Wasn't it worth mentioning in the opening that the drive/car/tractor attacks that had never been tried in America have been prevelant in Israel since 1993? This includes initiating car crashes on purpose, driving into crowded bus stops and driving huge tractors over people on main roads and into busses. There is precedence for this.

The usual anti Muslim rant, albeit it less fervid. At peak Al Qaeda numbered less than1000. Yet the entire US Govt and others have conflated this piddly bunch of terrorist to smear 1.5 billion people. The over reaction to 9/11 led to the invasion ioi Afghanistan, when no Afghan had hurt an American (on the contrary they did the US and everyone else a favor by defeating the Sovet military) has unmade hundreds of millions of "friends", cash cost of at least a $1 trillion, an economic cost of several trillion$ and proving that tthe US military brass is corrupt and the most incompetent bunch since the pre world war 2 French General Staff.

In any case the Talebs ar not Islamic militantst: they are Pushtoon ntaionalists kicking out hated invaders, be they Americans,Tajiks, Uzbek and Hazara. And number less thn 25,000 out of the Pushtoon population of 45 million.

And then invading Iraq. For totally fabricated reasons made more obscene by claiming that Saddam was an immediate (45 minutes exitential threat to western society. And the Government still floats the lie, as that idiot Panet did last month, that we are in Iraq because of AQ! Even though 9 /11 Commission proved that there was no evidence. The reason for violence today is the total break down of society created by the US, specifically Paul Bremer, of Kissinger Associates. Resulting in the death, wounding and impoverishment of millions of Iraqis, when not one Iraqi had hurt an Americans

So who is the mass terrorist? Go it self suckered into the state we are in.

Suicide has been the standard weapon of terrorism employed in legitimate warfare. What did the semi literate rednecks rush the Union guns knowing that they would die ? Slavery!

Worse still the slaughter by millions in WW1 in the batltes of Somme, Passchendale, Ypres and Verdun. For what? King and Coutnry, Deuschland und Kaiser, and La Gloire et Marianne. Brave patriots slaughtered by their own brass .

.

Yo, the only answer is....

They are fighting Qaddafi in Libya, dude!!

Professor Kurzman, get control of your fears. This article demonstrates the worst of the worst coping methodologies. In this article, you have successfully created associations between everything that scares you.

Come to grips with the fact that al Qaeda and Islam are not synonyms.

Your perspective is ignorant.

The article dwells on inability of Islamic terrorists inspire, motivate an army of teeming suicide bombers.

That may not have happened due to all the reasons and conjectures explained.

To cause horrors of 9/11, it only needed 19 suicide bombers, few motivators, planers and handlers based not in USA, but in Pakistan and Germany.

Western Academics and intellectual could not see the long term effects of activating concept of Jihad to evict godless communists from Afghanistan.

Movie star turned President, Ronald Reagan greatly espoused ideals of Jihad and even lamented its absence of in Christianity.

Since late 1970s, two countries have been in forefront of exploding acute Islamic Fanaticism and terrorism.

The Rich Shaikhs of Saudi Arabia sitting on huge hydro carbon reserve and trillions of dollar Black Dollar revenue, bankroll and promote Islamic fanaticism and terrorism. By this strategy Saudi Arabia keeps home grown extremist busy and get killed elsewhere.

Pakistan has turned itself by its own myopic policies and compulsions of events in to a hotbed of religious fanaticism and terrorism. Pakistani state and non state actors facilitated freedom of Omar Shaikh, from Indian prison, through hijacking of Indian Airlines flight IC 184, from Kathmandu to New Delhi.
Omar Shaikh was given freedom, cover and resources to plan 9/11 by ISI of Pakistan and was caught hiding in house of powerful Jamainti- Islami serving deputy mayor of Rawalpindi.

Trigger happy and myopic Pakistani Army guarding its much gloated been highly indoctrinated by Jihadi fanaticism.

As per many experts, Jihadis don't need to steal the Nukes, as these toys might be gifted or smuggled out by bunch of fanatic Pakistani Army officers.

