Terrorism: a scary general perspective

I was fully hit by the events this morning when, as I was riding into work listening to some music, the song made me spontaneously burst into tears.

Later this morning I went out to get some cigarettes and coffee. As I was walking back to my car with the coffee in hand the thought occurred to me: What if this was a cup of acid? Dont’ ask why, we all ask ourselevs crazy questions everyday.

But the thought of splashing acid on someone reminds me of only one thing: George Orwell’s 1984. Remembre the scene at O’brien’s flat? He said something entirely similar to, “If we commanded you to throw acid in a child’s face would you do it?” And they answered yes.

And I, the reader totally engrossed in the story, was not in the least bit shocked by Winston and Julia’s affirmative response. Hell, I knew the children were all spies anyway. Winston and Julia were the Good Guys in all of this, subjected to an oppresive, invasive regime.

So while my empathy may have been zero, my sympathy was high. Having read this novel literally more than 50 times I actually feel I’ve gotten to know these characters as somewhere from personal friends to looking at them as myself (as all good novels do: they put you in the character’s shoes, even if told in third person omniscient like this one was).

In other words, that was me nodding to O’Brien.

I about dropped my fucking coffee, let me tell you, when I drew what may seem like an obvious parallel here to recent events.

I’ve recently been involved in many debates (recently meaning within the last few months here) involving sources of morality, moral and ethical justifications for action, sources of knowledge, and in personal discussion with friends about the applicability of emotions and their inherent worth.

And yet here I stand anyway: are we all terrorists?

Are we all terrorists?

No. We are all potential terrorists. We only become terrorists only when we give in to the darkness and inflict terror on those who have no cause to receive it.

My IMO, anyway.

Emotions are powerful motivators for action; they carry no worth when ‘expressed’ passively.

However, and I think this is what you are getting at, emotions, when stirred up can be overwhelmingly strong. Sometimes we let the basic emotions take over our intellect.

But for the life of me, I can’t understand how such brainwashing a la bin Ladin can occur in this world. So, I’d agree with rjung in that terrorism is possible in all people.

No, erislover, we are not all terrorists.

Unlike those of us who merely nod along with fictional depictions, terrorists have no moral questions facing them; they already know all the answers. They do not consider the validity of their assumptions. They are motivated exclusively by hatred and despair, their passions justified by whatever fanaticism drives them. They serve a Cause, or a jihad, or some other corruption of belief.

We are not terrorists who don’t hold all members of a different nation, creed or system as our enemies.

We are not terrorists who try and understand our own fears and hatreds, who work to understand others’ fears and hatreds.

We are not terrorists who work for peaceful solutions, who pursue conflicts reluctantly, but with firm resolve.

WE ARE NOT TERRORISTS who answer to the love in our hearts, at least as much as to the hatred.

We are not terrorists who answer to the love in our hearts.