This is an excellent editorial!! Editors View The shootings yesterday in the Canadian capital were almost certainly acts of terrorism. It wasn’t clear at this writing what the motive was, but a public attack on public officials in a public setting has all the hallmarks of terrorism. Whether the attack was connected to an international conflict – in the Middle East, for instance – to a homegrown grievance or even if it involved a personal issue, the point was to shock people and gain attention, which is why high profile venues are most often where such acts occur. It bears repeating, however, that numerous studies (the work of Northeastern University’s Max Abrahms, in particular) have shown that while terrorism may get attention, it doesnt change minds. Non-violent protests, by contrast, have led to enormous changes around the world, freeing nations such as India from colonial rule, altering racist laws in the United States, South Africa, and other countries, and overthrowing despotic ideologies such as communism in Eastern Europe. Terrorism has accomplished nothing like that. Terrorism is cruel. It is showy. It doesn’t work. John Yemma Editor at Large yemma@csmonitor
Posted on: Thu, 23 Oct 2014 11:35:43 +0000
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