The danger is clear and present , the possibility of such a horrendous scenario would be far more catastrophic than what could be achieved by unending supply of home grown Islamic suicide bombers, with in America.

These events are becoming more frequent. At least until America and beyond, will cease to judge different people of the world. In her quest after expansion, cultures and civilizations destroy America, and this feels. Not only the Arab world feels it (there is about oil and resources). Take the case of Finnish terrified that country. Why did those murders? Because globalization take effect. And not only positive but some negative. This is the modern world and we must get used to it. Everywhere deepens the gap between rich and poor, and that feeds the hatred between peoples, and even hatred between nations. Capitalism, at its height begins to collapse because of this social inequities.

Terrorism Has NO Religion!!! get it into your head

Hello Prof. Kurzman,

Good, informative article. Few of us are losing sleep on the relative paucity of terrorists in our streets, but maybe we should ask ourselves why, indeed.

I found one bone of contention. You probably already heard this warning: never let the adversary define the vocabulary you use.

Here, you use the term "kuffar" as an Arabic synonym of infidel. This is not correct. Serious etymologists point out that the Kafirs (or Cafres) are an African tribe that was mercilessly raided by Arabic slavers starting from the 16th century -- the date the term first appears. The animist Kafirs were held in even lower regard than the Christian Roumis (or white) captured in European countries. The term Kafir became an insult, in the same vein as the English word "ni**er".

Far from being a harmless theological term, the word "kafir" in its varied spellings is an ethnic slur that should be banned from civilized conversation. Muslims that utter it in presence of others are often simply misinformed, but some know precisely what they are doing.

Please do not kowtow to the enemy by using their slurs.

Thank you,
--FK

In the recent riots in English cities three very respectable young Muslims were killed by a hit and run driver while on the street to deter rioters from entering their community. The father of one of these young men gave an exemplary speech in public asking, rather demanding, that people stay calm, return to their homes and provide information to the police to help apprehend the criminals. Later over 20000 people, mainly Muslims, met at a memorial service in one of the city's parks. These actions received widespread coverage in the media and have greatly enhanced the reputation of the Muslim community in Britain.

BTW - I'm not a muslim!

Nice try at a defence.

Fact is the use of the term "so few" - why are there "so few"? - is measured against a theoretically possibly high number, rather than an historically likely high number. In other words you're using math to judge history.

Well, let's just stay inside history if we're going to talk about history.

Historically, no single religion has produced more terrorists on this planet than Islam. Islam is about it. Jihad. Holy War. It's in the Rule Book.

Okay, if you wish, we can return to the mathematical. Mathematically, even if there are proportionately few when judged against the theoretical, if you compare this to other worldviews this still spikes far higher than the norm.

I know we'll get the cognitive dissonants who refuse to see a worldview as a human construct but as a biological one (a "race"?), but alas... It's a set of rules at the end of the day. A worldview.

Kurzman is right . it is harder to find a suicide bomber these days. It is equally hard to find people in the West still listening to the official mambo-jambo.

The old stereotypes are wearing out. They do not work in this globalised world.
And the longer we continue to apply the old way of thinking the further we are from any chance of figuring out whats going on!

The author seem to find himself a dubious consolation in statistics. The problem is it is not them vs. us anymore. We are in it together and we are as confused as them (him-Taheri-Azar)!

yea, they are Pushtoon ntaionalists kicking out hated invaders, be they Americans,Tajiks, Uzbek and Hazara. And number less thn 25,000 out of the Pushtoon population of 45 million.....iagreee! thanks for sharing
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Terrorism is still rampant in its hydra-headed form everywhere. Suicide-bombers are like the systemic enzymes of Jihad; they speed up the warfare by acting like a catalyst, but unlike the systemic enzymes, they are not found throughout the Muslim terrorist outfits. Though the terrorist organizations take pride in converting their members into suicide bombers, individuals themselves are not that keen in this aspect of terrorism. Their numbers have gone down drastically at least in the Western world though same cannot be said of the countries like Pakistan and Afghanistan where, once in every few days a suicide bomber destroys the social order, taking down many lives.

