A question for the board. How do you fight terrorism? Do you bomb a country? do you oust a regime? Terrorism is an idea not an nations army. You can cut off its funding (bomb countries, oust regimes) but in the end its that pretty little 18 yr old girl wearing an explosive belt that will getcha. How do fight an idea?

Not a single leader in this world has an answer to that question. What makes you think someone on this board does ? :D

Unfortunately I don't think they'll ever be a 100% elimination of Terrorism, but I think the best way to fight it is through education.
This next part is just speculation on my part, I have no facts to back them up, but based on where many (not all, just many) of the terrorists backgrounds, it looks like they are from backgrounds where a good education is not easily available (key word good, not just any education), and therefore, it's near impossible for them to get a good job and provide for their family. This leaves many feeling helpless and cheated when they see others living "the good life" so to say. They need someone to blame, whether it be their gov't, the US, the Jews, Christianity, etc. etc. And therefore, many turn towards terrorism as a way to feel like they have control of the situation.
Please understand, I am in no way condoning or justifying terrorism, I'm just stating a reason why some may turn to it. Not saying it's right, though. But, I think if we can do a better job of helping children and adults all over the world become better educated, and therefore, eliminating that feeling of being trapped, or at least minimizing it, I think there will be fewer terrorists out there.
Just my two cents.

Actually johnny ,to be honest I figure we probably have more brains in here than most the world leaders do! [img]smile.gif[/img] Just throwin out a question !

Harley, for your information, ALL the guys involved in the Sept.11 attacks were highly educated. They were all studying on universities abroad, which means they are not from poor families either. If you do some research on known terrorists, you'll find out they come from the wealthiest families, and went to the best schools all over the globe.

So much for that theorie. :D

<font color=green> alot of the terrorist see the freedoms in which we have and think it unholy. they see as that we are unholy beuase we don't follow thier god. its kinda like the whole jersulem thing in which the pakitans are trying to take back the "holy land". but don't get me wrong not all terrorist are arabic. look at the amercian who was found fighting witht he al-queda in afganistan. most of the peop-le are recruited at a young age and then pretty much brain washed by the people who are higher up. some are cells that go on with thier lives until one day they get called up to do something and they lived just like normal people until that day arrived.</font>

Johnny, re-read my post. I said in there NOT ALL, JUST MANY. MANY of the terrorists that bomb in Israel are NOT HIGHLY EDUCATED. I am saying this based on articles I've read and heard of interviews of the families of the suicide bombers.
I stick by my statement.
Also, going to a university, and being educated are completely different. What were there grades at these universities?
The study of Sociology teaches that when education level increases, the tendency towards violent crime decreases.

well if not violent crimes, even educated people ARE capable of doing crimes and other bad things. Enron. Watergate. Clinton's affairs. GW Bush wanting to remain in Iraq for another 5 years (yeah right! Not an army of occupation my b***!) ETC.

with fridge magnets! Terrorists fear our anti terrorism measures over here!

That may have some value as a rule of thumb for "ordinary" violent crime, but I very much doubt that to be the case for politically motivated crime, read terrorism.

As Johnny already pointed out the terrorists of 9/11 were well-educated members of the upper middle or even upper classes of their respective home countries.
Similarly, the radical leftish terrorists in Europe (Germany, Italy) of the 1970ies and 80ies used to be fairly well-educated and from middle class backgrounds. They fancied to be acting on behalf of the oppressed, yet unfortunately still unenlightened masses.

And in Palestine the suicide bombers might be young and uneducated, but I'd be surprised if that was also true for the majority of the ideologists/leaders of organisations like Hamas or Hizbullah.

After all, one basic concept behind terrorism is that an avant garde political elite commits the terrorists acts to provoke the attacked government/political system into overreacting in its response, thereby revealing its "true" oppressive, unjust, etc. nature to the still to a wider public, which will ultimately promote the political chances that the terrorists' ideology demands.

[ 06-24-2003, 04:03 PM: Message edited by: Ramon de Ramon y Ramon ]