Domestic Terrorism - Term Paper Example

? Domestic Terrorism Domestic terrorism is describes terrorism from within a nation. It is any criminal offence plotted or executed by a local citizen against his people or government. Individuals or groups of people who have a motive of achieving a political or religious interest carry it out. These individuals or groups are dissatisfied with the activities of the government. Usually such groups are made up of activists, environmentalists or any other individual with ill motives against his or fellow civilians or government (Valerie and Borgeson, 2009). The terror acts carried out include violent demonstrations destroying property, using any weapon that harms life especially use of grenades, poisonous gases, machine guns and others. Domestic terrorism can have gross effects on a nation as those carrying out the attacks are living among the people they want to attack. A government should be aware of the possible risk of terrorism from within and take the necessary precautions. The American government is wary of domestic terrorism more than any nation. The government comprises of several states coming together to form one hierarchical ruler -ship. The issue of mixed race also increases the chances of occurrence of domestic terrorism as one race rises against the other (Hewitt, 2003). Different religions all demanding a voice exist .Human right activists are very assertive and can stage demonstrations to air their grievances or influence one group of people against the other. With all these possible risks of terror from within, the intelligence unit has a responsibility of ensuring that the people enjoy security and peace. Domestic terrorism therefore still poses a great threat to America’s security. In the recent past, several cases of domestic attacks appear in police reports. There was the case of a man who tried to harm people in a large building with poisonous gas. Luckily, police arrested before he could execute his mission. A different case in record was when a group of people broke windows of democratic offices expressing their dissatisfaction with the services they offered. These people demanded more from them. Reported also are several other cases of people plotting out attacks and making orders for materials for use in such attacks. Other Americans reported to oppose some military activities staged a protest. According to Cleto (1999), other reports of domestic violence are cases whereby scientists face accusations of engaging in bio-terrorism either intentionally or accidentally. In such cases, chemical toxins or harmful biological materials are released into the environment, harming human or the environment. These scientists compromise on the rules of bio-security and therefore leak material. In other cases, potential terrorists gain entry into laboratories and access hazardous material. According to the rules of bio-security, such material should be inaccessible. This type of terrorism can cause gross negative effects on the environment and on man. Scientists are educated on the procedures or ensuring responsibility. In addition, they should be more aware of the people gaining entry into research laboratories. The research laboratories are fitted with a tight security system to minimize entry of unauthorized personnel. Despite all these prevention measures, bioterrorism poses a risk of harm in America. After America managed to defeat al-Qaeda, a new form of domestic terrorism evolved. Members of this group have been attempting to buy Americans, train them, and supply them with weapons. These Americans can therefore plot terror attacks in their own country with little suspicion. Non-patriotic Americans can agree to an agreement of this type and therefore pose a threat to society. A terror attack of this type is risky as it is not easy to identify such individuals. Another form of domestic terrorism occurs when the military are involved in extra-judicial killings. In this case, the military that is supposed to protect the people harms the people. Cases like these may occur accidentally at times. On other occasions however, some military men and women defy the law and attack civilians. In January this year, one man gunned down six people in Arizona. This was an extreme in the performance of normal duties as the victims were innocent. Even though there are strict regulations surrounding the conduct of the military, cases as these occur and pose a great threat to the people (Piazza, 2011). With all these forms of domestic terrorism, it is evident that the intelligence agencies should be wary of possible terror attacks. Perpetuators of such terror acts may be working singly or in an organization. It poses a greater threat when they are working singly because they can attack anytime. Groups on the contrary need to agree amongst each other on the most appropriate time to pull an attack off. When democratic organization carries out a protest, it may lead to destruction of property or blockage of transport networks. These usually pose a risk, as they are vocal and influence a large number of people that end up participating in the protest. Comparing the risk posed by domestic terrorism and international terrorism is critical. Usually the enemy within can cause great destruction if he or she manages to plot the attack well and get supply of the material they need (Perl, 2010). Therefore, domestic terrorism is more dangerous, in my opinion. The enemy within does not need to gain entry into the country, as he or she is a resident already. He only needs to be choosing a strategic place and time to execute his mission. Domestic terrorism may not cause gross effects but tracing the perpetuator becomes a challenge. Having an enemy from within becomes tricky to handle because he or she may be our next-door neighbor or workmate and nobody may suspect them. These people may harm fellow civilians in their homes or work places. When the enemy is a foreigner, one is always cautious. The boundaries of America are always under surveillance. It is easier to identify the foreigner who is plotting an attack. However, foreign terrorists may plot serious terror acts. A great percentage of terror attacks in America are domestic. Many people are tempted to think that Arabs and Muslims perpetuate most of the attacks. With no intention of under estimating what Muslims and Arabs are capable of doing, Americans should be wary of the internal enemy. It is worth noting that cases of domestic terrorism are on the rise. There are individuals in America who have desire for power; they want to dominate the entire world. These people will pay any price to gain power, even if that means poisoning, the minds of fellow civilians so that they bring down the current government and then establish their new form of government (Pillar, 2003). These people pose a great risk to the security of the people. Potential terrorists driven by the greed for power and opposed to the current