Terrorism comes in many forms and flavors- all of them cruel. From cowardly school yard and social media bullying to the use of bombs and guns to kill and maim innocent men, women,and children- no matter what its form- people and groups who commits acts of hatred and intolerance violate every value that we hold dear as a species. We call ourselves "humans" and we define compassionate behavior by members of our species and being "humane". Terrorists actions are not "humane" and the people who commit acts of terrorism, in any form, forfeit their right to live among us. Military action,
retribution, and confinement, while necessary and justifiable, are only temporary fixes and will never put an end to terrorism because they don't address the root causes of the problem. Clearly we need a planet wide public conversation about the types of environments - be they poverty, religious oppression, political oppression, intolerance, lack of opportunity, or prejudice, which provide an atmosphere that promotes and encourages people to hate and mistreat one another. We humans pride ourselves on being above all other animals in terms of intelligence, social empathy, and conscience -yet we continue to commit acts as brutal as any other species on the planet. If our incredible intelligence and creativity only lead to more deadly brutality, violence, and intolerance how can we claim to be superior to species with lesser intelligence?