http://www.commondreams.org/archive/2008/04/13/8249
After a thorough reading of Tony Judt's article I saw some correlations between his argument and the topic I plan to research. I am in complete agreement with Judt in his statement concerning the "omnipresence" of modern terrorism. Before 9-11 the American public was so introverted that they refused to see the terrorist activity that was not only taking place all around the world, but in their backyard as well. Judt is right, we have been ignorant. Ignorant of the fact that terrorists have "been with us for well over a century." Ignorant of the fact that there are extremists taking action in major cities all over the world as well as throughout many cities in America. For example, while many people recognized the terrorism of the Irish Republican Army (IRA) overseas, we failed to see that a smaller group of Irish mobsters in our own country was staging many similar acts. Both groups use random killings and an involvement in the drug trade to gain power in their respective areas. I wish I could say more about this topic, however my knowledge is limited to what I have heard from my family and friends in Ireland. I hope to find some tangible sources to learn from over the course of this project. While I do not know many details of the similarities between the IRA and the Irish gangs in America, I seek to learn and incorporate the involvement of terrorism in Irish gangs and armies in my research project.
Very interesting piece. Do you think that we as Americans now realize that terrorism exists and thrives within our borders post-9/11? I don't think so. If anything, I think 9/11 focused America's attention on terrorism emanating from the breeding grounds for Islamic extremism (Afghanistan, Syria and Somalia). I know I didn't include Iraq...that's another discussion. What attention was placed on domestic terrorism in the aftermath of James "Whitey" Bolger's reign of violence in Boston or Timothy McVeigh's bombing in Oklahoma City shifted to the Islamic world in the "War on Terror." I fear that it will take a catastrophe of immense proportions to shift the focus back to terrorists thriving in our own cities. We are still "ignorant."
ReplyDeleteI still recall the day McVeigh attacked the Oklahoma City Federal Building. Most news sources were convinced that Islamic radicals were to blame, and people were genuinely surprised to discover that right-wing nativist terrorism exists here as well. Also--many Americans have forgotten the terrorism of the RAF in Germany during the 70s. Watch Spielberg's "Munich" to get a feel for that period.
ReplyDelete