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Perspectives

Canadian terrorists who live forever in infamy

It was the US artist Andy Warhol who once said “In the future, everyone will be world-famous for 15 minutes”, a phrase that seems to have underscored a universal desire to get noticed.  There is no question that it is much easier in a world of 24/7 news to have one’s story told: recall the […]

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Can ‘moderate’ Islam top ‘extremist’ Islam?

My late mother had a lot of great advice for me, much of which I followed and much of which has helped me immensely in life.  One maxim that she shared with me has been ignored however.  That would be the time she said it is a good idea never to engage in conversation on […]

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Perspectives

Freedom from fear of terrorism is in our grasp

I had the pleasure last week of hearing former Canadian Senator Hugh Segal give a talk at an event sponsored by the Canadian International Council on his book ‘Two Freedoms: Canada’s global future‘. He spoke of the famous ‘freedoms’ first put forward by US President Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1941: freedom of worship, freedom of […]

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Is there a worrisome link between RW terrorism and the military?

Every time you attend an Ottawa Senators home game there is a moment, usually during the second period, where a member of the Canadian military is honoured in a commemoration called ‘Heroes’ Ridge’.  Fans stand and give the soldier a standing ovation – even the players on the ice tap their sticks – and I […]

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Why isn’t there a Rorschach Test for terrorism?

You all know what a Rorschach ink blot test is.  Invented back in 1917 by a Swiss psychiatrist working on his own in an asylum, the test has been used for decades and has also been the butt of jokes for almost as long. In the movie What About Bob, hypochondriac Bill Murray relates the […]

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Perspectives

Can we please stop lionising terrorists and extremists?

Now that the recommendations of the Iacobucci Commission in Canada have finally been implemented and three Canadians who claim to have been tortured in Syria with the alleged complicity of the Canadian government and CSIS have settled their case, it is time for a comment.  A few weeks have passed and I for one can […]

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What if CVE effectiveness cannot be measured?

Knowing that what you are doing is the right thing is important.  There are all kinds of ideas in all kinds of fields of study and practice but they are not all equal.  Some are clearly better than others.  One way of telling which ones are which is to measure what they purport to do. […]

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Perspectives

When is a terrorist attack not a terrorist attack?

It is really hard to come up with a definition of terrorism that all agree on.  Every country seems to have its own version and while there are of course similarities there are also differences and some of these may have legal ramifications.  Then there is the non-legal definition: i.e. what the average person thinks […]

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Perspectives

Do immigrants and asylum seekers pose a terrorist threat?

The news coming out of Stockholm is all too familiar these days.  A man stole a beer truck and drove it down a popular pedestrian mall in the centre of town, mowing down people before crashing into a storefront.  The use of a vehicle to cause terror has become a trend of late and attacks […]

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Perspectives

Should we charge returning foreign fighters with terrorism?

The RCMP announced yesterday that they have arrested Pamir Hakimzadah and charged him with leaving Canada to join Islamic State, meaning that he is charged with terrorism. This is a big deal.  It represents, to my knowledge, the first returning foreign fighter to be charged under the provisions of section 83.01 of the Canadian Criminal […]