Reading questions for Wednesday, October 10

No Nonsense Guide to Terrorism

1.  Read through the four examples of terrorist incidents on pages 11-12.  How are these examples similar? How are they different?  What is the different between group terrorism and state terrorism?

2.  The author refers to September 11 as “upping the ante.”  What does he mean by this?  What does the author say is the greatest fear about terrorism today?  (p. 13-14)

3.  What was the initial worldwide reaction to the September 11?  How did that start to change?  (p. 14-18)

4.  What does the author say about the relationship between the emotions aroused by terrorist acts (and specifically September 11) and the ability to engage in “clear thinking and useful dialogue about terrorism”? (p. 20-22)

5.  How does the author define terrorism?  What are some implications of the definition he uses?  (p. 22-27

6. On page 28, the author says “It became apparent that one of the impacts of terrorism was its effect on the ideas through which political issues are defined, priorities are set and conflicts are conducted.”  What does he mean here?  Do you agree or disagree with him?