Blowback: A Political Epistemology

Foreign and domestic policies are not linear, rather the policies are connected in a circle, with each policy reinforcing the values of another. Domestic American terrorism in the prison and detention systems and governmental reforms are influenced by the mobilization and ethnocentrism abroad. The militarization internationally is justified by the domestic handling of the same cultural issues within the United State borders. The United States has strangely used a near Catch-22 to handle dilemmas. The United States has allowed perspective to become reality, whether with oneself or regarding issues abroad, specifically in the Middle East. Terrorism is the use or threat of fear for political or economical gain. An internal characteristic of terrorism is how dependent it is of perspective, one man’s terrorist is another man’s freedom fighter. To understand “terrorism,” a focus must be applied to the history, what drove an organization to commit such acts. Respectively, the Middle East has been a hotbed for the key word “terrorism,” especially because of 9/11. Subsequently, Muslims have been stigmatized by the United States as terrorists. The consequences spawned because of 9/11 require a look to the past to understand the present.

The book “How Terrorism End; Understanding the Decline and Demise of Terrorist Campaigns”, written in 2011 at the height of Al-Qaeda, the most well-known international terrorist group of our time. The author of this work, Audrey Cronin, at the time of print, served as a professor of strategy at the United States National War College in Washington D.C., and a senior associate at Oxford University’s Changing Character of War Program. Both positions allowed her to impact strategic policy making in the execution of the Global War on Terror by allowing her access to senior military and civilian policymakers. Her previous area of her prior work has been mainly focused on international terrorism with an emphasis on al-Qaeda. She has authored

On September 11, 2001, a series of terrorist attacks were directed for the United States by means of four hijacked planes. Two of which hit the twin towers of the World Trade Center, one hit the Pentagon, the headquarters of the Department of Defense, and the fourth crashed in a field near Pittsburg after it was meant to hit the White House. The terror spread in the United States and brought concern and fear to the citizens. The impact of these terrorist attacks caused serious and detrimental damages within the country, and their result on the people were enormous; insecurity, helplessness, and susceptibility spread. Especially after the release of a videotape in which Osama Bin Laden, head of Al-Qaeda, admitted that he was responsible for the terrorist attacks. Hence, President George W, Bush declared the “war on terror” against all terrorists in the Arab world, specifically Afghanistan and Iraq. In the following paper, we will be discussing how the war on terror was waged, its effects on the target countries, and how it was perceived by political thinkers, where some saw it as a conspiracy theory against the Arab countries, and others believed the USA was the victim.

Transnational terrorism points toward an ideological globalism ignoring a world divided by national frontiers. by acknowledging the nature of transnational terrorism, policymakers may come to realize that the structure of terrorism has changed. At least two major international terrorist groups embrace a transcendent ideology-al Qaeda and Hezbollah-and both groups are motivated by religion. In addition, several smaller groups want to follow in their path. Second, at first glance, because many of these groups are Islamic, it would seem to suggest the beginning of religious conflicts beyond nationalistic

“Terrorism's particularly heinous but highly attractive means to achieve political objectives or even radically restructure political foundations is manifest within societies in all reaches of the world. While the practical application of terrorist methodologies comes across as a relatively straightforward craft, the conceptual and ideological understanding, and subsequent evaluation of its socio-political influence, implementation, and psychological impacts present difficult questions, and in some cases conceivably insurmountable obstacles” (Romaniuk 2014, para

In examining Islamic terrorism, we are presented with two very different viewpoints from politicians. On the one side, we have John Kerry, who contends that terrorism is the result of barbarism…says “this is a battle between civilization itself and barbarism” (Kerry, 2015), and describes religious extremists as “psychopathic monsters”. When we reduce the actions of these people to barbarism and separate their brand of violence from our, as Mary Moran puts it, "[...] it provides a satisfying depiction of the fundamental difference between the deployment of U.S. military might and the "senseless violence" perpetrated by others" (Moran, 200; p. 251). She is quick to explain, however, that this strategy of explanation is counterproductive because

On September 11, 2001 the United States of America was forever changed. A series of attacks lead by a man named Osama Bin Laden, the leader of the organization called Al-Qaeda, would bring America into a new war, the War on Terror. This war would not be like the wars of before, nation against nation, but would rather be a much more global conflict (“War”). The war would also not merely involve the United States, but also every western country. The reason behind this war is one word, Jihad. The definition of jihad is “a war fought by Muslims to defend or spread their belief” (“Jihad”). The United States of America has changed the way it

With the event of 9/11, bin Laden hoped to rally the support of the vast populace whose grievances al-Qaeda claimed to champion for; though, on the contrary, Muslim states and sects instead deemed al-Qaida as “too radical.” Bin Laden had envisioned a militant, Islamist, caliphate for the Middle East. With this objective, al-Qaeda had already began alienating itself from much of the Muslim world by targeting other moderate Muslims who didn’t share their views and vision. "They made a world of enemies, which is never a winning strategy," Bergen asserted. Thus, the 9/11 attack missed the mark in igniting the rebellion against U.S./allied presence in the

