How is the new terrorism different from, and similar to, terrorism in the past?

Terrorism
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Terrorism
Introduction
Terrorism mainly occurs when a person or a group of people are dissatisfied with some policies or practices of people or an organization that he is targeting. The policies can range from a wide variety of factors such as political, social, religion, media and other issues. Terrorism commonly targets a given region, country or community and tries to change those policies through violent means. Over the years, studies have shown that terror activities have continued to diversify as terror gangs adopt new methods of carrying out their agendas (Mohammad, 2010). This paper looks at various facets of terrorism such as its dynamics, causes and how it is controlled.
Comparing the new terrorism to terrorism in the past
Terrorism has for a long time remained a major security concern in most states and societies. Some scholars argue that the evolution experienced in terrorism represents its continuity and not necessarily its change, while others see it as a new form of terrorism. In the past, most terrorists carried out their attacks within their own countries or their neighboring countries (Rineheart, 2010). However, this has currently changed since terrorist groups are organized within ethnic or religious lines and they now attack outside the boundaries of their own country. This shows a growing trend in transnational terrorism.
In the past, states used to be self-reliant especially if they had enough resources to counter terrorism. Therefore, other states were not involved in the antiterrorist strategies since the terror acts as well as the reactions of the government did not affect foreign interests. However, with the new form of terrorism, there is need for cooperation between states and intelligence agencies and security forces of other countries so as to address and discover the root causes of terrorism. This was actually the reason behind the formation of Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) program that offers assistance towards prevention and suppression of terrorism through effective global cooperation (Mohammad, 2010). Additionally, in the past, terrorism perpetrators usually worked in groups or as individuals and they used to focus on a particular geographical area, unlike today where they are not limited to borders or particular states.
Terrorism has therefore not really changed since it still involves using violent means and causing fear to force certain changes. However, some scholars points that, it has just undergone some evolution (Rineheart, 2010). Terrorism is now more violent as the terrorists seek both attention and mass casualties. It is also much better financed and the terrorists are better trained in the arts of war with a huge access to modern weapons.
Reasons for increased terrorism
Most people and scholars believe that poverty and illiteracy are the main reasons behind terrorism activities as they make people adopt extreme views and see terror as the only way of airing their views (Mohammad, 2010). However, research has regarded such explanations as based on faith and not scientific evidence. Different people therefore explain terror in different dimensions. Economists on their part see participation in terrorism as an occupational choice just as the way another individual could become a doctor or a psychologist. On the other hand, Carl Hovland and Robert Sears who are psychologists at Yale argue that aggression is caused by deprivation and this makes people to express their frustrations and anger on others (Krueger, 2007). The educated and wealthy people are also seen as the most probable individuals to form terror groups as they seek power and authority. However, the poor people may also be used as the perpetrators of terror as they are paid money despite of risking their lives.
It is the role of the state to protect the citizens and maintain security measures at the highest level possible. Therefore, all most nations have put together efforts to fight against terrorism activities and the murderous ideology of the terror gangs (Krueger, 2007). This is usually done through application of all instruments available to the state. This can either involve using national power or influence, cutting off the sources of funding of the terrorists, strengthening security in their areas of operation, and putting severe punishment measures for those involved in the terror activities (Freeman, 2014). Effective democracy is also one of the most effective measures of curbing terrorism. It provides a platform where individuals can present their opinions in a safe way and follow the rule of democracy. The efforts of the state are still limited as most of the terror groups...