Who sets the definition for "terrorist?"

[KillerMuffin]

Bin Laden is a terrorist. The US says so.

The IRA is a terrorist group. The UK says so.

Israel recently re-declared that Palestine is a terrorist state.

So, who actually gets to decide whose a terrorist? Who decided Bin Laden was a terrorist? Are they right? Do they get to make that choice? What about freedom fighting groups, they're terrorists, aren't they? Israel has decided that Palestinians are terrorists and did a US on Afghanistan thing. Are they right? Do they even have that right?

I suppose I'm looking for some accountability here.

 

[Southern37]

Bin Laden is a terrorist. The US says so.

The IRA is a terrorist group. The UK says so.

Israel recently re-declared that Palestine is a terrorist state.

So, who actually gets to decide whose a terrorist? Who decided Bin Laden was a terrorist? Are they right? Do they get to make that choice? What about freedom fighting groups, they're terrorists, aren't they? Israel has decided that Palestinians are terrorists and did a US on Afghanistan thing. Are they right? Do they even have that right?

I suppose I'm looking for some accountability here.

Not to get into a huge discussion, but i think a generally accepted view point would be a terrorists (by definition actually) targets civilian populations for attacts in order to "terrify". In my opinion this differs greatly from freedom fighters who wish to win the hearts and minds of the people they intend to liberate and thus target military and gov installations and personell. thats my take.

 

[Starfish]

I am not sure if I am right but it seems to be a matter of collective opinion, and if it is outwardly accepted, by the majority of the population and the world, then it is so. I think the IRA were terrorists. I think they knew they were. I think they consciously decided to use tactics that induce terror and lasting fear, and they, at the time of activity, they intended to do harm and instill that fear to their best abilities.

The idea behind it is that if innocent people are used as bait, something will possibly be done to right the previous wrongs, Right? But I think, hope, that the world, including the IRA, now realizes that it does the opposite, and it brings about violent rebuttal by those who were hurt. It is all wrong and needs to be stopped. If only we could transport Palastine and Israel to opposites sides of the planet.



"Picture a bright blue ball just spinning, spinning free
Dizzy with eternity.
Paint it with a skin of sky, brush in some clouds and sea
Call it home for you and me.
A peaceful place or so it looks from space
A closer look reveals the human race.
Full of hope, full of grace, is the human face.
But afraid, we may our home to waste.
There's a fear down here we can't forget hasn't got a name just yet
Always awake, always around singing ashes to ashes all fall down.
Now watch as the ball revolves and the nighttime calls
And again the hunt begins and again the bloodwind calls
By and by again, the morning sun will rise
But the darkness never goes from some men's eyes.
It strolls the sidewalks and it rolls the streets
Stalking turf, dividing up meat.
Nightmare spook, piece of heat, you and me, you and me.
Click, flashblade in ghetto night. Rudies looking for a fight.
Rat cat alley roll them bones. Need that cash to feed that jones
And the politicians throwing stones
Singing ashes, ashes all fall down.
Commissars and pin-striped bosses role the dice
Any way they fall guess who gets to pay the price.
Money green or proletarian gray, selling guns instead of food today.
So the kids they dance, they shake their bones
While the politicians throwing stones
Singing ashes, ashes all fall down.
Heartless powers try to tell us what to think
If the spirit's sleeping, then the flesh is ink.
History's page, it is thusly carved in stone
The future's here, we are it, we are on our own.
If the game is lost then we're all the same
No one left to place or take the blame.
We will leave this place an empty stone
Or this shinning ball of bule we can call our home
So the kids they dance, they shake their bones
While the politicians are throwing stones
Singing ashes, ashes all fall down.
Shipping powders back and forth
Singing "black goes south while white comes north"
And the whole world full of petty wars
Singing "I got mine and you got yours."
And the current fashions set the pace.
Lose your step, fall out of grace.
And the radical he rant and rage, Singing "someone got to turn the page"
And the rich man in his summer home,
Singing "Just leave well enough alone"
But his pants are down, his cover's blown
And the politicians are throwing stones
So the kids they dance they shake their bones
Cause its all too clear we're on our own
Picture a bright blue ball just spinning, spinning free
It's dizzying, the possibilities. Ashes, Ashes all fall down."

 

[LukkyKnight]

tangent...

I am not sure if I am right but it seems to be a matter of collective opinion, and if it is outwardly accepted, by the majority of the population and the world, then it is so.

Starfish, don't you think that's more like a definition of the odds of pursuing a terrorist being seen as acceptable?

I don't think the majority is necessarily a good indicator. Seems to me the definition is nearly set in stone in terms of usage:

If an individual or group initiates the use of violence (or threatens to) with the intent to intimidate as the (primary) means of advancing a political agenda, that is a terroristic act.

I do not think one should consider violent responses which are reasonably selective to be in the same category. Hence I think the U.S. Government was guilty of terrorism during the nuclear build-up, as were the Soviet leaders. Assuming for the sake of argument that there is evidence sufficient to bring Al Qaeda and/or bin Laden to trial, I think Bush arguably crosses the line when his rhetoric includes "dead or alive" even though there's clearly been substantial effort to limit "collateral" damage and casualties regardless of if it echoes the sentiments of a majority of U.S. citizens or not.

On the small scale legal types distinguish between assault (threat) and battery (actual harm) for some purposes - but both are deemed offenses. A self-defense response is generally permissable. What is reasonable self-defense?

Reasonable self-defense against a foe who has adopted a no-negotiation strategy of violence is to act sufficiently to make them cease and desist. The president of the U.S. isn't a judge either in his country or internationally, and it is unfortunate indeed that he hasn't been hanging around at lit learning the fine art of not descending all the way to the level of one's agressor.

Wow, the cold medication seems to have suppressed my judgement - I've gone and responded to a political thread. I hope I get healthy soon.