I had come across the following during research on another topic. It would seem the intro could almost apply to the current administration. The reference to early terrorism seems a bit ironic. The reference to the Sons of Liberty brings to mind that although we may not agree with the methods there may be merit to the goals.
It's unfortunate when the politicians and news media continue to capitalize on peoples fears. It just seems so archaic. I can only wonder if our society has lost the vitality to create real statesmen like we read about in our history.
INTRODUCTION
Terrorism, the deliberate creation and exploitation of fear for bringing about political change.
Early Terrorism
More than 2,000 years ago the first known acts of what we now call terrorism were perpetrated by a radical offshoot of the Zealots, a Jewish sect active in Judea during the 1st century ad.
The Sons of Liberty was an association of Patriots in the United States before the American Revolution. The goal of the Sons of Liberty was to stop enforcement of the 1765 Stamp Act by any means, including violence. As such, this group would be considered terrorists, by today's standards.
My thought was that the negative conotations related to "vigilante" did not apply in this instance. I was not arguing against the concept of citizen justice.
The actions of the whitehacks seem more like prevention than punishment. That would put it into a different catagory altogether.
p.s. it was my first post and attached it to your post only because it was the last reference to "vigilante"
Slashdot Mirror
I had come across the following during research on another topic. It would seem the intro could almost apply to the current administration. The reference to early terrorism seems a bit ironic. The reference to the Sons of Liberty brings to mind that although we may not agree with the methods there may be merit to the goals.
It's unfortunate when the politicians and news media continue to capitalize on peoples fears. It just seems so archaic. I can only wonder if our society has lost the vitality to create real statesmen like we read about in our history.
INTRODUCTION
Terrorism, the deliberate creation and exploitation of fear for bringing about political change.
Early Terrorism
More than 2,000 years ago the first known acts of what we now call terrorism were perpetrated by a radical offshoot of the Zealots, a Jewish sect active in Judea during the 1st century ad.
Microsoft ® Encarta ® Reference Library 2005. © 1993-2004 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved.
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Sons of Liberty was an association of Patriots in the United States before the American Revolution. The goal of the Sons of Liberty was to stop enforcement of the 1765 Stamp Act by any means, including violence. As such, this group would be considered terrorists, by today's standards.
My thought was that the negative conotations related to "vigilante" did not apply in this instance. I was not arguing against the concept of citizen justice. The actions of the whitehacks seem more like prevention than punishment. That would put it into a different catagory altogether. p.s. it was my first post and attached it to your post only because it was the last reference to "vigilante"
I think the term vigilante is not correct in this instance. From Encarta dictionary;
law-enforcing citizen: somebody who punishes lawbreakers personally and illegally rather than relying on the legal authorities
Microsoft® Encarta® Reference Library 2005. © 1993-2004 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved.
This seems more like crime prevention. One would hope that the prevention of a crime, especially without causing harm, would be considered a duty.
I would like to say "good work" to the whitehats.