"[T]he process of receiving a permit for a handgun in this city is highly restricted and out of my reach at the present," Taheri-Azar complained in the letter he left on his bed for the police.

Where is the Second Amendment when we need it?

This guy should've been able to buy a whole pantload of firepower on the spur of the moment.

Right to keep and bear arms, my fanny.

There are a couple of things pretty obvious to me. (1) WTC7 collapse makes it obvious that the government's entire conspiracy theory is subterfuge. (2) It is obvious that OBL was not alive to make statements after 2003 or so. This is the lens I using in reading essays such as this ... and it has served me very well.

So any references to OBL statements made after 2003; or any reference to 9/11 being a terrorist attack by 19 cave men immediately de-legitimizes any arguments driven by the piece.

Interesting article. Some good really good points made above, I agree with some of them. Thanks for the article. Kindest regards, Mad DJ Clive

...and the insane tend to be less competent that the sane--QED.

Since the incident in Sweden should clearly separate the Arab world terrorism. Both Arabs and other people have a very peaceful culture. Terrorism is born of some nations understand how to behave with other nations. When people feel oppressed resort to extreme gestures to be able to be heard. It's like David and Goliath story. The poor, oppressed, try to do something, even if the path chosen is not good. Must try to respect people and such things will cease.

August 14, 2011 report: "UN figures released last month showed that the first six months of 2011 had been the deadliest of the war for ordinary Afghans, with 1,462 killed, a rise of 15 percent on the same period last year. The same UN report blamed 80 percent of those civilian casualties on insurgents.

US and other Nato commanders have claimed success in halting the momentum of a growing insurgency in seoexpert the Taliban heartland in the south over the past year, although insurgents have hit back with strikes against targets in once relatively peaceful parts of the country.

A recent spike in violence also followed the beginning of a gradual process to hand security responsibility back to Afghans last month.UN figures released last month showed that the first six months of 2011 had been the deadliest of the war for ordinary Afghans, with 1,462 killed, a rise of 15 percent on the same period last year. The same UN report blamed 80 percent of those civilian casualties on insurgents.

US and other Nato commanders have claimed success in halting the momentum of a growing insurgency in the Taliban heartland in the south over the past year, although insurgents have hit back with strikes against targets in once relatively peaceful parts of the country.

A recent spike in violence also followed the beginning of a gradual process to hand security responsibility back to Afghans last month."UN figures released last month showed that the first six months of 2011 had been the deadliest of the war for ordinary Afghans, with 1,462 killed, a rise of 15 percent on the same period last year. The same UN report blamed 80 percent of those civilian casualties on insurgents.

US and other Nato commanders have claimed success in halting the momentum of a growing insurgency in the Taliban heartland in the south over the past year, although insurgents have hit back with strikes against targets in once relatively peaceful parts of the country.

A recent spike in violence also followed the beginning of a gradual process to hand security responsibility back to Afghans last month."

And Palestinian land will shrink, suicide bombers will respond, rockets will be launched and Israelis killed. Now Hezbollah and Sunnis have started up again in Lebanon. And Iran is powering up its nuclear capacity. Israel may feel impelled to react at some point if it calculates either Lebanon or Iran needs to be nipped in the bud. Add Syria to the toxic mix in Lebanon; and if things boil over there then Palestine will be left to sit and stew on the perennial international back burner. Hope, at this point, is not even a diamond in the rough. porno porno porno porno sikiş web tasarım

And Palestinian land will shrink, suicide bombers will respond, rockets will be launched and Israelis killed. Now Hezbollah and Sunnis have started up again in Lebanon. And Iran is powering up its nuclear capacity. Israel may feel impelled to react at some point if it calculates either Lebanon or Iran needs to be nipped in the bud. Add Syria to the toxic mix in Lebanon; and if things boil over there then Palestine will be left to sit and stew on the perennial international back burner. Hope, at this point, is not even a diamond in the rough. porno porno porno porno sikiş web tasarım