government are dangerous. They seize to become patriotic and they can easily team up to cause terror in their own land. Others rise against a certain race or a religion that they are opposed to because of personal or political reasons. For example, there are individuals seeking to destroy Muslims and Arabs. Others are out to strike the blacks while some blacks are out to strike whites so that they access leadership. Domestic terrorism is truly a challenge to the American government. The government has therefore come up with strategies to combat domestic terrorism. The primary goal is to stop these people before they execute their attacks. The government has registered success in this so far and other measures are in place to minimize or completely wipe out this form of terrorism. The intelligence unit is doing a lot more to ensure they capture potential terrorists before they execute their mission. All partners in the intelligence unit and staff involved in law enforcement are currently working in a team in order to centralize operations. This increases effectiveness in combating terrorism. They assess the possible risks and develop management strategies. In addition, a hierarchical cooperation ensures an open system of communication from the task forces to the locals. Currently, they are carrying out investigations of possible terror attacks and identifying potential perpetuators. The public has a great responsibility too. Advice to the public is that everyone should be more conscious of the people around him or her. Responsibility involves reporting any member of the public who behaves suspiciously. Members of the public should be aware that personal responsibility is essential. They should ensure basic safety in the areas they live and work. If the public is committed to prevent cases of domestic terror, its occurrence will go down. Enactment of the patriotism act was also a benchmark in combating domestic terrorism. This act elaborates activities considered potential sources of terrorism. This act was gazetted and the public made aware of its contents. It also states openly the sentence that one found guilty of the offences so elaborated gets. Because of this, the public understands the definition of domestic terrorism according to America’s law. Another strategy is strict regulations governing protests and demonstrations. These should be peaceful. Members of the public should use a legal procedure to air their grievances. They should not involve themselves in damage of property or mass destruction. People participating in violent protests should face legal charges. They should also pay heavy fines in compensation of the damage caused by their rampages. People staging these rampages should face prosecution. The American military should place a check in their military operations. The members of the military should have limitations in their use of weapons. They should abstain from excess use of their power. They should not torture criminal suspects. They should protect but not harm the civilian. In case they abuse office, they should face prosecution. As argued by Miller, (2008), the government should enact strict regulations to industries and research organizations harboring any potentially hazardous material. These include chemical, biological, and radically damaging material. Research institutions handling emerging world’s level four viruses and other microorganisms that cause incurable and death causing diseases should exercise high levels of bio-security to avoid harming man and his environment. The personnel should unauthorized access to such material. Putting all the above strategies into place can reduce domestic terrorism. The American people need to get rid of the enemy within so that they no longer live with the fear of the unknown. People suffer loss of life, property damage, increased insecurity in residential areas and work places and other effects brought about by bio-terrorism such as incurable diseases. It also results to economic instabilities in cases whereby attacks target business premises. Interruption of transport means causes desperation if hijacking occurs and delay in cases where protestors block roads. These are but a few of the devastating effects of domestic terrorism. It is clear therefore that this issue needs serious addressing (Levin, 2006). Domestic terrorism is a menace in society. Americans should learn to be more patriotic and report any foreign enemies paying them to inflict terror on their people. Protestors should be more civilized and avoid violence. With joint effort from everyone, domestic terrorism can reduce by a great percentage. It is worth appreciating the effort made by the law forces because they have been able to stop some potential attacks before execution. Americans should realize that they contribute to the making of the America they so desire. Peace and security maintenance is the responsibility of both the law forces and the citizens (Piazza, 2011). People should learn to appreciate the right to hold different opinions and views and respect each other. People should learn to appreciate the different races and religions. Despite all these differences, they are citizens of one great nation. America should not lose the fight against domestic terrorism; it should fight until the end. Both domestic and international terrorism pose a threat to the American public and the government should not relent. There is hope that America will know the meaning of peace and security. The people will live together in peace, democracy will reign, and there will be both political and economic stability. Everyone dreams of this America, therefore everyone should work towards the making of this America. Addressing domestic terrorism will therefore be a great move towards achieving this dream; the peaceful America. References Cleto DiGiovanni, M.D. (1999). Domestic Terrorism With Chemical or Biological Agents: Psychiatric Aspects. The American Journal of Psychiatry, Vol. 156, No. 10. Retrieved on November 17, 2011, from http://ajp.psychiatryonline.org/article.aspx?articleID=173732 Hewitt, C. (2003). Understanding terrorism in America: from the Klan to al Qaeda. New York: Routledge. Levin, J. (2006). Domestic terrorism. New York: Infobase Publishing. Miller, H. I. (2008). Thwarting Domestic Terrorism: Vandalism and Violent Acts That Sabotage Experiments Are a Threat to All Researchers Vol. 28, No. 16. Retrieved on November 17, 2011, from, http://www.genengnews.com/gen-articles/thwarting-domestic-terrorism/2597/ Perl, F. R. (2010). International Terrorism: Threat, Policy, and Response. New York: DIANE Publishing. Piazza, A. P. (2011). Poverty, minority economic discrimination, and domestic terrorism. Journal of Peace research. 48 (3) 339-353. Pillar, P. (2003). Terrorism and U.S. foreign policy. Washington D.C: Brookings Institution Press. Valerie, R. and Borgeson, K. (2009). Terrorism in America. New York: Jones and Bartlett Learning. Read More