CMR 536 Terrorism and Counterterrorism Course Syllabus Fall 2010 UNCW

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1 CMR 536 Terrorism and Counterterrorism Course Syllabus Fall 2010 UNCW Instructor: Dan Masters Phone: Office: Leutze Hall Office Hours: M W 10 to 12 Web: Course Description: The terrorism and counterterrorism course is part of the international track for the graduate program in Conflict Management and Resolution (CMR). In this course you are introduced to the conflict condition referred to as terrorism, and the different dilemmas that countries face as they attempt to contend with terrorist problems (counterterrorism). The course is divided into two sections. The first part of this course is about problem definition, or in this case understanding terrorism. In the first part we will explore the way in which terrorism is defined for legal, policy, and research purposes. In this section we will explore the various locations of terrorism in the world, and some characteristics of countries that seem to make terrorism more or less likely. (We will briefly discuss individual level motivations for terrorism, for a complete treatment of this topic I recommend you take CMR 542 Psychology and Terrorism). Finally we will delve into issues of terrorism strategy to uncover the variety of strategic goals terrorist pursue within their attacks and their campaigns. We will also review the lingering debate on the relative success of the terrorist strategy. The second part of the course is devoted to counterterrorism. Counterterrorism takes place on many levels. These levels include psyops (the propaganda war), criminal justice fronts, military fronts, and the now pervasive counterinsurgency front. In the second section of the course we will delve into these topics broadly to ascertain what we have learned more generally, and then look at the application of these lessons in specific case studies. We will look into topics like: deterrence, incident response, media, military tactics, homeland security, law enforcement, counterinsurgency, and statebuilding/peacekeeping. Course Delivery Methods: The CMR program is designed for working professionals and reflects a delivery method built to suit the complex and busy lives of working professionals that have careers with variable demands on their time. The primary delivery method for this course is the Distance Education format. The DE format for this course combines UNCW s online course delivery system Blackboard version 9.1, and one face-to-face lecture block. Lecture Block: One part of the course delivery is a required intensive lecture block that takes place over a single weekend. For this course, the weekend lecture block is set on September 11 to 12. Class will meet 9 am to 12, and from 1:30 to 5pm on Saturday and Sunday (see course schedule here: -FALL2010.pdf. The physical location of the lecture block is at the Camp Lejeune Extension Office in the John A. Lejeune Center, building 825, Room 123 on Stone Street. Any student that wishes to be present at this site will need to make arrangements in advance to get access to the base, and be sure to arrive early to get through security to the base. If you are not able to make it to Camp Lejeune you have the option to meet the class in a remote site located on the UNCW campus in the Education Building

2 room EB 266. Again arrive early for the class. The entire lecture will be delivered in a live stream video conference that is fully interactive to allow students from both physical sites to ask questions as they arise and to participate in discussions. The live-streamed lecture block will be archived on the course website (in BB 9.1) for those that are unable to attend the lecture (due to deployments or work responsibilities) and for those that wish to access the lecture at a later time for any reason. NOTE: you are expected to attend the lecture block unless some aspect of your job prevents you, you cannot treat participation in the lecture block as optional. You should consider the lecture session as the formal kickoff for the course with all assignments to follow. (There is one exception to this rule. The first memo assignment is due the Wednesday before. This is a draft version. It will allow me to assess your first version and give comments back to you during the lecture block to correct any problems. You will then have a chance to revise the draft memo and hand in a final draft later). Blackboard: In addition to the lecture block, the course materials are available to you through the parallel online format using the Blackboard online class system. This course does not use the standard BB/Vista system at UNCW. Instead we are using the Blackboard 9.1 delivery program which you can access at: You can refer to the following address for more login information: (please refer to the Blackboard 9.1 Pilot Version) (NOTE YOU DO NOT USE THE BLACKBOARD ACCESS IN SEAPORT, or any other means to directly access BB through the university website). The BB 9.1 online course will contain all assigned readings, assignments, module lectures, and exams. Each topic listed in the course outline below is considered a separate module. Required Texts: 1. Michael E. Brown, Owen R. Coté Jr., Sean M. Lynn-Jones, and Steven E. Miller (eds). Contending with Terrorism: Roots, Strategies, and Responses. (Cambridge, MA: MIT Press, 2010). 2. William C. Banks, Renée de Nevers, and Mitchel B. Wallerstein. Combating Terrorism: Strategies and Approaches. (Washington, DC: CQ Press, 2008). 3. Other articles and book chapters are posted online in the BB 9.1 course shell for this class: Course Requirements: In this course you will be assessed using three different criteria. These include: exams, MEMO Assignments, and discussion posts. All materials are delivered and handed in online. All items together are worth 500 points. Grading follows a standard 10 point scale resulting in the following grading scale: A= ; B= ; C=399 to 350; D=349 to 300; F=299 or lower All grades are posted in the online BB 9.1 system and you will be able to track your grade as you go along. If, at any time, you would like to check you grade track against mine, just me and I will give you a complete assessment of work to that point in time. This class is required to provide you flexibility in due dates. All due dates (with two exceptions) are considered recommendations. All course materials must be submitted no later than midnight on December 1, The two exceptions to this are the first memo assignment, and the initial posts for the discussion threads. As discussed above, the first memo assignment is due on the Wednesday before

