CRIM B55 – TERRORISM MOTIVATIONS FOR TERRORISM Delano Campus Wednesday, September 16, Bakersfield College

Terrorism Defined-previous class Common Elements of Terrorism: 1)Violent Illegal Act 2)Socially or Politically Motivated 3)Targets Civilians 4)Intended to Coerce a Govt. 2

Tribute to

Government Response TODAY V igilance 4

Response – Counter Terrorism Operators Government Response TODAY 5

The Nature of Terrorism  Traditionally, terrorists have come from  The weak  The minority  The oppressed

The Nature of Terrorism (continued)  Modernly, they were thought to be:  Young, unmarried, middle-class, male with some college  An understanding of Left-Wing politics.  Today, anyone with a complaint can engage in terrorism, even if their cause is a popular one!  There is no true profile of a terrorist / extremist.

A Sad Truth... For the first time in the history of the human race, the past few decades have seen the capability develop for a small group of dedicated people to perpetrate a catastrophic attack, killing thousands and causing multimillions of dollars in damages

Conceptualizing Terrorism  Social Process  Psychological Process  Political Process  Religious Process 9

Motivations A unique or different view of the world Unhappy about it 10

Motivations Conflict Theory “Haves” versus the “Have Not’s” World is divided in three economic groupings (upper class, middle class, lower class) Conflict is based on the distribution of Wealth. 11

Motivations  Ideological desire for social change  Little Guy vs. Big Guy (inferior power moves against a superior power). 12

Motivations My God is bigger than your God Religious Beliefs Moral Justification – God is on “our” side. Religious Mandate brings “God’s Will” 13

Example of Religious Belief  “Jihad” One of faith struggling with doing right.  Return to the Caliphate Spiritual Ruler of Islam  Expel the Infidels (Westerners) from the Holy Land.  Expel the Israelis from “Palestine” (Israel)  War in Iraq & Afghanistan  Eliminate corrupt secular Muslim regimes  Eliminate Western influence in Muslim lands - Arabian Peninsula (Mecha & Medina) Jordan, Iraq, Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, Oman, Yemen and Saudi Arabia.  Eliminate and cleanse the evils of the Western World.

Distinctive Characteristics  Dedication to the “cause”  Uncompromising  Willing to give their lives to the cause  Allowing their logic and sense of right and wrong to be clouded by the cause  Not allowing adversity, arrest, or incarceration to dampen their objectives  Willing to work with like-minded, but possibly diverse, people (organization).

Terrorist vs. Ordinary Criminals Text page 32 16

Reality  It is not about what they believe,  It is what they hate!  Belief is the Vehicle  Hate is the Fuel.  Anger is the Driving Force.  Anger often is the result when actions differ from expectations.  Most Religious Wars are of Religious Control not Religious Freedom.

Questions or Comments? 18