Centuries of plots, attacks and resilience

"Terrorism on American Soil:
A Concise History of Plots and
Perpetrators from the Famous
to the Forgotten"
by Joseph T. McCann
on WSKG Radio's OFF THE PAGE
L I V E   Tues., Jan. 23 at 1pm
(Repeating at 7pm)

          We live in a time of an officially pronounced though unofficially declared Global War on Terrorism. The common reaction to the attacks of September 11, 2001 was that everything had changed and that Americans could no longer feel protected by two oceans, the power of police and military forces and the expectation of good will. We were under attack and both the enemy and the targets were everywhere.
In fact, our history is filled with events that have traumatized the nation and persons who have sought to do harm.
           The new book "Terrorism on American Soil" is called "a concise history of plots and perpetrators from the famous to the forgotten." Author Joseph T. McCann writes about thirty-seven incidents from the assassination of Abraham Lincoln through the 1920 anarchist bombing of Wall Street to the anthrax-laden letters that arrived shortly after the September 11th attacks. Dr. McCann writes that "9/11 and the anthrax letters together mark both an end to the era of what-if scenarios in counterterrorism and the beginning of an era in which a new form of terrorism - one where the risk of catastrophic destruction and the use of weapons of mass destruction - has found its way onto American soil."
           Although there is not yet an agreed international definition of "terrorism" (a problem that many feel hinders effective response to the threat), the McCann book takes the broad view. It can be an attack on a prominent person, random violence that endangers everyone nearby or even "a form of theater" to advance a cause or make a point. The issues that motivated anarchists a century ago may still be at work in terrorists today, and challenges remain to our system of justice.
           Despite the acknowledged dangers in today's terrorist acts, McCann tends to be optimistic about the future. His study of the history of "plots and perpetrators" reveals how the American people have come through periods of fear and danger and experience "a profound capacity to respond well in the aftermath of terrorist attacks" and continue with their lives.
           Joseph McCann is both a lawyer and a clinical and forensic psychologist. He is also a clinical assistant professor of psychiatry at the SUNY Upstate Medical Center and an adjunct assistant professor in the Psychology Department of Binghamton University, where he teaches a course entitled Psychology, Terrorism and Law. McCann has also been a consultant on terrorist matters to several law enforcement agencies. "Terrorism on American Soil" is his eighth book. He joins WSKG's Bill Jaker to discuss the historical, legal and psychological aspects of terrorism. To join in the broadcast call during the 1:00 o'clock hour to 1-888/359-9754 or post a message to WSKG.Radio@Gmail.com.

NEXT TIME: Many fascinating people lie beneath the soil of upstate New York. On February 6 Chuck D'Imperio of Oneonta visits OFF THE PAGE to tell about "Great Graves of Upstate New York" and some seventy individuals from the recent and distant past, from Lucille Ball and Frederick Douglass to Andrew Carnegie, Emily Post and four U.S. Presidents. It is one of the more unusual guidebooks to this part of the country.

OFF THE PAGE archives
Authors, titles, and streaming audio