Schneier on Security

Looks like we should be very concerned with the terrorist group ELF here in the United States of AmeriKA.

Earth Liberation Front (ELF).

http://www.earthliberationfront.com/

There is no ELF structure; "it" is non-hierarchical and there is no centralized organization or leadership.

There is no "membership" in the Earth Liberation Front.

Any individuals who committed arson or any other illegal acts under the ELF name are individuals who choose to do so under the banner of ELF and do so only driven by their personal conscience.

So, what about cyber-terrorism?

Seems to support the fact that an American in the States is more likely to get wrongfully convicted by their own government than be injured by a terrorist.

I hope this database will make people do some statistical thinking. For exemple, the number of Americans killed by terrorism since the 60's is lower than the number killed by :

- lightning
- deers on the road
- allergic reaction to peanut
- bathtub drowning

(reference : International Herald Tribune http://www.iht.com/articles/2006/02/10/news/edpfaff.php )

When do we start a Global War On Bathtubs ?

(Thanks to http://superfrenchie.com/?p=558).

Bruce, pointing this out makes you a terrorist.

Please report to your local reprogramming facility.

"When do we start a Global War On Bathtubs ?"

I have the perfect slogan: Stop the Madness. Take a Cold Shower.

@Guillermito
Bathtub deaths are an unavoidable fact of life. If every home had a terrorist, there would be a lot more deaths from terrorism.

(I am kidding, just not sure exactly how. Now I re-read that it also makes a weird kind of sense.)

This is exactly the type of knee-jerk reaction to perceived threats that's putting us at such risk. Reaction should be proportionate, and based on objective facts rather than emotional response. Bathtubs? Bathtubs? Honestly people, you're looking in completely the wrong direction. It's TOILETS that are the real problem. Remember, No Toilet is 100% Safe.

http://catless.ncl.ac.uk/Risks/20.51.html#subj1

I think we will all start taking bathtubs more seriously if and when they band together and start their own uranium enrichment program.

www.tkb.org has been around for quite a while

"""A lot of this depends on your definition of "terrorism," """

That's one of those irregular nouns:
- I commit acts of patriotism
- You commit acts of civil disobedience
- They commit acts of terrorism

I'm all for a war on peanuts.

Is there a food product that does not contain traces of peanuts? They have already poisoned our food supply!!!

There are two things I am skeptical about, concerning these statistics:

1. As mentioned, what is the definition of terrorism that these statistics were based on?

2. What about before the "T" word became such a buzzword? Were acts which would not be considered terrorism in 1970, but would now be considered so included in these statistics? It seems as though this would cause the numbers to be off.

"03/03/1998: Anti-nuclear activists disrupted service along the Hamburg-Bremen railway line in Germany in an act of sabotage. There were no casualties from the attack, but damage amounted to 100,000 Deutche Marks. In addition to this incident, the Hannover-Minden line was also attacked."

The definition of "Terrorism" in this database does certainly not fit in with german law.

The (german) penal code identifies terrorism as an activity of "founding an organiziation" which intends to commit murder or crimes against humanity and some others.

The emphasis is on "organization" and "purpose" of it. The frustrated person who blows up a fast food restaurant is guilty of several crimes, but certainly not a terrorist.

The database as presented contains, as commented above, violations of all kinds, some of which would not even be considered a crime (punishable with a minimum of one year) but only a "violation" with a minimum sentence of a few months.

It's certainly a good guide on where to not park your car but nobody can seriously derive any information about terrorism from it.

@Thomas:

That's great! May I quote you?

@merkelcellcancer: "Looks like we should be very concerned with the terrorist group ELF..."

ALF (Animal Liberation Front) seems about neck-and-neck with ELF.

I'll agree on the ALF comment...

I was a student at Michigan State when Rod Coronado and his Animal
Liberation Front firebombed labs
and offices in Anthony Hall. My classroom was across the hall from
there. I saw firsthand the damage they did (primarily to a research
who had won awards for her humane treatment of animals, actually).

For that matter, that event is why I have a lifetime dislike of PETA, since PETA's leaders paid Rod Coronado's legal bills, talked about how great the firebombing was, and talked about how more bombings and lab ransackings would occur.

The difference between civil disobedience and terrorism is violence.

Did you know:

ALF was the first extraterrestrial terrorist?

@ genevaconvention:

I think this is only partially true. Sure, the word terrorism is only mentioned in the "banding together"-paragraph, but I would say that terrorism is what is mentioned in §§ 81, 92 StGB.
Unfortunately I am unable to translate this.
One could even argue that allowing the CIA to kidnap people in germany or any help of the police etc. in those cases would fall under § 92 II Nr. 2 StGB.

The article says: "And terror incidents began rising some in 1998, and that level remained relatively constant through 2004." This doesn't make any sense to me. Did rates rise, or did they remain relatively constant? If I look at the graphs here: http://209.232.239.37/gtd2/statistics.htm,
it seems as though rates were fairly steady from 1998 to 2001, 9/11 created a big spike, and then casualties and fatalities started rising. (There was also a big non-fatal spike in 1998, from the Nairobi embassy bombing.)

You guys are just so hilarious! You crack me...and all the other terrorists up!

You guys are so jokes...terrorism on humanity is a real significant issue that affects the global society and all of the citizens which partake their certain role in the economy and the overall social life. It is a proven fact that major catastrophes that occur because of terrorism are either significant in innocent casualities or a prominent drop in the overall economy. refering back to the toilet and bathtub issue... Now unlike terrorism that is absurdly out of control....for there are some things in life which are certain...taxes, death, bathtub and toilet casualities lol...hahaha