Terrorist: a person who terrorizes or frightens others to perpetrate an economic, religious, political, or ideological goal which deliberately targets or disregards civilians.

Terrorize: to dominate or coerce by intimidation.

Intimidate: to force into or deter from some action by inducing fear.

Today’s terrorist may well be tomorrow’s revolutionary hero. But—

“I stopped writing this fall, for the first time in my life, out of this silencing fear of being attacked by them.”

“I was attacked for making a vague statement.”

“I worked for a rape crisis center for years, was involved with founding a network for survivors, was sexually abused for years as a kid — and people call me a rape apologist.”

“I friend requested most of them so that I can keep an eye on things. It’s scary.”

Sometimes change cannot be achieved without extreme, radical action.

“She’s attacking your statement as “violent” and maligning everyone who has liked or shared it.”

“I want to be supportive of your message. I admit it: I’m scared.”

“I actually had a friend say to me “Be careful.””

“I’ve had to retreat from social media because my mental health can’t deal with the swell of hate. It is causing me physical illness.”

There’s a bit of the terrorist and revolutionary in all of us. The desire for change. The desire for things to be better. The need for adrenaline and action. The need to kick some ass and to whoop it up. The need to mob. The need to burn and to holler. The desire to take over and put ourselves in charge.

“Despite having been a crisis worker with victims of abuse and violence the tenor of this dialogue, or non-dialogue, makes it difficult for me to say much at all.”

“They have only made a name for themselves through these fear tactics. Not through their work.”

“It is truly sickening to see how something that might have begun with good intentions has mutated in to something so hateful.”

What brave new world would our terrorists build for us?