Richard English, Professor of Politics at Belfast University, visited Sevenoaks School on 23 September and explored the question Does Terrorism Work? with great clarity.
To answer the question, he first illustrated four types of success: strategic victory, which is achieving your political aim; partial strategic success, achieving a ‘decaffeinated’ version of your aim; tactical success; and other rewards such as fame or revenge.
I was surprised by his conclusion that terrorism was overwhelmingly similar to most normal endeavours in that it usually only achieves tactical success and inherent rewards. Perhaps terrorist attacks seem so terrifying that to hear that their effects are minimal is slightly jarring.
Professor English addressed this too, expressing concern about journalists’ excessive focus on terrorist coverage, which seems to elicit unnecessary fear. He noted that the chance of being victim to a terrorist attack in the US is 1 in 4 million, which is far smaller than being killed by a falling object or slipping in the shower.
I especially admired his responses to the very timely questions on cyberterrorism and the European refugee crisis. He stated that terrorists seek the path of highest disruption, and that a start in the direction of cyberterrorism, if effective, could begin a new wave of terror. He also pointed out that only a tiny fraction of refugees are terrorists, and that the waves of climate refugees that will come to seek habitable land in the following decades will only increase this misinformed xenophobia.
I’d like to thank Professor English for sharing his clear and compelling insight with us.
Ellie Gilbert-Bair, Lower Sixth
