Not every act of violence is an act of terrorism. Murder, rape, robbery and similar crimes are not normally thought of as terrorism … but they
could be. Bombing innocents is normally thought of as terrorism … but it might
not be. (Think of the premise in the movie Die Hard.) Some acts -- like the attacks on the World Trade Center -- are indisputably terrorism, but others cause enormous debate.
Unfortunately, there is currently no definition of terrorism that is accepted internationally. The lack of a definition leaves open the possibility for situations such as the current conflict between Russia and Chechnya. The Russians have labeled the Chechnyans as terrorists and the conflict as part of the war on terror. Chechnyans consider themselves freedom fighters trying to repel an occupying and superior military. How do we decide who is a terrorist and who is a freedom fighter? How do we even decide what characteristics make a single act an act of terrorism?
I want you to come up with a
model of terrorism and then use it to decide which incidences are acts of terrorism and which are not.
A. To get started go to the top of this page and click on the link to
Activity Resources. You will see the information and directions to complete this activity. When you read those directions, please note that this activity has three steps. You must complete step one before beginning step two. At the end of step two you will need to email me for additional information before you can begin step three. You will then need to complete step three before you can write your
summary. Please do not wait until the last minute to begin under the assumption that I will be able to instantly respond to your step two request for additional information. Plan ahead and allow yourself plenty of time for each step.
B. By
the deadline shown in the Course Schedule on the main page of the
syllabus:
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Send
your summary containing the five items requested in the
body of a new email to
dramyglenn@earthlink.net.
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Put only your name and Activity #3 at the
beginning of your email.
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Be careful to use the correct subject line.
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Late summaries will lose one point per day late, including weekends and holidays.
