Terrorism has been a terrible fact of life for many years. It was brought home to millions on the morning of September 11. But why is it that these people want to use terrorism as a way to get their particular ideology across? Well the main answer could be because of their religion. The majority of terrorists in today’s world are of the Islamic faith. They take the Quran literally and believe that they are engaged in a cosmic battle between the forces of Christianity and Islam. These terrorists take the word “jihad” to mean that they must do anything they can for their God known as Allah. This includes the bombing of innocent people, plane hijackings, and killing people who are not Muslims.
Ian Debate Topics, Historical Horrors, Psychotic Killers
Hezbollah is one of Lebanon’s largest parties. It is viewed by many countries around the world as a terrorist organization. It possesses military, cultural, religious, social and political leverage in the country of Lebanon. It has a very well trained armed force who has been responsible for combat with Israel over the years. During the last war with Israel in the summer of 2006, not only did Hezzbollah come out of the conflict undefeated, but they fought back fiercely and caused tremendous casualties on the Israeli side. Hezbollah is present through a number of non-government organizations that provide health, educational, housing, and technical services for reconstruction, a television and a radio station. In essence, they pretty much control much of the country they are present in, Lebanon.
Even though Islamic religious people that command the party, they are not of a high rank. Hezbollah enjoys the support of a large number of prominent Shiite memebers, most notably the religious leader of the Shiite community. Since the last elections in Lebanon, it has become a major political player on the local scene. After 2000, Hezbollah enjoyed the command of the Shiite political representation through a very uneven alliance with the weak Beirut government.
Furthermore, it has become the main resistance movement against the state of Israel. Hezbollah enjoys a strong Lebanese Shiite backing. A very large majority of Lebanese Shiites today support Hezbollah and any attack against it would be interpreted as an attack against the Shiite community. So in essence, the government in Beirut is trapped and virtually holds no power in their own country! This organization has an alliance with the Iran and Syria.
Ian Debate Topics, Historical Horrors, Psychotic Killers
Have you ever heard of the similarities between John Wilkes Booth and Lee Harvey Oswald? These two men killed two of the most respected Presidents in American history: Abraham Lincoln and John F. Kennedy. The similarities between the two killers and the two presidents are so striking that it makes one wonder about fate and the idea of history repeating itself….almost to the exact event.
| Lincoln |
Kennedy |
| Lincoln was elected to Congress in 1846 |
Kennedy was elected to Congress in 1946 |
| He was elected President in 1860 |
He was elected President in 1960 |
| His wife lost a child while living in the White House |
His wife lost a child while living in the White House |
| He was directly concerned with Civil Rights |
He was directly concerned with Civil Rights |
| Lincoln had a secretary named Kennedy who told him not to go to the theater |
Kennedy had a secretary named Lincoln who told him not to go to Dallas |
| Lincoln was shot in the back of the head in the presence of his wife |
Kennedy was shot in the back of the head in the presence of his wife |
| Lincoln was shot in the Ford Theatre |
Kennedy was shot in a Lincoln, made by Ford |
| He was shot on a Friday |
He was shot on a Friday |
| The assassin, John Wilkes Booth, was known by three names, comprised of fifteen letters |
The assassin, Lee Harvey Oswald, was known by three names, comprised of fifteen letters |
| Booth shot Lincoln in a theater and fled to a warehouse |
Oswald shot Kennedy from a warehouse and fled to a theater |
| Booth was killed before being brought to trial |
Oswald was killed before being brought to trial |
| There were theories that Booth was part of a greater conspiracy |
There were theories that Oswald was part of a greater conspiracy |
| Lincoln’s successor was Andrew Johnson, born in 1808 |
Kennedy’s successor was Lyndon Johnson, born in 1908 |
Ian Biographies, Psychotic Killers, Urban Legends
Hitler is the worst mass-murderer of the last century. He killed over 6 million Jews, poles, and gypsies. But an interest fact to note is that Hitler never seemed to go after Catholic priests or citizens for the most part. Some have theorized that Hitler may have been a devout Catholic during his time as the dictator of Nazi Germany. Unlike many of his fellows Nazis, Hitler was not interested in the occult and considered it utterly ridiculous. He had a deep respect for priests and the organization of the Catholic church. It is claimed that he would regularly meet with priests talking about how he might supposedly lead Germany to a greater prosperity.
The most controversial move was that when Hitler and Italy became allies, the Pope was left totally alone. Hitler had been seen by the world as an anti-religious dictator with no regard for human life. But this was not so. He admired the Pope and even spoke to him on a few occasions. The Allies were hoping that maybe the Pope could do something about Hitler. The hope was that the Pope would ex-communicate Hitler and claim that he was a ruthless man. This did not happen. The Pope was said to even agree with Hitler’s policies on the Jews. Pope Pius XII never, during the entire Holocaust, condemned Hitlers actions. So many theories about whether or not Hitler was in league with the Pope have been around for so many years. We may never know the full truth.
Ian Historical Horrors, Psychotic Killers, Urban Legends
Image taken from dhanaan.com
The name Al-Qaeda when translated from Arabic means “the base.” In essence, this means that this organization is the base for terror. Al-Qaeda has become one of the most feared and hated organizations of our time. Under the leadership of Osama bin Laden, these extremists have carried out bombings and attacks in dozens of countries over the years. Their most infamous attack took place on September 11, where more than 3000 people were killed. War was declared on this terror group and is still on going to this day.
What most people forget is that Al-Qaeda is not a bottom-to-top organization. It is a loose alliance of groups that fight under a single name. Each groups goal is to end Islamic oppression in the world and wipe out non-believers of Islam. Together, they unite under one name and commit terrorist attacks around the world in Israel, Europe, and the United States of America. This group began during the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan when the CIA gave weapons to Arab Mujahadeen to combat the Russians.
Once the war was over, the armed militias formed together under Osama bin Laden. Bin Laden’s goal was to wipe out what he saw as western oppression of the Arab world. Throughout the nineties, he was financed by many Arab leaders including Saddam Hussein. He used his finances to commit terrorist attacks including bombing the USS Cole, and the attempted destruction of the Twin Towers in the early 1990s. However, Bin Laden and his fellow terrorists sought to attack America at their heart.
For many years they devised a plan to simultaneously attack national landmarks that would kill as many Americans as possible and weaken the morale of the people. On September 11 these attacks were carried out and thousands were killed. Within a month, Coalition forces arrived in Afghanistan and shut down the Al-Qaeda training camps. Al-Qaeda leaders were taken prisoner and the terrorist infrastructure was weakened. Soon it was realized that Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein had financed and supported terrorist organizations and was in possession of weapons of mass destruction.
In 2003, Iraq was invaded. The Iraqi government and army was defeated and freedom came to the Iraqis. However, the situation worsened within a few months. Many American troops were being killed and the weapons of mass destruction were not found. Al-Qaeda insurgents became a major threat to the country and are still threatening the peace of Iraq’s new democracy.
Ian Historical Horrors, Psychotic Killers
