The popular uprising in Tunisia—sparked by the flaming suicide of an educated but frustrated young man—that brought down a corrupt and oppressive autocratic regime “may have repercussions far beyond the tiny North African state” (stratfor.com, January 14, 2011). Within days, similar protests and riots broke out in Algeria, Egypt, Jordan and Mauritania (euobserver.com, January 17, 2011).

Every age has had its mistaken ideas.  Dr. David Aikman, journalist and historian, describes five myths (popular but false ideas, fables, lies) that are damaging western societies!

Thanks to the introduction of missile guidance systems from Iran, Hizballah’s 1,500 missiles can now hit specific targets in Israel.  Israeli defense experts state, “The enemy has achieved aerial supremacy without even having aircraft… Iran’s fully-guided Fateh-110 rocket would enable Hizballah and Syria to strike critical Israeli facilities with dozens… of rockets… Hizballah has [also] dismantled its missile bases and scattered the warheads widely apart in underground bunkers and natural caverns, from which they can be launched.”

At midnight on New Year’s Eve, a bomb blast outside the Coptic Church of the Two Saints in Alexandria, Egypt killed 21 people and injured 80. Some suggest a car bomb, while Egyptian officials believe it was a suicide attack perpetrated by Al Qaeda forces from outside the country.

Egypt is currently looking for a successor for the current president Hosni Mubarak (age 82), and factions within the government are seeking to identify a stable leader. Some analysts suggest the bomb blast was designed to put pressure on the process of choosing a successor.

Each day brings new and unsettling developments in all sectors and levels of our country and other developed nations, spawning uncertainty and fear, as people go about their daily routines of work and leisure activities. As one contemplates this situation, the question is raised, "Why terrorism?" Why has this become a global problem, which everyone deals with and no one can control? It is a very complex question and a number of contributing factors can be identified.