Terrorism here to stay Combs says

By Ryan Jenkins
Staff Writer

Cynthia Combs, a political science professor at UNC Charlotte, spoke to an audience of students and professors April 14. Combs addressed the issue of terrorism and common misconceptions about terrorists.

The first misunderstanding Combs discussed was the definition of terrorism.

Terrorism is best defined as an act of violence that targets civilians to create a mood of fear that has political motives.

Combs explained three classifications for terrorists: Criminals, Crazies, and Crusaders. Criminals expect to live through an event and get something out of it, crazies are people who exist in their own world and crusaders are acting for a higher cause and generally don’t even want to live through events. One of the problems with the War on Terror is that we aren’t used to dealing with Crusaders and they make up the majority of the terrorists.

Terrorists are not people who are born and raised in a normal environment the majority of the time; terrorists have to be “de-socialized,” essentially, mentally reprogrammed to accept things which you normally wouldn’t, i.e. killing innocent people for a cause, according to Combs.

Combs said airport security still checks shoes because of one failed attempt. Terrorists adapt quickly and modify their plans according to what measures we put into place.

In order to truly combat terrorism, Combs advocates helping other countries and preventing the creation of future “breeding grounds.” Otherwise, the War on Terror will continue forever, fighting against a nameless enemy. When response is necessary, invading countries should be avoided if unnecessary, as “mass force against terrorism makes the problem worse.”

As the lecture concluded, Combs said there is still a threat of terrorism in the United States and that everyone must be ready to do their part. She finished with the words of Edmund Burke: “All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing.”