Acts of terrorism vary in scale and amount of destruction. For many people still today the memory of 9/11 still drags on and this has a major effect on the way process people feel just be followed in seeking justice for these heinous acts. As I stated previously, over 2,977 people were victim to the acts of a terrorist organization. Al-Qaida, the organization responsible had a long history of committing such acts but none had been on a scale this large and in a western country. The organization was founded between 1988 and 1989 and its intent was to promote the use of Jihad as a tactic to create profound global instability and allow the implementation of sharia law. In a case similar to Hamdi v. Rumsfeld, the case of Hamdan v. Rumsfeld a former …show more content…
He found that the U.S could not hold a military commission unless it was first shown that the detainee was not a prisoner of war. The decision was then revered by an appellate court citing several reasons for the decision. One of those reasons was that military commissions are legitimate forums to try enemy combatants because they were approved by congress. The entire case was essentially based on the constitutionality of the military courts. So it certainly seems that if there is any way to fight terrorism then it would be to follow some form of uniformed military code. For the many people that feel that terrorism is an act of war, they see no other was to handle these situations than with the same force that we treat acts of war. Classifying terrorism as an act of war has more implications than just what to do with alleged terror suspects; it also determines how U.S foreign policy is implemented. Those that classify terrorism as an act of war generally support the types of operations that were carried out during the Afghan War. Classifying terrorism as anything different would mean a new strategy to the Middle East and our “War on …show more content…
What if somehow we could handle the problem of terrorism by creating a new level category? We could use the principal of legal epoche to create a better fitting definition to allow for justice to take its course. This is the position that I have on the issue because I believe the range and scope of terrorism is so vast that it can’t be classified as simply war or simply crime. My proposal is based on the idea that all terrorism is not created equal. For crimes involving larger terrorist organizations such as Al-Qaida have the right to due process. All terror suspect, no matter what size of crime committed must go before a military commission to challenge their status as an enemy combatant, if they have been given this status. All alleged terrorists have the right to representation. It is important in a common law system to not place things in a procrustean bed. I feel that creating a more neutral ground on the issue of terrorism is the best way to go. One of Al-Qaida’s listed goals that set gave a sense of alarm to me was they plan to provoke the United States and the West into invading a Muslim country by provoking them with a massive attack. If this is one of their alleged goals are we not falling right to the whim of this terrorist group? Another stated goal is that when the economy of the U.S and Western nations finally collapses, they infiltrate the system with Sharia Law influence. I’m certainly
Hijacked planes were purposely flown into the twin towers in New York and killed about 3,000 innocent people. This was one of the most disastrous incident to ever occur during the era. After the release of who caused the attack, lots of people from the Islamic culture were the center of attention right after the event. They were falsely accused of being called terrorists without little to any evidence. It was mainly because of their appearance and beliefs. It was more like racism and stereotypes towards them. Society has painted them to be these terrorists because they were feared and immediately got the wrong idea when they approach them. The day the terrorist attack happened, it sparked a new beginning for their culture. They not only felt scared when they were around them, but they felt like they were going to become a part of a violent attack that they’re going to cause without them acknowledging it. It can be disrespectful and rude to assume they’re terrorist but they didn’t care. It was “[society] [who] feared what [they] don't understand. In a frenzied state of irrational behavior [they] will point fingers and name names and accuse the innocent because [they] are afraid” (Garcia). Society was terrified for their lives. They made them feel unwelcomed and unwanted. The fear exponentially rose and became a problem when they wanted to fly to a destination. Lots of “Americans became paranoid
First to determine if terrorism is in fact right or wrong we must understand what it is. Although there is not a universal definition to describe terrorism I relate closely to Walzers definition which is: “a random murder of innocent people, intended to frighten a population into demanding that their governments negotiate for their safety.” In Walzer’s article “Terrorism” (Cahn, 239) he lists the purpose and methods of terrorism as to “destroy the moral of a nation or a class, to undercut its solidarity; its method is the random murder of innocent people.” Innocent people or noncombatants, as people call them, are described as normal working civilians who do not play a role in the government or have any control of what is happening politically. These innocent people are the ones who are targeted with no regards to political affiliation, the only thing that makes them the target is simply belonging to a certain group. To offer an example in 911 innocent people were killed and were chosen only because they worked in the World Trade Center, they were not chosen for anything they had done politically. Wal...
