Categories
Perspectives

I’m sorry I joined a terrorist group. Can I go home now?

Are we in the West suffering from collective naivete?  Are we ignoring an obvious threat to public safety?  Are we failing to understand that there are citizens among us who can do real harm? I am referring of course to the phenomenon of ‘foreign fighters’, Westerners who left of their own free will to join […]

Categories
Perspectives

The cutting edge of terrorism and flying

Anyone who has flown on an airline since 9/11 knows it is not fun. Those ads from the 1950s that show the glamour and luxury of international travel are dated curiosities of yesteryear.  Whether it is the increased nickle and diming of ever more services – checked bags (leading to the competition for overhead bin […]

Categories
Perspectives

The real impact of terrorism – shattered lives

This blog appeared in The Hill Times on November 13, 2017 (http://www.hilltimes.com/2017/11/13/real-impact-terrorism-shattered-lives/125186) In the aftermath of a terrorist attack we all go through a typical laundry list of questions.  Who is behind this act and did he act alone?  Are there others out there?  What will he be charged with? What can we do to […]

Categories
Perspectives

The terrorists’ growing arsenal of weapons

I am fairly certain that I have mentioned on more than one occasion that I really enjoy the humour of Monty Python.  One of the sillier skits – not that it is easy to choose just one – was when John Cleese plays a drill sergeant trying to teach recruits how to defend themselves against […]

Categories
Perspectives

What to do when your child runs away to become a terrorist

As a parent I know what it is like to worry about my kids.  I still worry about them, even though they are all in their twenties and doing very well, since that is what being a parent is all about.  After all, you want what is best for them, even when they do really […]

Categories
Perspectives

Overseas military deployment and terrorism: a mixed bag

I suppose that in many ways none of this should be unexpected.  Its obviousness does not make it right, however.  There are lots of things that we do not question that are nevertheless the wrong way of looking at things. I am referring here to the belief that we are at ‘war with terrorism’.  The […]

Categories
Perspectives

What we know about the attack in Manhattan so far

The city of New York, the site of the world-changing events of 9/11, appears to have suffered its worst single attack of terrorism since that fateful date 16 years ago.  A man drove a rented Home Depot truck onto a pedestrian pathway in lower Manhattan, striking cyclists and killing at least eight (six were declared […]

Categories
Perspectives

Why the CCCEPE is in the wrong department

First of all kudos to the Trudeau government for its commitment to the Canada Centre for Community Engagement and Prevention of Violence (CCCEPE – that name is way too long however)    $35 million over five years is an excellent start and, although details are wanting, the government sees the new office  as a leadership post […]

Categories
Perspectives

Why the phrase ‘war on terrorism’ is ill thought

It is rare that one can look back on something composed years ago and see it as relevant today as it was thought to be back then.  So much changes as new variables enter into play and our own understanding and appreciation for phenomena matures to reflect these new additions.  That is indeed a good […]

Categories
Perspectives

A world where we jump to terrorism conclusions too fast

There is no question that the world has terrorism on the brain.  So much has changed since 9/11 that we are both more attuned to, and frightened of, the spectre of terrorism that it has affected our ability to accurately measure what is happening and, perhaps more importantly, what we are doing about it.  This […]