HISTORY 103 Lecture Notes - Lecture 2: Assassins, National Counterterrorism Center, Theth
Document Summary
It doesn"t help us think efectively about terrorism simply to demonize: synonyms of terrorist in 1952: evil being, wrong doer, evil genius, Frankenstein"s monster, savage, a snack in the grass, worker of inequity: starting point: terrorism simply means deliberately and violently targeting civilians for political purposes. , there are seven crucial characteristics, a terrorist act is politically inspired. Victims are used as a means of altering the behavior of a larger audience, usually a government. Victims are chosen usually at random or as a representative of some larger group. Sometimes, they are very speciically targeted as in assassinating a monarch in the 19th century: the deliberate targeting of civilians. This is what sets terrorists apart from other forms of political violence, even the most proximate form, guerrilla warfare: targeting civilians is a classic example of terrorism in the present. There are earlier examples, but it became a clear representation in the 20th century.