A week after, Congress passed a law allowing the president to use "all necessary and appropriate for us… Against persons associated with the attack”. This may sound familiar to the executive order 9066 during 1944. The President ordered the Armed Forces to Afghanistan to subdue al Qaeda and quell the supporting Taliban regime. This made every fear certain races and certain people. Muslims were targeted and feared for being a terrorist just like how the Japanese were feared to be spying on the United States but they were also in fear. Just like the Japanese Americans in 1944, people like Yaser Hamdi are being persecuted for being a certain
In 1692, one of the most inhumane tragedies occurred in the small village of Salem, Massachusetts. Now infamously recognized as the “Salem Witch Trials,” the trials were based on faulty accusations that charged others of being witches. These accusations resulted in a considerable amount of people being imprisoned and hanged, and it ended with 20 people being killed. 309 years later, four planes were hijacked by terrorists and were set to crash in four important government centers and buildings. Consequently, these attacks resulted in 2,966 deaths and it was the most severe attack ever on American soil. The terrorists were revealed to be Muslims, and that they supposedly did it in the name of “Allah”, which is the Arabic translation for God.
Categorical terrorism, according to Jeff Goodwin, is defined as “the strategic use of violence and threats of violence, usually intended to influence several audiences, by oppositional political groups against civilian or noncombatants who belong to a specific entity, religious or national group, social class or some other collectivity, without regard to their individual identities or roles.” More so, in terms of definition, according to a study done by Jeffrey Record in 2003, there was a count of over 109 definitions of terrorism, covering 22 different categorical elements. During the 70s and 80s, the United Nations struggled to define the term, finally coming up with the following definition: “Criminal acts intended or calculated to provoke a state of terror in the general public, a group of persons or particular persons for political purposes are in any circumstance unjustifiable, whatever the considerations of a political, philosophical, ideological, racial, ethnic, religious or any other nature that may be invoked to justify them.”
When a giant explosion ripped through Alfred P. Murrah federal building April 19,1995, killing 168 and wounding hundreds, the United States of America jumped to a conclusion we would all learn to regret. The initial response to the devastation was all focused of middle-eastern terrorists. “The West is under attack,”(Posner 89), reported the USA Today. Every news and television station had the latest expert on the middle east telling the nation that we were victims of jihad, holy war. It only took a few quick days to realize that we were wrong and the problem, the terrorist, was strictly domestic. But it was too late. The damage had been done. Because America jumped to conclusions then, America was later blind to see the impending attack of 9/11. The responsibility, however, is not to be placed on the America people. The public couldn’t stand to hear any talk of terrorism, so in turn the White House irresponsibly took a similar attitude. They concentrated on high public opinion and issues that were relevant to Americans everyday. The government didn’t want to deal with another public blunder like the one in Oklahoma City. A former FBI analyst recalls, “when I went to headquarters (Washington, D.C.) later that year no one was interested in hearing anything about Arab money connections unless it had something to do with funding domestic groups. We stumbled so badly on pinpointing the Middle East right off the bat on the Murrah bombing. No one wanted to get caught like that again,”(Posner 90). The result saw changes in the counter terrorism efforts; under funding, under manning, poor cooperation between agencies, half-hearted and incompetent agency official appointees and the list goes on. All of these decisions, made at the hands of the faint-hearted, opened the doors wide open, and practically begged for a terrorist attack. So who’s fault is it? The public’s for being
...ots and in effect saved a great many lives, however Edward Snowden has stated that “Bathtub falls and police officers kill more Americans than terrorism, yet we've been asked to sacrifice our most sacred rights for fear of falling victim to it.” We are in more danger of death by falling out of our bathtubs of being killed by the people who “protect” us than we are by being killed by a terrorist, and yet our government would ignore that, and use terrorism as a false pretense to freelance monitor its people.