3 the lecture block to allow the instructor time to correct any problems, you will be able to revise the memo and turn it in later. The discussion posts (outlined below) are interactive where you submit an initial post and then a synthesized post that is based on the posts of your classmates. In order to ensure all students can complete the synthesized posts, all initial posts must be submitted by the published deadlines. You can submit the initial post early if you prefer. 1. Exams (two exams) (25%): Students will complete two exams during the semester. One is a midterm exam, the other is a final. The exams will cover various concepts, terms, theories and cases discussed in the course, or covered in the assigned readings. The questions for the exam will be made available to you via , and you will post your responses in the BB 9.1 system online. Each exam is worth 100 points (25% of the class grade). 2. MEMO Assignments (4 assignments) (50%): During the semester you will complete four (4) assignments related to the readings on the different topics. In each memo you will have a set of concepts and case studies and you will be asked to apply the concepts in various ways to the presented case studies. Each assignment is worth 75 points (or about 15% of the course grade). All assignments combined equal 50% of the course grade, and are by far the most significant portion of your course grade. The memo is a two part assignment. In the cover memo, or Executive Report, you will provide a typed response to the prompted questions in the assignment. This report is limited to a two page (single spaced) maximum. You begin with a general overview of the content of the assignment, and then proceed to the specific information related to the cases cited in the assignment. You will then complete the executive report with a summary conclusion that may or may not ask for recommendations (some assignments will include analysis and evaluation, some will be purely descriptive so recommendations are not expected on each memo). Accompanying the executive report is a document of supplementary materials. In this document you provide the evidence, justification, and supporting materials you need to back up the conclusions you assert in the executive report. The supplementary materials need to be about 2 to 3 pages (single spaced), fully cited, and provide necessary links between the course links and the assigned readings and lectures. Combined, each report should be about 4 to 5 pages in length. A recommended schedule for these assignments is listed in the course outline below. All course materials are due by Wednesday December 1. In other words, you are recommended to follow the schedule set out in the syllabus. However, that schedule is not set in stone. Because we are using the DE format you can hand in assignments as late as December 1. At the same time you can submit your work early if you prefer. All memo assignments must be submitted via the BB 9.1 online system. As my advice on preparing these assignments, I recommend you begin with the supplementary document first, and build the executive memo off the completed supplement. Just a recommendation that might make these assignments easier. 3. Class Discussion: (4 posted discussions) (25%). In the online course system you will see links for discussion pages. There are four posted discussions in this course. The topics include: What is Terrorism, Terrorist Strategy, Who Becomes a Terrorist and Why, and Counterterrorism.

4 Each discussion will include a series of question prompts related to the assigned readings (this final discussion on counterterrorism will consider all reading on counterterrorism) and a required set of counter discussions. First, you will construct a short entry that answers these questions relative to the assigned course material and your own analysis of the issues. You analysis should be based on the readings and other sources you are familiar with on the subject. The analysis will contain, to some degree, a personal opinion. Second, once everyone has submitted an initial entry, you are required to post a response entry. In this response you provide a synthesis of other comments into your new entry. You begin with highlighting areas of agreement and disagreement on the topics between your vision of the readings (and questions) and other students. Respond in a way that is critical to your views, the views of others, but show adaptability and understanding. As is required of any such assignment, students are expected to post responses that exercise a premium of respect to your fellow students. Degrading, insulting, and disrespectful comments will not be tolerated, and will resulting in serious point deductions from the assignment. The assignments are to push your perspective and encourage you to see these topics from a range of perspectives and to show an ability to see flaws within your own views. These assignments are, in a turn of the phrase, a Socratic exercise. In this course, all assignments will have very flexible due date schedules. However, since the discussion posts require interaction between you and other students I am requesting that all first round posts be completed by the date published below. You may take additional time to complete the synthesized second post. I am publishing a recommended schedule for those posts as well, but December 1 is the final deadline for all synthesized posts. Discussion 1: What is Terrorism? Initial Post Due by Wednesday September 15 at midnight Synthesized Post, recommended due date: Monday Sept. 20. Discussion 2: Terrorist Strategy Initial Post: Due by Wednesday September 22 at midnight Synthesized Post, recommended due date: Monday Sept. 27 Discussion 3: Who Becomes a Terrorist and Why? Initial Post: Due by Wednesday October 13 at midnight Synthesized Post, recommended due date: Monday October 18 Discussion 4: Counterterrorism Initial Post: Due by Tuesday November 23 at midnight Synthesized post, recommended by Monday November 29. All initial posts are due by the posted due dates. All synthesized posts due by Wednesday December 1 at midnight or they will not count towards your grade.

