[thechat] Mumbai Bomb Blasts

Martin Paul Burns martin.burns at uk.ibm.com
Tue Sep 2 12:20:09 CDT 2003


Drew wrote:
>   The only difference between terrorists and the people who were
>responsible for the establishment of the Irish Free State is that there's
>now an Irish Free State. The people executed after the fiasco that was the

>Easter Rebellion in 1916 were treated exactly as anyone touting the death
>penalty for terrorists would have *them* treated, and yet they're now
>regarded as heroes and patriots.

>   If anyone can point out to me any other difference, I'll be very
>interested to hear it, but thus far I see no sensible argument for
>executing terrorists while simultaneously holding people like Michael
>Collins up as heroes.

Greater level of double standards: Menachim Begin. Or more than a few of
the US founding fathers. Or, for that matter, pretty much any leader of a
government established by breaking away from a former regime within their
adult lifetime.

It's absolutely clear that in the non-objective language of 'terrorism',
the difference between 'terrorist' and 'statesman' is only the point in
time relative to the success of their struggle, not the acts they're
responsible for.

Which is a lot more objective than the definition of 'rogue state', which
is entirely dependent on whether the state in question follows US orders
and regularly places contracts with US companies. The trajectory of Iraq
1980-2000 is particularly illustrative.

That bloke Chomsky has a good methodology of paired examples of this.

Cheers
Martin



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