Based on what we know, the Austin bomber could've been a terrorist like the Unabomber (who wrote a manifesto about societal dependence on technology) or a serial killer like Ted Bundy or the Zodiac killer (who didn't have political motivations) albeit one who preferred bombs. 5/x
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When did we last have a mass killer who happened to be Muslim who wasn’t motivated by Jihadism? Serious question.
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In the US, none recently that I'm aware of. In Muslim-majority countries more common. But it's also a complicated question, because Muslims in the West looking to kill a lot of people know there's an ideology encouraging them. 1/
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Some like jihadism and want to kill in its name. Others want to kill and then say they're jihadist. Orlando nightclub shooter tried to join al Qaeda, Hezbollah, and ISIS. That makes no sense. Those groups fight each other (especially Shia Hezbollah and the two Sunni groups). 2/
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To some extent, this applies to white nationalists too. Angry young white men seeking to belong to something could latch on to the movement. But there are many more of them than Muslims in the US, so the case universe is larger and more varied. 3/3
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I’d agree, especially w/ point 3. Reason (unfairly, of course) there’s a knee jerk “must be terrorism” to Muslim mass killers in the US is that’s been our experience w/ a group that’s a tiny fraction of our population. The majority pop. has had mass killers of all motivations
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Serious question: why is a serial killer, or a terrorist allowed to define what he is with a pre-recorded confession? What he said on that cell phone video is irrelevant. Shouldn’t he be classified by the nature of his actions?
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Yes, classified by actions. Sometimes the political nature of an act of violence is obvious by the choice of symbolic target. Many times it's more ambiguous. Choosing to send (or not send) a written/spoken message is an action that can help put the violence in context.
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This is clearly one of your areas of expertise and I appreciate your take on this.
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My pleasure.
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Have they released a copy or transcript of the 25 minute video? I think different people might have different ideas about what counts as a “political” statement.
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Not that I'm aware of. If they do, then we can make a more informed assessment.
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These tweets should be gathered together as part of full essay or blog entry...and maybe part of a book if you're working on something right now to educate the public on these issues.
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There's a lot of good work out there about defining terrorism. For example, Bruce Hoffman's "Inside Terrorism." My book's on how drones alter terrorism and counterterrorism. Touches on definition, but mostly focuses on drones and strategy. http://www.ibtauris.com/en/Books/Humanities/History/Military-history/Drones-and-Terrorism-Asymmetrical-Warfare-and-the-Threat-to-Security …
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Hi long time listener, first time caller. If an event is classified as terrorism does that also change the response by the government? Such as must homeland security become involved because it is a terrorist attack?
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Nice intro. There are formal legal definitions, which can differ from the analytical definition I'm using. Legal charges can change based on legally classifying something as terrorism, but depending on the attack itself the response could be federal, state, or local. Or a mix.
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idk, most ppl feel terrorized when bombs start going off
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People feel terrorized by many things. War, natural disasters, disease, persecution, and much more. Lumping them all together as a single thing makes it harder to understand any of them. That's why it's better to clearly identify each.
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but bombs in particular feel like terrorism. I know everyone loves to lecture about "political" motivations but that doesn't actually mean anything if your loved one gets blown up
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@marcdanziger made the distinction between "mucker" and "terrorist", which I think is useful but hasn't caught on. http://marcdanziger.com/?p=2248Thanks. Twitter will use this to make your timeline better. UndoUndo
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Thanks. Twitter will use this to make your timeline better. UndoUndo
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