The similarities are striking: two politically motivated suicide plane crashes into symbolic buildings, both resulting in deaths, and both hoping to ignite sentiment against the government of the United States. The differences appear to be twofold: clearly, the scale is very different, and clearly, Joe Stack was an American citizen.
Neither of those factors is generally considered when deciding whether something is an act of terrorism. It seems quite obvious: Joe Stack was a domestic terrorist who committed an act very similar to that of terrorist Timothy McVeigh. But then we get to the wild card factor:
The Web was studded with praise for Stack almost immediately after his plane slammed into the Austin office complex Thursday morning. The admiring salutes appearing on sites ranging from Facebook to the pages of extremist groups reflect what experts say is an “explosive growth” in the anti-government patriot movement.
“Extremist groups are already aligning behind [Joe Stack], beginning to talk about him as a hero,” said Mark Potok, director of the Southern Poverty Law Center which studies American militia and hate groups. “The growth of those groups has been astounding.”
…
[President of the network service provider hosting Stack’s site Alex] Melen, 25, said within minutes of taking [Stack’s suicide] note down, the company was “bombarded” with around 3,000 e-mails demanding Stack’s words be reposted. Some of the e-mails contained personal threats against Melen.
…
Bob Schulz, founder of the anti-government We the People Foundation, said that while he only advocates non-violent means of protest, he can understand Stack’s motives and said it is a reflection of a movement unlike any he’s ever seen.
Oi vey.
The White House isn’t exactly helping–press secretary Robert Gibbs declined to define Stack’s act as terrorism, further fueling a debate that stands to leave the door open a crack to legitimizing the unthinkable. Democrats can always be counted on for at least one thing: public over-thinking instead of clarity.
One of our neighbors to the north, writing in the Calgary Herald, offered an interesting take which I’m not sure I agree with, interesting though it is to hear a foreign view: “The effects of his attack are potentially far more dangerous to stability in the U.S. than anything that al-Qaeda or any external enemy could presently generate.”
The article also says: “Perhaps the shock of a non-Muslim terrorist was too much to bear, or perhaps the lack of a clear-cut left-right, Democrat-Republican angle led to the story being downplayed, despite the fact almost every American blog of note was alive with discussion about the attack. It was very odd to see the mainstream press ignore what may turn out to be one of the most important events of 2010.”
It strikes me as particularly foolhardy to indulge this debate: it is beyond question that Stack is, at the very least, a murderer. That deserves only revulsion, no matter your political persuasion.
ADDITIONAL: You’ll notice some changes to the comment section below. As a first step, you’re invited to register to make the process of repeated posting easier.
A caution is also in order: being an arsehole is not welcome, no matter your handle. We want an inviting place where readers can speak, not a comment section that repels further commentary.
Further changes are likely to follow in short order. Here’s hoping they will prove to be helpful.
UPDATE: This is very, very dangerous stuff we’re toying with here—
Joe Stack’s adult daughter, Samantha Bell, spoke to ABC’s Good Morning America from her home in Norway. Asked during a phone interview broadcast Monday if she considered her father a hero, she said: “Yes. Because now maybe people will listen.”
Tell that to his victim’s family.
She also said his actions were wrong, which clearly doesn’t jibe with the above statement. I fear for our future if Americans are willing to believe that murdering for political ends is only terrorism when Muslims do it.
