Terrorism as Multiple Murder, Thesis Paper Example

Modern history and international conflicts have placed terrorism in the forefront of global consciousness. Intrinsically removed from traditional acts of war, it is nonetheless commonly viewed as an unforeseeable and traumatically destructive form of warfare. In the public mind at large, terrorism is a deed born virtually entirely from a political and/or religious agenda, and not usually looked upon as, essentially, the act of multiple murder is so often is. Horrific and daunting, terrorism nevertheless escapes associations of being a strictly ‘criminal’ activity.

It is vital that terrorism be examined, however, in just that light. To randomly attribute its presence solely to extremist ideals is to ignore that the pathology of a multiple murderer, or murderers, is essential to it. Causes and alleged motivations may or may not be valid in individual instances of terrorism, but what it always irrefutably present is a mentality that exhibits an utter disregard for life or a distinct desire to end it. There can be no terrorism, no matter how emphatically supported a cause or goal is, without this element of the murderer.

Combating terrorism remains, not unexpectedly, a complex challenge. However, in investigating the known and documented pathologies of other forms of multiple murder which inherently lie within terrorism, a clearer sense of dealing with its aftermath and in suitably punishing offenders may be had. Moreover, this better understanding must be beneficial in efforts to forestall acts of terrorism; to know the mind of any sort of murderer at all is to obtain a better grasp on potential occurrences of the crime.

Outline

• Terrorism and Murder: Distinctions?

Impact of Terrorism

Public Perceptions

The Subterfuge of ‘Cause’

• The Terrorist Mind
• Pathology of the ‘Classic’ Multiple Murderer

The Non-Serial Killer

The Sociopath

The Purposeful Murderer

• Candidates for Terrorist Murderer Roles
• Differences between Terrorist and Non-Politically Inspired Murderer
• Conclusion

References 

Boros, J., Munnich, I., & Szegedi, M. (1998.) Psychology and Criminal Justice: International Review of Theory and Practice. Berlin, Germany: Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co.

Kauzlarich, D.  (2009.) Introduction to Criminology. Lanham, MD: Rowman and Littlefield Publishers, Inc.

Kocsis, R.N. (2006.) Criminal Profiling: Principles and Practice. Totowa, NJ: Humana Press.