The New Terrorism Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

The New Terrorism - Essay Example This modern structure is in the forms of a network, eased by information technology, the modern personnel are amateurs, who in most case, collaborate in ad hoc or transitory groups, as well as the modern attitude an intensified willingness of causing mass casualties, maybe by using weapons of chemical, biological, nuclear or radiological (CBNR). Both network organizations, along with amateur participation have the perception that the "new terrorists" are no longer in need of state sponsorship compared to their predecessors thereby being extremely dangerous or at least extremely difficult in countering than its predecessor (Andrew & Kumar 2002, p.10). Terrorists have the capability and willingness of developing network king of organization for similar reasons as those of businesses. This is the necessitated by the information revolution, which lowers the cost of communication, thereby permitting organizations in pushing for functions out of a controlling hierarchical structure. Theref ore, organizations are capable of flattening out their pyramids of authority, while, at the same time, controlling and approaching a network form, a grouping of more or less independent, dispersed entities, connected by developed communications and maybe nothing more than a common reason. Motivating or forcing the shift from hierarchy to network happens to be the advantages acquired by an organization while transforming itself (Gutteridge 1986, p.35). It turns out to be more supple, adaptive, as well as resilient since each of its units is capable of sensing and reacting on its own in unfastened integration with the others. This increases the opportunities for the organization for learning, while making it extremely flexible, as well as adaptive. The organization turns out to be extremely resilient since if one or even a number of its constituent entities get destroyed, the others are persistent; therefore, a network, not like a hierarchy, is incapable of getting destroyed through d ecapitation. In terrorists’ case, there is a possibility that the loosely connected autonomous entities making up a network could be individuals, for instance Ramzi Yousef accredited for organizing the World Trade Center bombing. There is also a possibility that the entities framing terrorist networks could be large, formal, or hierarchical organizations thereby working altogether devoid of any common hierarchy or main commanding authority amongst them. No matter what the constituents of the network are, the absence of this innermost authority or control is what makes it a network. It is this characteristic giving networks their suppleness, adaptiveness, as well as resilience, permitting them gains over organizations such as the U.S. government, which seem to be hierarchical industrial-age relics (Hallstorm 2011, p.51). An ideal example of manifestation of this networking happens to be the propagation of the amateur terrorist, along with the ad hoc terrorist grouping. Amateur s collaborate with the like-minded in conducting a terrorist attack and eventually getting disbanded. They do not undergo training or other logistical backing from state-sponsors; rather depend on networks of supporters, studying what is necessary from publications or the Internet or dismissed soldiers.