Terrorism as a True Threat to National Security in the United States

Terrorism is a true threat to national security. It brings human distress and goes beyond the direct suffering by causing fear in the population as a result of its cruel and unsystematic nature. It can be defined as the use of violence by a group or an individual to create tremendous worry and panic within a target population. The group undertakes the violent actions with the aim of compelling the target population into agreeing with their demands. It does this by targeting symbolic buildings and/or places (Ervine, 2010).

It is extremely difficult to argue that terrorism is not a threat to the state and that the US has overly focused on it. The threat is true and has become more evident due to the increasing attacks that have claimed a lot of lives. It is covered extensively in the media and every US citizen lives with fear. It is a threat to innocent residents conducting their daily routines as the terrorist activities are aimed at them and not necessarily at the government (Wilson, 2010).

Terrorism influences and is influenced by the political arena. It is linked to the government and has a wider scope of effects that reach beyond the targeted individuals. It mainly depends on the fear of the state's general public and tries to achieve precise goals such as the freedom of political prisoners. A small group of individuals can cause excessive harm to the state by the use of terrorist activities (Wardlaw, 1982).

Terrorism and weapons of mass destruction appear as priorities among the various security threats present to the United States. Less emphasis is put on the other types of threats such as conflict, economic and social threats, crime and nuclear threats (UN Secretary General's High-level Panel on Threats, Challenges and Change, 2004).

Terrorist attacks are indiscriminate with regards to the individuals killed and the terrorists do not care who is injured. There was a large population at the World Trade Centre on the 11th of September 2001 and despite this fact, the terrorists still carried on with the attack. The use of airplanes as attack vessels to destroy the centers of American finance and the United States military was undetected and shocking to the public (Ervine, 2010).

The tougher laws and regulations set by the US against terrorism are a necessary measure to combat terrorists and their disrespect for human life, to promote the rule of law and ensure respect for human rights. It is important to set strict laws in the context of terrorism in order to ensure perpetrators and those in support of the terrorist acts are brought to justice (United Nations, 2006).

It is vital for the US to intensify its fight against terrorism so as to prevent terrorists from obtaining biological, nuclear and chemical material for creating weapons of mass destruction. The impact of the use of such material would be catastrophic to the entire world and it is their obligation to ensure that