Terrorism

So you think you know what makes the world go round? Read about the ideas that revolutionized the twentieth century. The twentieth century was a period of seismic change on a global scale, witnessing two world wars, the rise and fall of communism, the establishment of a global economy, the beginnings of global warming and a complete reversal in the status of women in large parts of the world. What different forms does terrorism take and what do they have in common? Explosives carried in the rucksack. A bomb under a park bench. A hi-jacked aeroplane. Today these images of terrorism are broadcast into our homes. Terrorism itself embodies far more than this, however. Those who create terror are not just organizations such as al-Qaida and ETA but also states and repressive governing regimes. Spanning two thousand years and three different continents, Rosemary H.T. O’Kane explores terrorism in all its forms: terrorist groups, ancient and modern, religious, political, separatist and nationalist, arising within liberal democracies and under repressive regimes, engaging in domestic, international and transnational terrorism; revolutionary reigns of terror; totalitarian regimes; state terrorism, including massacres and genocidal campaigns; and international state terrorism. Rosemary H. T. O’Kane Many of these changes were brought about thanks to ‘big ideas’ that irrevocably altered the way humans viewed their world. Short Histories of Big Ideas are brief, easy-to-understand introductions to the ideologies that shaped the twentieth century. Each volume explains the key aspects of an idea and provides a concise history of its growth and influence on our world perspective. Terrorism Series Editor: Gordon Martel Rosemary H. T. O’Kane Terrorism Case studies are included and explanations are explored for each of these many terrorisms. No matter the form, however, the method remains essentially the same – a system of summary justice: in its essence the deliberate targeting of innocents as victims. Rosemary H. T. O’Kane is Professor of Comparative Political Theory at Keele University. She has written widely on the subject of terrorism in both books and journals. Her books include The Likelihood of Coups (1987), Terror, Force and States: The Path From Modernity (Edward Elgar: 1996) and Paths to Democracy: Revolution and Totalitarianism (Routledge: 2004). Her book The Revolutionary Reign of Terror: The Role of Violence in Political Change (1991) won the CHOICE Outstanding Academic Book for 1993 £9.99 “ Sweeping in its historical overview and authoritative in its scholarship, O’Kane’s latest bo