5 Course Outline: Below you will find a list of readings associated with each topic for this course. The bolded entry is the required reading for each module in preparation for the lecture block on September 11 and 12. You are expected to have these chapters and articles read and ready to discuss the content. Weeks 1 to 3: Course Introduction Distribute the syllabus, review the lecture location and general format for the lecture block, review assignments, access BB 9.1 and familiarize yourself with BB 9.1 course structure. These three weeks are getting prepared for the course. You are free to begin readings, and you may proceed with assignments if you please at this stage. Lecture Block (September 11 to 12, 9 to 5 pm each day). Module 1: What is Terrorism 1. Di Filippo, Terrorist Crimes and International Co-operation EJIL (online pdf) 2. Aleni, Distinguishing Terrorism from Wars of National Liberation JICJ (online pdf) Memo Assignment: Content posted in BB 9.1 Recommended due date Wednesday September 8 Module 2: Terrorist Strategies 1. Kydd and Walter, The Strategies of Terrorism in Brown, Cote, Lynn-Jones, and Miller. 2. Abrahms, Why Terrorism does not work in Brown, Cote, Lynn-Jones, and Miller 3. Siqueira, Political and Militant Wings JCR (online pdf) 4. Kydd and Wlater, Sabotaging the Peace IO (online pdf) Module 3: Where does Terrorism take Place? (Geo-politics of terrorism) 1. Enders and Sandler, Distribution of Transnational Terrorism, ISQ (online pdf) 2. LaFree, Morris, and Dugan, Cross-National Patterns of Terrorism, BJC (online pdf) Module 4: Origins of Terrorism (history of terrorism) 1. Banks, denevers, and Wallerstein, Chapter Cronin, Behind the Curve, in Brown, Cote, Lynn-Jones, and Miller. 3. Masters, Origin of Terrorist Threats, TPV (online pdf) 4. Rasler and Thompson, Looking for Waves of Terrorism, TPV (online pdf)

6 Module 5: Terrorist Venues (state vulnerabilities) 1. Banks, denevers, and Wallerstein, Chapter Drakos and Gofas, The Devil you know JCR (online pdf) 3. Savun and Phillips, Democracy, Foreign Policy, and Terrorism, JCR (online pdf) 4. Koch and Kranmer, Testing the Dick Cheney Hypothesis, CMPS (online pdf) Memo Assignment (covers modules 3 to 5): Content posted in BB 9.1 Recommended Due Date: Wednesday October 6 Module 6: Who Becomes a terrorist and why? 1. Moghadam, Motives for Martyrdom, in Brown, Cote, Lynn-Jones, and Miller. 2. McCauley and Moskalenko, Mechanisms of Political Radicalization, TPV (online pdf) 3. Masters, Support and Non-support for Nationalist Rebellion, PP (online pdf) MIDTERM EXAM Recommended Completion Date: Wednesday October 20 Module 7: Deterrence and Terrorism 1. Banks, denevers, and Wallerstein, Chapter 4 2. Trager and Zagorcheva, Deterring Terrorism in Brown, Cote, Lynn-Jones, and Miller Module 8: Incident Response 1. Banks, denevers, Wallerstein, Chapter 7 2. Eyerman and Strom, Multiagency Coordination and Response, IJCACJ (online pdf) 3. Boin and Smith, Terrorism and Critical Infrastructures, PMM (online pdf) Memo Assignment: Content Posted in BB 9.1 Recommended Due Date: Wednesday November 3 Module 9: Law Enforcement 1. Banks, denevers, and Wallerstein, Chapter 5 2. Weisburd, Hasisi, Jonathan, and Aviv, Terrorist Threats and Police Performance, BJC (online pdf) Module 10: Military Responses

7 1. Banks, denevers, and Wallerstein, Chapter Tams, The Use of Force against Terrorists, EJIL (online pdf) 3. Rosendorff and Sandler, Too Much of a Good Thing?, JCR (online pdf) Memo Assignment: Content Posted in BB 9.1 Recommended Due Date: Wednesday November 17 Module 11: International Counterterrorism 1. Banks, denevers, and Wallerstein, Chapter DeNevers, NATO s International Security Role, in Brown, Cote, Lynn-Jones, and Miller 3. Gill, Not just Joining the Dots, P&S (online pdf) 4. Bianchi, Security Council s Anti-terror Resolutions, JICJ (online pdf) Module 12: Counterinsurgency 1. Byman, Friends like These, in Brown, Cote, Lynn-Jones, and Miller. 2. Parker and Irvine, Civil-Military integration, in Rid and Keaney, eds. Understanding Counterinsurgency (online pdf). FINAL EXAM Required Completion Date: Thursday December 9 at midnight