It did not take long to establish that the attack at Moscow's airport on Monday was the work of a suicide bomber.
Aviation analysit Chris Yates told the 大象传媒 it was "an accident waiting to happen."
"Sooner or later, because of the way terror tactics have evolved, someone was going to enter an arrivals hall and blow themselves up." Effectively, suicide bombing has become the method of choice for those wanting - for whatever reason - to destroy themselves, and other people, for their cause. But why? What has it ever achieved?
How many suicide attacks have actually resulted in changes of policy - at least, changes in the direction of the cause the attackers advocate?
Rare are the examples of countries that have conceded ground in the wake of suicide attacks. In general, the response is to galvanise the attacked country against them.
Nowhere has a sustained campaign of suicide bombing been so high-profile as in the Israel-Palestine conflict. And yet, as the leaked documents from Sunday suggest, the prospects of peace there remain as remote as ever.
On the other hand, killing, as the economists Steven D Levitt and Stephen J Dubnar - famed for their Freakonomics books - is not actually even the main point:
"Rather, it is a means by which to scare the pants off the living and fracture their normal lives. Terrorism is therefore devilishly efficient, exerting far more leverage than an equal amount of non-terrorist violence." The consequences of such action can absolutely hamstring us. Think of what we have to go through at airports now. It's one of the few areas where you can directly match plot to policy.
Taking shoes off - down to Richard Reid, the shoe bomber. No liquids over 100 ml? That's due to the foiled plan from 2006 to detonate liquid explosives over 10 US and Canadian cities. Full body scanners? That's Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, the "underpants bomber."
And remember - none of those three attacks were even successful.
The point is, the fear of a future attack is what causes both the costs (in terms of time, money and legislation) and the suspicion. If one of aim of the 7/7 suicide attacks on the London underground was to increase friction with Muslim communities in the UK, they undoubtedly achieved their aims.
Mandie in Florida emailed to say: People are more real online, in person they try and hide views, feelings. I find plenty of time for my husband and two children face to face AND online.
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Christian from California got in touch to say: I am guilty of this, my 4 year old daughter now says preemptively , "Daddy, come eat breakfast with me and leave your phone in your office" I think that says it all.
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Benjamin Imanuel in LA, California: When I was younger I remember the dinner table used to be a social situation that brought families closer, however in the last few years i noticed that it has become a place where each individual is in there own world where each person is either texting or on the phone
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Chris writes on Facebook: Did we not have the same conversation when we invented the telegraph? Certainly new technology will change the way we communicate, and manners and norms will shift accordingly
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Ade in Brighton, England: On Christmas day last year spent with friends all of us were talking, eating and at the same time constantly checking our social network. The year before we spent talking and listening to music, so things have changed.
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Nice dialogue about influence of #sm @大象传媒_WHYS w/Dr.Turkle healthy to step away disconnect & reflect, sometimes hard to find that balance
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John from Toronto emailed the 大象传媒: Talking at dinner has always been part of regular human interaction. The conversation has just grown, thanks to electronic devices.
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Social networking has only proliferated contacts, not intensified them. Face-to-face counts better. -Isaac Nyam, Nigeria.
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Laura from Ghana emailed us
I was disabled and house bound for a while and my blackberry was my only connection to the rest of the world. It was a powerful tool that boosted my psychological well being and connections to friends and family. However, I became too dependent on it well and now have to wean myself off.
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Larry in Monrovia, Liberia:These social networks have greatly improved our communication. For instance, they were largely responsible for the massive responses leading to the Tunisia peace march.
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Nicholas writes on Facebook: The immense pressure to join and constantly update social networks decreases time spent interacting with people off the internet.
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It is not just a question of been well brought up? Letizia
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Dwight posted on Facebook: People were isolated from reality long before social networking came along. FB/ MySpace/ Twitter/ and chat rooms just found a way to capitalize on it.
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Elizabeth got in touch via email to ask Sherry: What do you recommend is the best way to educate young people about social networking and how important it is to do other things and interact with people in person?
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Gordon emailed the 大象传媒: Is traditional, physical communication better than a blend with communication that is distant or removed? It seems like a natural progression of the written word.
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Mona in Egypt: Being from and living in the Middle East, through facebook, I'm able to go read comments and communicate with people I would NEVER EVER have the opportunity to talk to in the 'real world'. Social networking is just as real as anything that is considered real. You don't have to take my word for it, just ask any Tunisian!
Has suicide bombing ever achieved anything?
| Tuesday, 1 Jan. 2011 | 17:50 - 19:00 GMT
It did not take long to establish that the attack at Moscow's airport on Monday was the work of a suicide bomber.
Aviation analysit Chris Yates told the 大象传媒 it was "an accident waiting to happen."
