Christopher would have us remember that one of the things you need to successfully fight an enemy is to show that the enemy doesn't have the same human qualities that you do. Maybe he's right, or does it depend on how the political circumstances play-out in differant conflicts at differant times?

I'm not the greatest on the internet, but I couldn't find a single, universally accepted definition of terrorism?

An article in the AP awhile back mentioned that Sunnis were using the word Ghirban or crows to describe Shiites because of the distinctive black garb worn by the Mahdi Army militia of Muqtada al-Sadr. Sunnis accuse the militia of kidnapping and killing Sunnis - but no use of the word terrorist here by them - - although, if someone was coming after me, I'd be calling them something besides a crow, or is this considered a contempful, derogatory reference in Iraq? Worse then being called a terrorist?

I suppose the word terrorist is more acceptable since a terrorist's actions doesn't follow the law of landwarfare, and therefore, Christopher isn't going to allow them to share in our acceptance given to the establishment of violence by others acting on behalf of the state.

Sometime people who are insulted will turn around and wear the insult like a badge of honor --perhaps even forgetting that an insult was intended in the first place.

For example, there is apparently considerable disagreement over the origins of the phrase "devil dog" - but according to Marine Corps lore it was a term of praise that described the tenacity and ferocity of the Marines. It is not hard to imagine, however, that the German who first uttered the phrase (if that is what happened) did not really intend praise when called the Marines dogs from hell.

In the absence of any agreed definition I thought the British Government's definition is as good as any:

"Terrorism" means the use or threat of action which involves serious violence against a person or serious damage to property; endangers a person's life, other than that of the person committing the action; creates a serious risk to the health or safety of the public or a section of the public; or is designed seriously to interfere with or seriously to disrupt an electronic system, where the use or threat is designed to influence the government or to intimidate the public or a section of the public, and the use or threat is made for the purpose of advancing a political, religious or ideological cause.

Also Merriam-Webster defines dissident as

disagreeing especially with an established religious or political system, organization, or belief