to gain a political goal.
The next question is going to be when is it considered political and thats a complex answer. That’s going to be the root of all controversy. You can give examples of attacks targeting civilians from around the world and explain the political motive behind them.Terrorism is usually defined as acts of violence against civilians to further a political or religious agenda.
which is why if you agree with the agenda, you don’t see it as terrorism.
you see it as justice being done to the non-believers/enemies.
I see violence against the innocent as terrorism always. Usually, the civilians caught in the crossfire had little to no control over the actions of their government
when you have an extreme viewpoint, there are no innocent people.
Political violence, basically. Violence done in the name of politics.
Terrorism is when someone co.mits violence against civilians for political reasons. The goal is to make people afraid
