What is the definition of "terrorist"?

Question

This word is used quite a lot, and I think there's substantial debate about its meaning.

For instance, what's the difference between a terrorist and a criminal? A terrorist and an "enemy combatant"? An insurgent? A spy? A sabateur? A soldier?

Is there some clear defining quality that makes a person a terrorist?

Answer 1

since you dont have email I thought by your answer to my other question you may like this part.


Now, some people are even more enthusiastic about what is called cellulosic ethanol. Cellulose and lignin, particularly cellulose, we can't digest. It is made up of a whole long string of glucose molecules, which is a simple sugar; half of what we call sucrose, which is a double sugar disaccharide. But they are so tightly bound together, we don't have any enzymes in our gut which will release them. And neither does any other animal, by the way.

So, gee, you might say, how do cows, sheep, goats, horses, and guinea pigs make do eating grass and hay? They make do because they have in their gut what are called comincils, animals or little critters that live in there, some of them multi-cellular, some single cells, that have chemicals, enzymes that can split the cellulose into the requisite glucose molecules and then the host simply absorbs those.

We are now able to bioengineer some little organisms that can do that. So now, when you look at the huge piles of beet pulp, look at the corn fields with all the corn fodder out there, people are saying, gee, look how much energy we could get from this agricultural waste. You can get it by burning it, or you can use it by making cellulosic ethanol from it. But, you know, topsoil is topsoil because it has organic material. It gives it tilth. Why does it have to be there? Because without the organic material, the soils can't hold the nutrients and they can't hold the water necessary for growing things. You can't grow plants in stone dust and you can't grow plants in sand. So you have to have organic material there. For a few years, we might be able to mine the organic material and still grow some crops, but there will be diminishing returns. I don't know steady state how much we can take.

Some people are euphemistic about how much we are going to get from sawgrass, prairie grass. They see it growing in huge amounts. But I suspect this year's prairie grass is growing because last year's prairie grass died and is fertilizing it. Now, we certainly can get something from this biomass, from agricultural waste and from growing trees and so forth, but it will not be enormous.

Answer 2

I see marriage as a religious belief that is between a man and a woman, of any race. However, if a gay or lesbian couple want a civil union, that will be legally seen as a marriage, then I'm all for that. That should also be extended to anyone, gay or straight, who wants to be "married" but does not want the religious aspect.

Answer 3

the defination of terrorists is the bush administration

Answer 4

The definition of "terrorist" according to the Bush Dictionary. "Either you're with us or against us". If you're not with Bush, then you're a terrorist.

Answer 5

Anyone Bush and his administration says who are.

Answer 6

anyone fox news,,,,, prescribes so

or is it someone who is so angry and feels so weak that they must resort to horrible things to get their view across to the world.....

what makes someone so angry and feel so weak that they resort to this type of violence is not a question anyone asks,,,,,,,