What is a Terrorist?

Terrorist is a word that has become synonymous with hatred. Evil, cowardice, menace, all these things are related to terrorism; but what is a real terrorist? Is a terrorist just an evil being filled with hatred releasing it's anger upon the real world? Or is there more? Can't some terrorists be freedom fighters? What if someone is stading up for what they beleive is right by bombing a government they consider to be oppressive? Isn't this justified by the Government's alleged cruelty? But if they are a freedom fighter and not a terrorist, then what is a terrorist?

Before Osama bin Laden declared Jihad upon the west he fought the U.S.S.R in Afghanistan. And of all the people who could have supported him, do you know who was his greatest supplier and dealer? It was us, the United States supplied Osama Bin Laden with billions of dollars in funds, and countless more in arms and assets. He was our ally, not an enemy. He was not a terrorist, he was a freedom fighter.

During "La Violencia" the bloodiest Civil war that has ever been seen in Columbia there were untold millions slaughtered in massacres by Government soldiers and Guerillas on both sides of what became an increasingly complex and bloody catastrophy. But there were sinlge men who would fight against the norms and declare wars against all fronts. These men would rape, pillage, burn, and destroy all that they saw, but they were considered heros. They were glorified for their acheivments and were not seen as terrorist, but instead as modern day Robin Hoods.

So what makes someone a terrorist? Is it a lack of consideration for human rights? Is it a hole in one's soul for the compassion that is supposed to be felt for other human beings? Is it simply the tactics that are employed to achieve one's goal that makes one a terrorist? Or is it far more complex than we thought? Is a man's status as a terrorist not defined by the actions he partakes in but the way in which he is percieved. If this is the case then there are many whom we may call liberators whom are really oppressors, or vice versa. Perhaps many people are labeled terrorists but are by nature freedom fighters, or perhaps many are labeled freedom fighters but are really terrorists. Perhaps it is both. Perhaps a persons status as a terrorist should not be defined by the sides they take, but by the damage they create, the morals they follow, and the fear they conjure. After all the role of the terrorist is not to bring justice, make peace, and try to fight for the good of man; it is to reaise hell, cause war, and bring about suffering. That said one would think that the lines have been cleared and that we may now see the truth, but can one really fight for freedom without ever raising hell, causing war, or bringing about some sort of suffering? The answer remains unclear, but still we go through our day with the idea that we have a perfect sense of right from wrong; and still life goes on.

-Rob
Please note that I do not condone violence of any kind, and as a wise friend of mine once said when remeniscing of the many years of blood shed he had seen "violence is a weak tool." Please try to put down your gun, and use a pen instead.)