"Sooner or later, because of the way terror tactics have evolved, someone was going to enter an arrivals hall and blow themselves up."
Effectively, suicide bombing has become the method of choice for those wanting - for whatever reason - to destroy themselves, and other people, for their cause. But why? What has it ever achieved?
How many suicide attacks have actually resulted in changes of policy - at least, changes in the direction of the cause the attackers advocate?
Rare are the examples of countries that have conceded ground in the wake of suicide attacks. In general, the response is to galvanise the attacked country against them.
Nowhere has a sustained campaign of suicide bombing been so high-profile as in the Israel-Palestine conflict. And yet, as the leaked documents from Sunday suggest, the prospects of peace there remain as remote as ever.
On the other hand, killing, as the economists Steven D Levitt and Stephen J Dubnar - famed for their Freakonomics books - is not actually even the main point:
"Rather, it is a means by which to scare the pants off the living and fracture their normal lives. Terrorism is therefore devilishly efficient, exerting far more leverage than an equal amount of non-terrorist violence."
The consequences of such action can absolutely hamstring us. Think of what we have to go through at airports now. It's one of the few areas where you can directly match plot to policy.
Taking shoes off - down to Richard Reid, the shoe bomber. No liquids over 100 ml? That's due to the foiled plan from 2006 to detonate liquid explosives over 10 US and Canadian cities. Full body scanners? That's Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, the "underpants bomber."
And remember - none of those three attacks were even successful.
The point is, the fear of a future attack is what causes both the costs (in terms of time, money and legislation) and the suspicion. If one of aim of the 7/7 suicide attacks on the London underground was to increase friction with Muslim communities in the UK, they undoubtedly achieved their aims.
Your comments
Comment sent via YOURSAY
Mandie in Florida emailed to say: People are more real online, in person they try and hide views, feelings. I find plenty of time for my husband and two children face to face AND online.
Comment sent via YOURSAY
Christian from California got in touch to say: I am guilty of this, my 4 year old daughter now says preemptively , "Daddy, come eat breakfast with me and leave your phone in your office" I think that says it all.
Comment sent via Facebook
Benjamin Imanuel in LA, California: When I was younger I remember the dinner table used to be a social situation that brought families closer, however in the last few years i noticed that it has become a place where each individual is in there own world where each person is either texting or on the phone
Comment sent via Facebook
Chris writes on Facebook: Did we not have the same conversation when we invented the telegraph? Certainly new technology will change the way we communicate, and manners and norms will shift accordingly
Comment sent via Facebook
Ade in Brighton, England: On Christmas day last year spent with friends all of us were talking, eating and at the same time constantly checking our social network. The year before we spent talking and listening to music, so things have changed.
Comment sent via Twitter
Nice dialogue about influence of #sm @大象传媒_WHYS w/Dr.Turkle healthy to step away disconnect & reflect, sometimes hard to find that balance
Comment sent via YOURSAY
John from Toronto emailed the 大象传媒: Talking at dinner has always been part of regular human interaction. The conversation has just grown, thanks to electronic devices.
Comment sent via SMS
Social networking has only proliferated contacts, not intensified them. Face-to-face counts better. -Isaac Nyam, Nigeria.
Comment sent via YOURSAY
Laura from Ghana emailed us I was disabled and house bound for a while and my blackberry was my only connection to the rest of the world. It was a powerful tool that boosted my psychological well being and connections to friends and family. However, I became too dependent on it well and now have to wean myself off.
Comment sent via Facebook
Larry in Monrovia, Liberia:These social networks have greatly improved our communication. For instance, they were largely responsible for the massive responses leading to the Tunisia peace march.
Comment sent via Facebook
Nicholas writes on Facebook: The immense pressure to join and constantly update social networks decreases time spent interacting with people off the internet.
Comment sent via SMS
It is not just a question of been well brought up? Letizia
Comment sent via Facebook
Dwight posted on Facebook: People were isolated from reality long before social networking came along. FB/ MySpace/ Twitter/ and chat rooms just found a way to capitalize on it.
Comment sent via YOURSAY
Elizabeth got in touch via email to ask Sherry: What do you recommend is the best way to educate young people about social networking and how important it is to do other things and interact with people in person?
Comment sent via YOURSAY
Gordon emailed the 大象传媒: Is traditional, physical communication better than a blend with communication that is distant or removed? It seems like a natural progression of the written word.
Comment sent via Facebook
Mona in Egypt: Being from and living in the Middle East, through facebook, I'm able to go read comments and communicate with people I would NEVER EVER have the opportunity to talk to in the 'real world'. Social networking is just as real as anything that is considered real. You don't have to take my word for it, just ask any Tunisian!