ABSTRACT
Americans tend to conceptualize homeland security in terms of maintaining surveillance, guarding against weapons of mass destruction, and countering specific infections or injuries. It is, however, inadequate to frame terrorism in terms of physical assaults because terrorism is primarily a psychological weapon, aimed at inflicting psychological trauma on a community or nation in order to gain control over it. This definition accounts for terrorism’s terrible economy and reach. The killing of a single soldier in Iraq can affect millions of people on the other side of the planet. None of these people are within range of bullets or bombs but all are well within the range of terrorism because they can be made to feel vulnerable and overwhelmed. Mere threats can assure success. Because terrorists wield psychological trauma as a weapon, terrorism is very much a mental health issue.
