What's Wrong with Terrorism

Terrorists perpetrate terrible acts. They maim, mutilate and kill in pursuit of their goals. The horrifying events of 9/11 and the daily suicide bombings in Iraq have made terrorism one of the central preoccupations of the 21st century. But what is the distinctive wrong of terrorism? Criminal acts like murder and hijacking are already on the moral statute books, so why is it that we regard terrorists as different from and morally worse than ordinary killers and kidnappers? Some see terrorism is an ideology, others claim it is a deep-seated social or psychological problem, others that it is a form of fighting unfairly judged by just-war standards. In this provocative new book, Robert Goodin puts forward the view that terrorism is, in fact, a deliberate tactic of frightening people for socio-political gain. Fear affects people's ability to reason clearly and undermines their capacity for autonomous self-government. In this way, Goodin contends that terror is not only the weapon of organizations like Al-Qaeda; it also benefits democratic politicians who profit from the climate of insecurity induced by terrorist threats and violence. Political figures conducting a campaign of fear as part of their war on terrorism may therefore be committing at least one of the same wrongs as terrorists themselves. This, Goodin argues, is what is distinctively wrong with terrorism in the contemporary world.