America: A Nation’s Stance on Terrorism

We are a country coming under the scrutiny of many terrorist organizations and terrorist backed countries. America can no longer afford a lackadaisical attitude towards terrorists or their political agendas. Since the Gulf War in the early 1991, America has been the target of several terrorist attacks. The American Government and its people must take a stance against proliferation of Terrorist activities and not let their guard down.

"Other theories include a general desire by terrorists to strike at America's heartland," wrote co-authors Lee Hancock and David Jackson, "and the fact that Oklahoma City has a relatively sparse downtown, making it easy to get into and out of the area." This statement alone could describe the rural areas of most of America's heartland. Terrorists attack targets that are vulnerable, have high psychological impact on society, create significant publicity for their causes, and demonstrate a government's inability to provide security or act in a decisive manner. Critical facilities, i.e., weapons plants, military facilities, laboratories; and prominent individuals, i.e., the President, high-ranking military personnel and civilians in key positions are potential terrorist targets. The American people are going to have to ensure our government takes protective measures against terrorism. These procedures, once in place, must remain a high priority and federal agencies ever vigilant. We can no longer afford to let our guard down in today's world.

Terrorists believe in martyrs and are thoroughly committed to their causes. Dependent on their political views or circumstances, urban guerrillas, saboteurs, revolutionaries, and insurgents are often the same. Terrorists are dedicated to their cause - even to the point of death. They are motivated by religion, prestige, power, political change, or material gain. Terrorists believe they are acting in the name of the people. Their dedication is evident in their education and training, arms and equipment procurement, detailed planning methods, and ruthless execution of missions. The terrorist truly believes that their "Jihad" or "Holy Wars" are sanctioned by God.

America needs to take a strong stance against terrorism. We need to be decisive and maybe even unmerciful when dealing with terrorism. The best example is when America stood up to the Ayatollah Khomeini and United States aircraft raided Libya in retaliation for terrorism during the mid 1980's. Terrorists around the world were shown that these cowardly acts would not be tolerated. This country can take the fight to the terrorists if need be. Our military capability and forward presence around the world can if necessary deliver a blow directly at these terrorists. The FBI needs to properly identify and determine the appropriate national response to terrorism. This will ensure those involved will take to heart that we mean business and that their cowardly acts of violence will not be tolerated.

This incident in Oklahoma is the American people's wake-up call to the threat of terrorism. No sane person can ignore the threat that is posed by these terrorist groups. If their affiliations belong to the state sponsored terrorist activities, it is up to our intelligence