Additionally, John Mueller lambasts what he labels as the socially constructed ‘terrorist industry,’ which he attacks for artificially inflating concerns over terrorist attacks. Instead, Mueller confirms that the damage caused by terrorism is not materially significant but stems primarily from the fear that it creates. Violent retaliation is viewed as a form of ‘self-flagellation’ that provides the terrorists with exactly what they want. As mentioned, realist definitions of power, self-interest and rationality lack explanatory prowess when non-state actors are able to subvert states thanks largely in part to the use of suicide-terrorism. The proliferation of terrorist groups and their use of suicide-tactics in many ways defies realist expectations and conclusions.

Terrorism, in a modern day perspective, has been molded as a Middle Eastern threat to Western Civilization; although the whole idea of terrorism itself has existed for ages. Undoubtedly, “The War on Terror,” is a western form of saying to depict the general aspect of terrorism. Through all aspects of the world, terrorism, is defined as an act of unruly and warlike tactics that mainly creates harm to civilians. Usually, these acts of violence are not simply for the use of harming citizens, but to voice specific mutinous organizations that do not comprehend with the standard civilization. This analysis will numerically discuss the main aspects of the United States intervention with terrorism, past terrorist acts, and a modern day

Since the brutalizing attacks that occurred in the United States on September 11, 2001, terrorist groups such as al Qaeda, and its subdivision turned adversary - the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria - which we affectionately refer to as ISIS, have metastasized into a worldwide threat that has shaken our way of life, our culture, and our approach to our opponents (Kohlmann). From 2013 to 2014 there was a whopping 35% increase in terrorism with attacks in 95 countries, proving that despite the valiant counterattacks, terrorism will not go down without a fight (Williams). Of course, the United States did declare a “war on terror” that despite many cons did result in the ultimate pro - the assassination of Osama bin Laden, the leader of al Qaeda and mastermind behind many terrorist attacks, including 9/11 (Shah). All casualties aside, the death of bin Laden, and more specifically the means by which his

The Islamic State of Iraq and Syria, popularly known as ISIS and Daesh, is the 21st centuries rising global threat to humanity. The world has united to reduce and ultimately prevent genocide. In the paper ISIS will be referenced as Daesh. The initial part of the essay will cover Daesh origins, ideology, goals, and objectives. It is essential to know the similarities of the present Daesh brutalities and historic barbarisms of Wahhabism. The rest of the essay will focus on leadership, funding, and capabilities, such as physical bases support locations. The conclusion will attempt to raise concern of the internal threat within the United States. This essay will be limited to sources not having access to restricted or classified information. The closing goal of this essay is to embolden the serious threat to the United States and other countries seeking pursuit of life, liberty and happiness.

On September 11,2001, the biggest terrorist attack on American soil that embarked a True American Form of Security against the parasitic influence of terrorism amongst organizations and civilizations. A targeted threat that many describe to have an affiliation with the Islamic State, a clear enemy against the United States, we have succumbed to fighting radicals of different forms in which they seek religious justice. Through time we have known terrorism as an attack on national security threatening the public, however since 9/11 we have identified the face of terrorism that follows through Islamic preach and influence. As a precedent factor to our xenophobic paranoia of an unknown attack, we can conclude or assume one suspect, however the

Kegley and Raymond stated: “The shape of the world’s future will be determined not only by changes in the objective conditions of world politics, but also by the meanings people ascribe to these conditions.” Terrorism is presently a major factor in international relations and has impacted the world to change in many significant ways. Terrorism is a political ideology that has been problematic in defining definitely because of its various interpretations around the world, as well as the fact that it is constantly evolving. Since the terrorist events of 9/11, the lives of many have been changed forever. A small group of individuals, which are a mere fraction of the population of the world, have managed to impact and shape the way international and domestic relations are looked at and handled. People question how secure and safe they feel due to uncertainty of public safety because of events such as 9/11. The war on terrorism in the 21st century has certainly and inevitably changed the landscape for global politics. However, the relationship between terrorism and global politics is troublesome and in ways problematic to describe accurately. Both terrorism and global politics individually are complicated phenomenon. It is erroneous to propose that one is responsible for the other or vice versa, but they are inextricably and inevitably linked. In the study of international relations, there are multiple theories and theoretical perspectives. In this essay, realism and liberalism

Differing accounts on either pole focus on al-Qaeda’s continued relevance as the premier terrorist network, whether it is any longer effective or not. From there, the natural conclusion comes around to asking how effective al-Qaeda is, and by which mechanisms does it project that effectiveness. Aside from this, both parties agree that al-Qaeda has an uncanny habit of surviving in the turbulent international dialectic that spawned radical Muslim distress, vicariously.