Coffee and a Rebel or a Terrorist…

Windows to Russia

Rebel...

I was sipping that wonderful cup of coffee this morning and  thinking about why we as humans use different words for certain things. In this particular case the terms rebel and terrorist…

Russia has had big issues with these terms in the past and present. Russia considers the issues in the North Caucasus to be terrorism. The West continues to call the issues in Russia a rebellion…

Here is what Wikipedia has to say about the number one terrorist in Russia: Doku (Dokka) Khamatovich Umarov (born April 13, 1964) is a major Chechen Islamist “rebel” leader in Russia. He is responsible for numerous deadly attacks on civilians, earning himself the nickname “Russia’s Osama Bin Laden”…

So what is he? A rebel or a terrorist? (Osama Bin Laden is a terrorist but the Russian Osama Bin Laden is a rebel.”  I have to whole heartily agree with Russia. He is a lot more terrorist than rebel. As he likes to blow up metros and buses all around Russia and civilians are on top his list to kill…

Now lets see what each word (rebel and terrorist) means: (All terms can be found just Google them!)

A rebel is a participant in a rebellion; or more generally, an individual who resists authority or control…

A terrorist is one who participates in terrorism.

Which leads us to define terrorism.

Terrorism is the systematic use of terror especially as a means of coercion. No universally agreed, legally binding, criminal law definition of terrorism currently exists. Common definitions of terrorism refer only to those violent acts which are intended to create fear (terror), are perpetrated for a religious, political or ideological goal, deliberately target or disregard the safety of non-combatants (civilians), and are committed by non-government agencies.

OK – so we know have the basis of data of what is going through my head…

I then look and think about Libya… (Oh No!)

Qaddafi is calling it terrorism (al Qaeda?) and the West has decided that we will term them Rebels (al Qaeda?).  All news articles refer to rebels this and rebels that and rebels are trying so hard. We have made the world feel so bad for the rebels…

Wait a minute! If this is a possibility that al Qaeda could be behind this. If there is even a remote possibility. If there is even a inkling of a chance. Then why are we cheering them (opposition) on? I guess I am confused… 🙁

[pullquote]*** Remember in the last decade, strangely, a strong bond between Libya and the United States was against terrorism, which we all know that in the past this was not always true. Given that Libya has much experience with jihadists, and the forward role of Libyans in al Qaeda. This was a partnership that benefited both sides…[/pullquote]

Who is al-Qaeda, alternatively spelled al-Qaida and sometimes al-Qa’ida, is a militant Islamist group founded sometime between August 1988 and late 1989. It operates as a network comprising both a multinational, stateless army and a radical Sunni Muslim movement calling for global Jihad. Most of the world considers it a terrorist organization. Al-Qaeda has attacked civilian and military targets in various countries, most notably the September 11 attacks on New York City and Washington, D.C. in 2001. The U.S. government responded by launching the War on Terror…

OK lets get this straight: It is a possibility that al Qaeda really has caused this problem in Libya. Qaddafi really dislike the al Qaeda and they dislike him also. But isn’t the Western world wanting to support the rebels in Libya with their rebellion? (***)

Why we even want to supply weapons and such to the opposition in Libya… (al-Qaeda???? would not be the first time though…)

But back to the start of this post. A rebel or a terrorist?

We have made the word rebel to be a term that stands for good and right and justice. We have a movie that is well known: Rebel Without a Cause, with James Dean. Hollywood has used the term over and over for all these years and rebel is a wonderful thing to be called. Now in contrasting terms, terrorist has become the word of only the worst scourge that crawl the earth. And that term is alternated with rebel when the situation demands such…

The world has a long history of such flip flopping around on issues like this. (Hence the video that remembers a time of love and joy with Saddam Hussein.) But right now we all believe that Libya has rebels who are rebelling against a tyrant of such magnitude that he deserves to die. But not very many days ago,  He was Europe’s and Americas best friend in oil and terrorist control…

You know what? “With friends like that you do not need enemies…”
 

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