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Terrorism as a True Threat to National Security in the United States

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Terrorism as a true threat to national security in the United States

Terrorism as a true threat to national security in the United States Terrorism is a true threat to national security. It brings human distress and goes beyond the direct suffering by causing fear in the population as a result of its cruel and unsystematic nature. It can be defined as the use of violence by a group or an individual to create tremendous worry and panic within a target population. The group undertakes the violent actions with the aim of compelling the target population into agreeing with their demands. It does this by targeting symbolic buildings and/or places (Ervine, 2010). It is extremely difficult to argue that terrorism is not a threat to the state and that the US has overly focused on it. The threat is true and has become more evident due to the increasing attacks that have claimed a lot of lives. It is covered extensively in the media and every US citizen lives with fear. It is a threat to innocent residents conducting their daily routines as the terrorist activities are aimed at them and not necessarily at the government (Wilson, 2010). Terrorism influences and is influenced by the political arena. It is linked to the government and has a wider scope of effects that reach beyond the targeted individuals. It mainly depends on the fear of the state’s general public and tries to achieve precise goals such as the freedom of political prisoners. A small group of individuals can cause excessive harm to the state by the use of terrorist activities (Wardlaw, 1982). Terrorism and weapons of mass destruction appear as priorities among the various security threats present to the United States. Less emphasis is put on the other types of threats such as conflict, economic and social threats, crime and nuclear threats (UN Secretary General's High-level Panel on Threats,

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