Just the word terrorism seems kind of frightening, but then again, there are lots of things in the real world that really are frightening, and non-state terrorism, which is something to respect as a possibility in happening, just isn’t something that societies should be overly concerned about, because the chances of a real act of terrorism actually happening to us is almost always remote.
Look, big explosions and terrorism attacks are going to wreak havoc on any civil society, but it is always important to have some reasonable perspective because the difference between non-state actors and state actors is absolutely stark. For instance, an effective state actor has all the accouterments of an established military, as well as an established base of corporations that are manufacturing the armaments and are also developing more state-of-the-art armaments. Further to the point, state actors have a budget to work within and have established as a matter of national policy the need to have military prowess. On the other hand, non-state actors are limited to what they can or cannot do, and while they may well be innovative in what they can accomplish, given their personnel, experience, and overall footprint, they are, in actuality, limited in their ability to actually wage war upon anyone.
Look, the elephant in the room is always going to be state actors and is never going to be about non-state actors because the difference between the two is so striking that it doesn’t make sense to group them together as somehow being the equivalent to one another. The bottom line is that money matters, experience and expertise matter, the sophistication and power of weapons matter, the inventory of weapons matters, and the priority of a government of how much they are going to devote to armaments and things of this sort matters. In all of this, a state actor has not only the capability but also the capacity to really hurt not just non-state actors but also state actors, as well, because the bigger the footprint, the bigger the potential hurt.
Non-state terrorism is very much hit and miss, with occasional hits that are quite effective, and a whole multitude of misses, for various reasons. Also, it is important to note that non-state actors cannot often work outside their domain, at any great distance, because they lack the manpower and logistics to do so. Additionally, non-state actors know that they can’t compete against state actors, which is why they specialize in terrorism, in the hope that by doing so, they can make an impact, which is why they do what they do.
All of the above, makes the point that as much as we might desire for non-state actors who are performing terrorism to simply disappear or to be completely eradicated, it just isn’t going to happen, because it only takes a few motivated individuals with their hands on some sort of weaponry to perform terrorist acts. So, non-state terrorism is not going to go away anytime soon, and our best response is to simply do what we can to reduce such, without getting completely bent out of shape, or acting the fool.