London Terror Attacks

On the morning after the horrible terrorist attacks in London, I was sitting in front of the news with my 10-year-old neice. I asked what she thought of these latest terror attacks in London. She responded by asking "What did London do to Iraq?" I explained to her that the terrorist's ideology of hate meant that they did not attack in retaliation for any act, but only because they felt that they should attempt to destroy the people that they didn't like. She of course asked why they don't like the people in London. I proceeded to tell her that it wasn't really about the people in London in all. I watched her wide-eyed gaze as I explained that these evil, uncivilized people were educated only to hate everyone that was different from them, and that they did not attempt to declare a conventional war, but rather sought to kill and maim innocent commuters and children. She then told me, "that sounds crazy." To which I responded "yes, you are right, it really is crazy." By this time her ten-year-old mind was moving on to other thoughts as she toyed with the small stuffed teddy bear she held in her little hands. That was fine because while I do think we should give our children an opportunity to express their feelings on this subject, I don't think we should force them to dwell on it.

I couldn't help but think how so many adults exhibit a similarly youthful underdeveloped mentality when it comes to the subject of terrorism. Certainly spending excessive time thinking on the subject can create a fear in many people, and if this develops into an overwhelming fear which actually obstructs the conducting of usual daily activities, then it is very unhealthy and can be marked up as a cleanr win for the terrorists.

All British and American citizens, as well as civilized persons from around the globe must understand that acts of terror must be responded to. History has shown that ignoring them does not work and of course the method of cooperating or appeasing them employed by several of the Old-Europe nations has only led to fueling the flames of terror and perpetuating the growth of additional organizations. We must remain united and completely focused if we can ever hope to diminish the threat of outlaw groups.

Great Britain has experienced domestic terrorism for decades. Fortunately their law enforcement, emergency response and public service organizations are more uniquely and appropriately prepared to respond to such events. While the United States has been targeted by terrorists for many decades, it has only suffered few incidents of domestic attacks. These attacks are not isolated incidents and will not simply stop. It is imperative that we unite and show an undivided force of support for our government, allied nation's and international organizations.