So Is The Amish School Shooter A "Terrorist?" I Think So!

[K8-EEE]

I started thinking about all these awful school shootings that are now becoming, horrifyingly, almost routine. If a Muslim had done this he would be a "terrorist," this one is simply a "perpetrator."

The more I think about it the more of a racist bent I see to the way the "news" covers these things.

I've also been thinking a lot about Bowling For Columbine, and how nobody seems to equate the "violence is power, we kick ass" message we get from the leaders of this country to the increasingly voilent youth culture. We legalize torture and cheerlead wars and a lot of the kids get the idea they can fix things with guns. That gun in that classroom was a WMD!

[Niche]

1. 30 something year old men both lined up girls against --

chalkboards, bound their hands and murdered them (CO the young women were rapped).... These are horrific crimes against young women. Sick. Terrorism? Something is happening to mens' minds - war, torture, rape, it's endless around the world. Not just here in US.

[K8-EEE]

3. Also There IS No Safety

I'm sick of them justifying all their sick shit with "safety" when you aren't even safe in an Amish classroom for Christ's sake. You aren't safe eating a freaking spinach salad, you aren't safe on the freeway, any "safety" we have is a freaking illusion anyhow so what is the point in BushCo chipping away at our rights & the constitution for this thing, safety, that neither they or anybody else can deliver.

I would feel safer if our country was being run by people guided with our traditional values, they think torture "works," they think killing people "works" and makes us safe....IT'S ALL A LIE...

[bronxiteforever]

2. Right!!

This is a very sick country right now.

[slackmaster]

4. Not according to the definition I use

His motivation was personal, not political.

Of course he terrorIZED his victims, their families, the community, etc. But he was not making a political statement or taking revenge on behalf of a whole culture.

[K8-EEE]

6. It Was A "Revenge" Thing, NO?

Didn't the guy say he was settling an old score? Any motivation for killing innocents is insane (God told me to, revenge, or as you sa "political") it's all just crazy. A lot of the killing in Baghdad these days is purely "payback." Most people there have given up on the place entirely -- I don't think you can really characterize every Iraqi who takes out a US soldier as being "politically" motivated, yet they are all labeled "terrorists."

[slackmaster]

9. It appears to have been revenge for some kind of personal slight

If you want to define all crimes committed as acts of revenge as "terrorism", knock yourself out. Personally I don't like to dilute definitions of important words.

It's like calling any authoritarian person a Nazi - How would the victims of the actual historical Nazis feel about that?

[K8-EEE]

15. Bush Has A Political Motivation For Terrorizing People

So maybe they should start calling him one then.

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

5. Was he trying to get the Amish out of the Holy Land?

Terrorism

1. the use of violence and threats to intimidate or coerce, esp. for political purposes.

[K8-EEE]

7. esp.

not exclusively. I say, "one who terrorizes" is a terrorist.

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

8. Yeah, esp.

So there's probably a better word.

Personally, I think he's a horrifiablist. Cause he horrifies.

[RamboLiberal]

11. I'm with you K8-EEE - one who terrorizes is a terrorist in my book

and I think while the Repukes have been trying to terrorize us with the Islamo Facists our own homegrown terrorists manage near the death toll of a 9-11 a month!

BTW, here's dictionary definition.

1. a person, usually a member of a group, who uses or advocates terrorism.
2. a person who terrorizes or frightens others.
3. (formerly) a member of a political group in Russia aiming at the demoralization of the government by terror.
4. an agent or partisan of the revolutionary tribunal during the Reign of Terror in France.
–adjective 5. of, pertaining to, or characteristic of terrorism or terrorists: terrorist tactics.

http://dictionary.reference.com/search?db=dictionary&q=terrorist

[Jack Rabbit]

10. Was he a member of the NRA?

A member of the NRA cannot be a terrorist. And could a right wing moron like Tim McVeigh. So stop saying that.

[BlooInBloo]

12. Is he white?

[TorchTheWitch]

13. We cheapen the term by attributing every act

of violence to terrorism. Terrorism is acting on the desire to foment fear ("terror") in the community (be it local or global) in order to coerce the community's society or government to give in to the demands of the terrorist(s).

ter·ror·ism

The unlawful use or threatened use of force or violence by a person or an organized group against people or property with the intention of intimidating or coercing societies or governments, often for ideological or political reasons.

Some nut with the insane idea that shooting these innocent girls would be "payback" for some wrong he felt he suffered 20 years ago is not terrorism. He was a violent sicko who acted on his desire for "revenge" apparently due to a personal grievance having nothing to do with the victims. It was multiple homocide/attempted mass murder. The number of victims doesn't equate to terrorism, and it makes no sense to call it that anymore than to call it genocide.

It really bothers me that even here some people have swallowed the terra terra terra repuke meme and paint all kinds of acts of violence that clearly aren't terrorism with that broadbrush.

[petronius]

14. I took the OP to be sarcastic - poking fun at the RW tendency

to vastly overuse the word terrorist, and yet not applying it here. Perhaps that's just my take...:shrug:

You are correct - the tendency to misuse words for emotional effect or to demonize an opponent is disturbing and it seems to be growing. It's easy to toss around words like terrorist, genocide, pedophile, fascist, but it both cheapens the word and undercuts the argument when all is said and done. Unfortunately, it's not just a RW strategy, although far more prevalent over there...

[K8-EEE]

16. Well Yes, I Think It Has Been Overused To The Point That

it's meaningless....also the term "enemy" I have this one RW aquaintance and every day of the week he spouts off about "who the real enemy is"

Mexicans, "Islamists," liberals, French whatever...they've ALL been "The real enemy" I told him, dude, everyone who isn't a RWer Murkin or Israeli is the enemy, the whole world's your enemy, sux 2 be U.

I would rather the media didn't use these sort of judgemental terms -- most ridiculously in the recent Lebanon war, which was supposedly terrorist against Isreal, a lot of people didn't see it that way. Especially those in the vicinity of the Israeli bombs.!

[petronius]

17. Yes, "enemy," that's another one

Along with cheapening these terms, it's scary how misusing words like 'enemy' and 'terrorist' allow RWers to redefine (in their own mind) who is and isn't a 'real American'...

[TorchTheWitch]

18. If the OP attempt was to poke fun

then that REALLY upsets me! I know some people in that community where this occurred, and I'm personally devistated by this tragedy. If this was meant as sarcasm than I think it's sick to USE such a tragedy before the bodies are even cold so as to make some kind of irrelevant point about the inappropriate use of the word terrorism.

[petronius]

20. Sorry - that was my poor wording

I don't think the OP was trying to make a joke or make light of the situation in any way. I can't speak for her, but I think she was making a serious point about labeling and word use, with this event as an example.

I shouldn't have used "poking fun" - especially when there has been so much discussion today on the misuse of language...

[DemoTex]

19. UNIVERSAL ACCESS TO WEAPONS EXACERBATES TERRORISM.

Here .. there .. yonder. Get smart, ban the weapons (I know .. it will never happen).