HTSI 530- Domestic and International Terrorism Notes

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HTSI 530- Domestic and International Terrorism Notes Module 2: Animal Rights and Liberationists By Wednesday 8 pm 23 January, take a position whether you think animal liberationists and animal rights extremists are terrorists. State your position clearly and succinctly, including two or three sentences supporting your stance. After posting your own position, comment on AT LEAST TWO of your classmates’ posts. Remember the guidelines laid out in the syllabus: Write your honest assessment, but do so in a respectful and professional manner. I will be grading both the quality of your original post and the quality of your response posting. Feel free to carry on any debates in the discussion threads. Animal cruelty and maltreatment is something most of us find abhorrent. But do groups that perpetrate acts in support of animal “liberation” take the response too far? Where are the lines that separate social disobedience from crime, and crime from terrorism? Would you identify animal liberation groups as terrorist organizations? Do you hold a personal sympathy with the cause? Do you believe the identification of animal liberation groups as “terrorists” has anything to do with occurrences of other terrorist events? Phrased differently, do you think cataclysmic events like 9-11 or the Mumbai massacre affect whether issues like animal liberation or environmental extremism are viewed as terrorist? I would identify ALF as a terrorist group, because of the methods used, are very similar or on par with how a terrorist would conduct its own measures to achieve a means to an end or their ultimate goal. They are attempting to coerce people into believing their message, and those who are against their message they end up causing harm or make those supporters believe that there is a great potential to be engaged in a manner that would put them in a vulnerable position. At first, their idea on the surface seems reasonable, but the amount of damage they do can be irreversible also it is an attempt to control the opinions of others and the general population. The animal raids for examples, pose several dangers to the community many of us do not know what the animals have been injected with so there is a high risk of harm or death that could occur if a person comes into contact with the animals. I logically understand the motive behind their cause, because the animals cannot speak for themselves on this matter so more awareness needs to be created. The sympathy for their cause is not warranted in my opinion because their actions can be very radical, as some of their leaders have made comments that is of grave concern as the professor mentioned in the earlier slide, such as depopulation of the planet. I’m sure the leaders of the organization can be very inspiring but it only takes one person going out of their way to incite others to take the same matters into their own hands. I believe the best way to resolve the issue is to push for more reforms and to hold their congressman accountable. Taking these measures that disrupt several aspects of the economy is basically an attempt to hold the public hostage. They can gain no sympathy from lawmakers with these actions as they are committing actions

that if a person from the outside looking in, would deem it hypocritical. Essentially they put their message at risk of being lost and open up the possibility of losing ground from what these laws have done to protect animal rights. There are lines that separate social disobedience from crime and crime from terrorism. This is separated by the actions that people are taking to achieve one’s goals. With terrorism it through the use of violence. With social disobedience it means not going along with law enforcement, but also ensuring that no lives are lost in the process of their actions just demonstrations that are supposed to peacefully aid in gaining support for their issue. I believe the actions of other terrorist events have changed the way animal liberationist are perceived by the public and law enforcement. They are sharing similar traits of terrorist organizations while committing several actions that would be labeled as a form of terrorism. While the cost of their actions do not raise alarms in terms of the amount of bodies being deceased like it would when terrorist go around setting off explosions. The ALF activist do still find other ways to intimidate the general public and cause severe financial distress to companies and other industries. I believe the FBI was correct in the decision to put them on the list and attempt to figure out the inner workings of the organization. The latter part of that is hard to do operational wise because the way these groups are set up the FBI has a hard time tracking their movements and when they will decide to strike. While social media has helped in a form of being able to monitor where they will be gathering and possible list of institutions’ that may be at risk for an attack it does not exactly point out who the actors are going to be that take the extra mile to ensure that the demands they are pushing are met.  Response to Others Loyda, granted yes these groups have the opportunity to do plenty of good work, however most of these activist are putting their own selves at risk in these activities these risk range from being put under investigation by LE or ending up in prison or jail. In addition to that it puts harm to their message as the media can use them as a clear cut example of why they must be stopped an such actios aren’t justifiable. If these groups were taking a different approach to getting their message across to their general public and law enforcement about how the animals are facing cruelty and how the corporations are trying to make a profit off these creatures then they would have a higher possibility in making advancement towards animal rights. While some of the activist could possibly claim they are being harassed by law enforcement agencies an think that their beliefs are being suppressed, I believe that to be misconstrued it is because of their ons, that they have put them in the cross-hairs of the FBI and other agencies because their decisions they take are not harmless or just being able to be dismissed as a simple incident. Module 2 Discussion Question My second question for this module is somewhat personal, but I hope you will take it seriously and put some thought into a developed answer. Many of you expressed empathy with people who were so offended by animal mistreatment that they were inspired to act, while almost all of you still