September 11, 2001 was one of the most devastating and horrific events in the United States history. Americans feeling of a secure nation had been broken. Over 3,000 people and more than 400 police officers and firefighters were killed during the attacks on The World Trade Center and the Pentagon; in New York City and Washington, D.C. Today the term terrorism is known as the unlawful use of force or violence against persons or property to intimidate or coerce a government, the civilian population, or any segment thereof, in furtherance of political or social objectives (Birzer, Roberson). This term was clearly not defined for the United States for we had partial knowledge and experience with terrorist attacks; until the day September 11, 2001. At that time, President George W. Bush, stated over a televised address from the Oval Office, “Terrorist attacks can shake the foundations of our biggest buildings, but they cannot touch the foundation of America. These acts shatter steel, but they cannot dent the steel of American resolve.” President Bush stood by this statement for the United States was about to retaliate and change the face of the criminal justice system for terrorism.
In 1988 Osama bin Laden started the terrorist group al-Qaeda. Osama stole over 250 million dollars, and was already committing murders by then. In 1993 a bomb exploded in the World Trade Center area, the bomb was set off by al-Qaeda members. The bomb did not kill as many as the planes did, but killed up to 6 people and injuring many. In 1995 a bomb went off at a military base, and killed around 15 people, not only Americans were killed also Indian soldiers. In 1996 he called full jihad war on the US. Two years later he killed 224 people in a US embassy in Africa, and three years later his attack on US soil 9/11 was the US last straw. The reason for Osama’s killing wasn’t just because of 9/11 it was to prevent war on jihad that Osama had claimed on the US, if we wouldn’t have killed Osama in 2011 think about how many more terrorist attacks would have gone on in the
The Government Should Not Authorize the Use of Torture to Combat Terrorism by Harvey Silvergate
Being the oldest daughter of a Senior ATF Agent, I have been exposed to domestic terrorism all of my life. My father has investigated thousands of bombings, fires, and explosions for more than twenty years now. Many of these incidents were examples of the terrorism that I speak about. His experiences have taught me countless lessons and informed me of many current events. The information that I have obtained from him is far more valuable than anything that the media could ever possibly convey. Though he is always strictly guarded with the confidences of his profession, he has always provided me with a firsthand knowledge of the impact that domestic terrorism has on the citizens and law enforcement. Through him, I learn the facts of these incidents without the media’s exaggerations. Today I will share with you some of these facts. I will talk to you about the impact that domestic terrorism has on our citizens. These impacts include: the monetary damages that terrorism inflicts, along with the injuries to the victims, the shocking repercussions that are embedded into the minds and souls of the people who come to sort through the rubble to find the survivors and the remaining evidence.
The biggest terrorist attack in American history occurred on September 11, 2001. The Islamic al-Qaeda group hijacked four airliners in the United States. Two planes crashed into the World Trade Center in New York City, a third struck the Pentagon, and the fourth plane crashed in Pennsylvania. Nearly 3,000 people were killed including over 400 police officers and firefighters. America's view on the world and Muslims all over, forever changed. Muslims are judged and criticized still today after these events. Muslim Americans after 9/11 should have a right to live freely in America, can help us stop Islamic terrorism, and can increase unity with American citizens and the communities.
The threat of global terrorism continues to rise with the total number of deaths reaching 32,685 in 2015, which is an 80 percent increase from 2014 (Global Index). With this said, terrorism remains a growing, and violent phenomenon that has dominated global debates. However, ‘terrorism’ remains a highly contested term; there is no global agreement on exactly what constitutes a terror act. An even more contested concept is whether to broaden the scope of terrorism to include non-state and state actors.
The United States of America’s criminal justice system is defined as the system of law enforcement that is directly involved in apprehending, prosecuting, defending, sentencing, and punishing those who are suspected or convicted of a criminal offense. And while nothing is perfect, the goal of this system is to make sure every citizen is treated fairly and that justice is served. Over the years the United States has made a lot of changes to the way their law enforcement handles certain situations and offenses. These changes have come from learning experiences. For example the Miranda vs. Arizona case taught us that every person, guilty or not, needs to be read their rights before taken into custody because it is fair. A more modern topic that has constantly been changing the way our government and criminal justice system operates, is terrorism. Terrorism over the past two decades or so, has had a huge influence on the way our law enforcement goes about protecting us from threats. There have been new laws and acts created, new task forces
Terrorism is one of the most extensively discussed issues of our time and at the same time it is also one of the least understood. The term itself “terrorism” means many different things to different people, cultures, and races. As a result, trying to define or classify terrorism with one universal definition is nearly impossible. The definition of terrorism used in this research is a reflection of much of the Western and American way of defining it. The definition of terrorism is,