Ever since the tragic events that took place during September 11, 2001 Americans have been on a

constant state of high alert. Every person is a suspect, and every piece of trash on the ground is a bomb
waiting to go off. ears passed and that was not the case. !et"s set the stage for the ne#t biggest terrorist
event to strike the $nited States since %&11. 'he place( )oston *assachusetts. 'he date( Aril 1+, 201,.
'he event( 'he )oston *arathon. At appro#imately 2(-% pm a series of bombs e#ploded during the
course of the events finishing runners crossing the finish line. .ho was responsible/ 2 locali0ed $nited
States citi0ens, who had anti $.S. views. 'he overall definition of 1domestic terrorism2 has taken
different forms and meanings over the past several years. 3ne could also debate the fact that acts of
domestic terrorism have been taking place long before someone decided to create a definition for it.
According to a memo produced by the 4)56s 'errorist 7esearch and Analytical 8enter in 1%%-, domestic
terrorism was defined as 9the unlawful use of force or violence, committed by a group:s; of two or more
individuals, against persons or property to intimidate or coerce a government, the civilian population, or
any segment thereof, in furtherance of political or social ob<ectives.9 :=resley 1%%>;
Public Opinion and Domestic Terrorism
'he thought of domestic terrorism amongst society is sometimes overlooked, and under thought
as a 1study2 of terrorism. 'he mere idea of a violent and or e#tremist militia force is shrugged off as a
long forgotten piece of history only to be told about in school and on the history channel on television.
'he truth of the matter is? that every so often a particular group comes along and reminds us, the
American public the threat is very real and very close by. .hen one mentions the words( militia and
terrorism, dark images form definitions that only 8@@ and fo# can bring to you. 'raditionally terrorism is
defined as acts having > specific identifying characteristics( Aineluctably political aims and motives,
threatsBor eCually important threatens violence, designed to have far reaching psychological repercussions
beyond the immediate victim or target, conducted by an organi0ation , and perpetrated by a subDnational
group or entity, and the attack deliberately targets nonDcombatants :)yman, E;. !ong before the team
party was a thought in the minds of Americans, there were people like 'imithy *cFeigh who made it
their mission to remind GusH that there are those who have issues and grievances so powerful and so great,
with goals e#ceeding their own reach that are so clandestine that a single act of violence and terror is their
only output.
Current Domestic Terrorism Policy Issues
'he first ma<or issue with Americans and the thought of domestic terrorism is that it doesn"t e#ist,
therefore we don"t have to have strong policies in place to prevent or deter acts of terrorism from
occurring. 'he overall consensus on handling these issues is to call in the local S...A.'. team, the 4.).5.
and watch it all unfold on the > o"clock news as you"re eating a microwave dinner not thinking twice
about itI*E758AJ 3n September 10, 2012, the 4)5 disseminated its @ational 'errorism Assessment on
Komestic 'errorism. 15n recent months, the 4)5 has seen numerous e#amples of domestic terrorism and
violence committed by lone offenders or small cells. 4or e#ample, this year the 4)5 proactively
dismantled an anarchist e#tremist cell comprised of five men who planned to blow up a bridge in
8leveland, 3hio. 4our members of the cell have pleaded guilty, and the fifth member is going to trial. 5n
@ovember 2011, four members of a militia in Leorgia were arrested for planning to acCuire silencers and
e#plosives to use against various $.S. government targets in Atlanta, Leorgia.2 :8lancy 2012;
3ur own government has even blown off the thought of a domestic terror threat, and look what
happened, shockerJ Acts of domestic terrorism. 5n order for policy changes to become effective, we have
to take the threat as begin very serious, very real, and very close to home. 4orget what you know from
8@@ and other right wing news stations, terrorism is not limited to <ust coming from overseas :see again
the history of the $nited States of America;. .here is the line between policy and security/ 5s there even
a line/ 3r a better Cuestion is( should there even be a line/
Creating the Perfect Domestic Terrorism Response Policy
Since we have established that the threat of a domestic terror event is very possible, we have to
e#amine what the current policy says, and then create new sections to fill in the gaps. According to a
congressional research report published *ay 2012, overall counterterrorism efforts have been pieced
together largely in reaction to the rise in foreign terror plots. =lacing emphasis on the current
counterterrorism policy since the events of %&11 has been solely on <ihadist based terrorism, despite the
fact that domestic terrors have been behind more than twenty four acts of violence since %&11. 'he current
policy for creating a counterterrorism task force was created Muly 20, 1%E+ under the supervision of Fice
=resident Leorge )ush, and simply states in a - page memo, that a taskforce will be created who reports
and works directly under the Fice =resident with the approval of the standing =resident of the $nited
States. As the taskforce is created they will review and evaluate the effectiveness of the threat, as well as
state based policies and procedures on combatting terrorism. @e#t an assessment will be made of the
possibility of the threat spreading from the source to other local federal and or state based agencies.
References
=resley, S.*. !8K7 $S@ April 1%%>, 17ise of Komestic 'errorism and 5ts 7elation to $nited States
Armed 4orces2 retrieved from http(&&www.fas.org&irp&eprint&presley.htm
http(&&www.prochoice.org&aboutNabortion&violence&historyNe#treme.asp
)est, Steven? @ocella, Anthony M. :200>;. 5gniting a 7evolution( Foices in Kefense of the Earth. AO
=ress. 5S)@ 1D%0-E+%D+>D%.
$niform 8rime 7eports. :2012;. 7etrieved from http(&&www.fbi.gov
)yman, Kaniel. Keadly connections 1st. 1. @ew ork( 8ambridge $niv =r, 200+.=rint.
8lancy, *.A. :2012;. 'he Komestic 'errorism 'hreat. 7etrieved from http(&&www.fbi.gov