condemned animal liberation groups as terrorist. The natural segue for how I want you to approach the class leads me to the question for this thread: What issue would drive you, personally, to acts of violence that would be considered terrorism? The issue that would drive me to personally committing acts of violence which would be considered terrorism would be the government banning the 1 st and 2nd Amendment. I’m an extremely strong supporter of the 1 st and 2 nd Amendment, and I despise unreasonable actions of restricting gun ownership in America and I believe that we all have a voice in this nation and will refuse to be silenced. These issues go together historically can’t have one without the other. How I would be identified as a terrorist , is when the government in which both parties in agreement pass legislation to begin gun confiscation across America in addition to giving orders that decide that only law enforcement or military are allowed to have guns , and they begin conducting door to door confiscations I will not surrender my firearms. Granted I will use the act of self-defense in this case, in addition I will gather up as many supporters as I can to push back against these efforts and stand by the U.S Constitution while ensuring the media, officials and the officers understand that these orders are illegal and that they swore an oath to protect and defend the U.S Constitution. The actions I take will try to avoid as much loss of life as possible. I do not advocate violence against LE or the Military or whichever agency they send out to perform these confiscations, I do know that I will be branded as a domestic terrorist and will be considered a danger to the public. I would take full responsibility and accountability for my actions when I get my day in court. I do not believe the situation would arise in America, but I do plan to be prepared to action when or if the situation arises. This situation is one I do not ignore or turn a blind eye too , as “ those who don’t know history are doomed to repeat it(Edmund Burke).” In which History has plenty of examples such as Hitler’s gun Confiscation from the Jews before they were slaughtered or the actions of Kent State shooting where the military fired upon citizens. -Marcus- Module 3: Discussion 1: Before participating in this discussion thread please ensure you read the Huntingdon article and view the lecture file. Your readings and the lecture demonstrated arguments for and against several countries with the potential to claim core state status in the Islamic civilization. Take a position on which country you believe to have the strongest case for core state status, and briefly state why. After posting your response, review the positions of your classmates and comment on at least three.

Remember to be respectful in your discussions. The answer to this question is not cut and dry, and will likely generate some healthy debate. Your original post is due by 8 pm Wednesday 1 February, and your three responses are due by 8 pm Saturday 4 February The country I believe to have the strongest case for core state status is China. Due to it sharing similar goals and animosity that Sinic Islamic countries have against America and the West overall; Neither China nor any of the other Sinic countries want to be stuck in a system of control under America. America views China as a threat to its global hegemony as well as a rival in the Asia- Pacific region in regards to expansion and level of influence it holds. China is big on trade and is more probably willing to work with the Islamic countries more so than the U.S so that those nations could evolve in the bigger market and become prosperous instead of mainly being manipulated by the West. When one looks at the environment and changes of today’s modern world any analyst can see the rise of China’s military aspirations; Deng Xiaoping saw the rising conflict coming when he made remarks about it in 1991. An example of this massive ordeal that occurred last year 2016 when China claimed territory to islands that have long been disputed in Asian- Pacific region further putting a strain on international relations in that area of the world. Turkey in my opinion has the greatest chance of reaching Core State Status, they no longer want to act as an essentially a “middle man” between the West and Islam which are continuing to clash. Turkey has an opportunity to use its rich history as an Islamic country, to influence other countries in order to stand in defiance against the West when it comes to territorial expansion. If Turkey is able to show it can stand up to the U.S as far as allowing the U.S to seamlessly transport troops and materials in its fight on the war on terror, then more countries will see Turkey as being more loyal to its people and really willing to stand for the culture instead of the Western civilization agenda being pushed on them by America and its counterparts. Turkey can use the instance of what it claims as U.S involvement in its Coup this past year as a bargaining chip to gain entrance into the EU. This will bring stability to the country, the Turkish people viewpoint will change as it will see its leader as not a puppet of western democracy and the chances of having attempted coupes like last year and within its history would decrease. Turkey already has begun to witness the egregious error of trying to import the United States form of democracy to its nation. Turkey has the potential to bring other Islamic countries together as it is big on construction and its image as far as tourism is concerned. While Turkey does not have the nuclear weapon capabilities that the U.S has, Turkey can work with other nations to obtain these weapons or at least begin major rapid development. This past year Turkey and Russia have decided to mend fences in their own disagreements, this can open doors to Turkey economically in the short term and possibility militarily in the foregone future. It would work well for both countries as Turkey could use the weapons provided by Russia to defend itself from enemies, and Russia would gain an ally that would further the distance between them and NATO. Module 3 Discussion 2 Post

All, For the second discussion question for this block, please answer the following. As always please post your response in a clear and concise manner, and then comment on at least three of your classmate’s posts. The question is two-fold but related. First, do you think there is any potential for the West to reduce tension with the Islamic civilization, in other words to build a less adversarial relationship? Also, is there an Islamic nation that the West should be assisting to enhance its potential to achieve core state status? Please ensure you complete your original post by 8 pm Thursday 2 February, and all of your posts by 8 pm Saturday 4 February. I look forward to your discussions! I believe there is potential to reduce the tension with the Islamic Civilization and build a less adversarial relationship. The chances of this actually happening is highly unlikely. The only way I see this working is laws are set in place to keep both those civilization from committing violence against each other. Secondly, both civilizations need to practice the act of intolerance not everyone has the same beliefs while it does make a civilization different, but also opens up opportunities to seek a middle ground on divisive matters. Not to mention The West and Islamic social issues are completely on different sides of the spectrum, considering the women are treated differently in both societies and civilizations. As the global stage is currently set up Sean Huntington was precise in stating there is a lack of communication between these civilizations. Although language is a barrier, it is an essential tool to making the West and Islamic nations be able to find a means to live and act accordingly side by side no matter what issue being represented. Where the state of the West is at in today’s modern world I do not see a nation that it could enhance without causing an indifference in that region of the world. Countries like India and Pakistan already have severe disagreements ranging from culture to the possession and use of nuclear weapons. The only country Islamic country I believe that can achieve core status with U.S help is Jordan in this state of affairs with all the global issues occurring. Because Jordan is willing to work with the U.S to fight terrorism and prevent its ideology to other nations, also Jordan continues to have a favorability with allowing the U.S to provide training to their troops and allow the U.S to conduct its own exercises. In addition, Jordan continues to be more willing to accept our financial aid and invest it appropriately in their own nation. Week 4 module post 1 discussion Very simply, do you agree with Perkins’ assertions? He is very direct in his accusations that the United States deliberately drove up the national debt of developing nations, and then extorted favors

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