NEWS RELEASE
PUBLIC INFORMATION DEPARTMENT
PO Box 567, Buies Creek, NC 27506
Tel: (910) 893-1224 w Fax: (910) 893-1922
New Face of Terrorism Unveiled at Luncheon Learn
Are Americans willing to stay the course in a
protracted war against terrorism? According to Dr. Bruce Gay,
director of Criminal Justice Administration at Campbell University,
only the next presidential election can determine that question. Gay
discussed the new face of terrorism at a Luncheon Learn session on
the Campbell campus on March 17.
“Terrorism is quantitatively different today than it was in
the past. It is transnational with non-state actors that operate globally; it
is better financed and more difficult to locate; and the actors have weapons
of mass destruction at their disposal,” he said. “If you don’t think they are
tempted to use these weapons, then you are sadly mistaken.”
Describing the forms of terrorism operating in the world
today, Gay added that religious terrorism is the most dangerous because the
perpetrators view it as a struggle between good and evil.
“Anyone who is not a member of a sect becomes a target,” he
said. “They are infidels who need to be purged. Terrorists engage in violent
behavior due to perceived commands from some deity, and they consider
themselves unconstrained by secular values or laws.”
While religious terrorism is on the increase since September
11, the overall number of attacks has decreased with the objective of making
each attack more spectacular and more lethal than the last, Gay said, pointing
to the recent train bombing in Madrid.
“You are witnessing the first defeat of a Democratic society
in the history of terrorism,” Gay said of the bombing. “Spain was attacked
because it is a staunch ally of the United States. They were successful in
toppling the government. What does that say to other terrorists?”
The next election will decide whether or not Americans have
the will to stay in the war against terrorism over the long haul, Gay added.
“If we re-elect George Bush then we have the will,” he said.
Dr. Bruce Gay holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from Tennessee
Temple University, a Master of Arts from the University of Texas, and a Ph.D.
in Criminal Justice from Sam Houston State University.
Founded in 1887, Campbell University is North Carolina’s
second largest private institution of higher education and the second largest
Baptist university in the world. Located in Buies Creek, NC, just east of the
center of the state, Campbell combines academic excellence and Christian
commitment.
Bulletin 0067 |
