The Logic of Terrorism

So, I have been trying to figure this terrorist thing out. Generally speaking, everything we do has a purpose, so there must be a purpose to what these nitwits are doing. I must assume that the purpose is to convince others to take some action.

What doesn't seem to make sense to me is that the only action I am convinced to do is to kick their ass. If I were trying to convince someone to do something, I probably wouldn't blow myself up in a crowd of people. This seems a bit counter productive. You see, if I blow myself up, I am not around to experience the result of the thing that I am trying to convince others to do. Also, I have just blowed up a bunch of people that I was trying to convince.

So my conclusion is that my underlying assumption must be wrong. There must be some other purpose. Perhaps we can look at the great successful and unsuccessful movements of history to gain more insight. Let's check a few out and we'll grade them.

The Crusades - Not our greatest moment
Hitler genocide - Resulted in a German ass whuppin'
Tutsis and Hootoos - These bone heads are still kickin' each others asses
Middle East Conflict - What the fuck?
Gandi peaceful civil disobedience - Social change in India
Milosavich genocide - A bitter twisted old man sitting in jail
Martin Luther King peaceful civil disobedience - Social change in the US
Berlin Wall dropped - Social change throughout Eastern Europe
Montgomery Bus Boycott - we all know how that turned out

Note the trend. Nonviolent change - successful, Violent change - unsuccessful. Hmmmm
Let us all hope and pray that the trend grows and continues

All content copyright of Christopher Hammond

Bombs? Really?

This must be the age of the bomb. We have already had a Unabomber; suicide bombers in Iraq, Afghanistan, and Pakistan; Oklahoma City; plane bombs of all types; embassy bombings; and now the marathon bomber. I just do not get it. What is accomplished by blowing others up? What is accomplished by blowing yourself up?

I am talking to the bomber now - so put down that wad of C4 and pay attention. It seems to me that the only things that are accomplished are that you kill or maim a few people that have nothing to do with what you were pissed about in the first place. You also piss off a bunch more people that were not even aware that you existed. In the worst case, you actually blow yourself up by mistake.

I must assume that you are blowing people up because you want something to change. What could that be? The only thing that has changed is that you now have an exponentially larger group of people that want to kick your ass than you had before the bomb went off.

So I must ask - why would someone want more people mad at them? Could it be that they want to leave a lasting legacy for all of their friends and family? "Yeah, good old Joe, he sure was a great guy. Too bad he blowed hisself up, maiming 10 innocent people. He sure will be missed."

Sheesh!

Myself, I would rather be fondly remembered.

All content copyright of Christopher Hammond