Ógra Shinn Féin Demand End to British Army Recruitment Drive

[Conor]

I prefer to call it "state terrorism", rather than simply "terrorism". Especially since some acts which are referred to as state terrorism could also be referred to as war crimes, whereas other acts may be legal and UN-mandated, so I think failing to distinguish illegal violence by non-state parties, and the use of force by states in order to coerce, muddles and confuses the issues.

Fair enough, but I'm inclined to think that setting up a definition of "terrorism" which applies only to non-state actors creates an even more confusing and muddlesome distinction. "State terrorism" is just another form of terrorism; any attempt defining the term should be broad enough to encompass this.

Certainly, the lawful use of coercive force by states shouldn't be considered terrorism, but I don't see the necessity of distinguishing between unlawful violence by any party, state or non-state (for the purposes of arriving at a definition).

How about: the calculated, unlawful use or threatened use of force or violence against a state, the public, private organisations, or property, with the intention of intimidating or coercing societies, governments, or private organisations, usually for ideological, religious or political reasons?

Or something like this:

"Terrorism is an anxiety-inspiring method of repeated violent action, employed by (semi-) clandestine individual, group or state actors, for idiosyncratic, criminal or political reasons, whereby - in contrast to assassination - the direct targets of violence are not the main targets. The immediate human victims of violence are generally chosen randomly (targets of opportunity) or selectively (representative or symbolic targets) from a target population, and serve as message generators. Threat- and violence-based communication processes between terrorist (organization), (imperilled) victims, and main targets are used to manipulate the main target (audience(s)), turning it into a target of terror, a target of demands, or a target of attention, depending on whether intimidation, coercion, or propaganda is primarily sought"

[true04]

How about: the calculated, unlawful use or threatened use of force or violence against a state, the public, private organisations, or property, with the intention of intimidating or coercing societies, governments, or private organisations, usually for ideological, religious or political reasons?

Or something like this:

"Terrorism is an anxiety-inspiring method of repeated violent action, employed by (semi-) clandestine individual, group or state actors, for idiosyncratic, criminal or political reasons, whereby - in contrast to assassination - the direct targets of violence are not the main targets. The immediate human victims of violence are generally chosen randomly (targets of opportunity) or selectively (representative or symbolic targets) from a target population, and serve as message generators. Threat- and violence-based communication processes between terrorist (organization), (imperilled) victims, and main targets are used to manipulate the main target (audience(s)), turning it into a target of terror, a target of demands, or a target of attention, depending on whether intimidation, coercion, or propaganda is primarily sought"

The first definition is better than the second, which includes the phrase "the direct targets of violence are not the main targets".

[Conor]

which includes the phrase "the direct targets of violence are not the main targets".

What's wrong with that?

[true04]

What was the main target in the Brighton bombing so for example / British democracy? Who was the main target if it was not the British prime minister and her cabinet and their families ?

Or for that matter the attempted mortar bombing of no. 10 Downing St.?
I suppose it was a change from putting mercury tilt switch bombs under the family cars of retired part-time policemen in the middle of the night and then running away, or shooting farmers in the back, or killing innocent civilians in restaurants.