Prescott Valley, AZ Correspondent-It appears that the War on Terrorism is here to stay, at least until ISIS and other related terrorist organizations, cells, lone wolf operatives and fanatics involved in domestic and international terrorism are put out of commission.

Whether the War on Terrorism will reach the goal of eradicating terrorism in anyone’s lifetime remains to be seen, but serious efforts do need to be made to implement policies and approaches that limit the attraction and investment in terrorism as a way of life and established institution.

Identifying terrorism for what it is and acknowledging its sources are two major steps that will assist in educating the public as to just what is necessary to wake up skeptics, uninformed Americans and others as to exactly what the War on Terrorism involves. Believing that it is real and doing something about it are two public relations goals that must be implemented.

Incentives and access to terrorist activities and organizations must be curtailed and eliminated, which entails definitive pauses in immigration from known terrorist countries.  It also requires scrutinizing and monitoring social media and other sources for recruitment of terrorists within and outside of America.  With the wide range of network capabilities and options available to would-be terrorists and known terrorists, development of and access to these sites must be severely scaled back or banned altogether.

Known terror cells and operational facilities for terrorist training and infiltration must also be removed from the American landscape. Allowing terrorist activity to freely operate in various areas of the country cannot be tolerated. There must be no safe havens for novice or seasoned terrorists anywhere.

Those serving jail or prison time and promoting terrorism must be isolated and not allowed to carry on recruitment from their prison cells. No lines of communication can be allowed for disbursement of any spoken, written or internet related transference of terrorist philosophies or training materials. Additionally, any foreign nationals promoting terrorism on his or her own or through any organization must be subject to deportation and imprisonment if found to be advocating terrorist acts or participating in them.

If the major battles in the War on Terrorism are ever going to be won and the new normal designated as a thing of the past, then full acceptance and identification of the threats of terrorism have to become part of a vigilant effort on the part of not only America but the world.  Legislative efforts must be initiated and old modes of operation concerning terrorism replaced with solid and workable policies that ensure the protection, safety and security of all Americans.  The old, wait and see what happens line of reasoning and political correctness just don’t work anymore when it comes to terrorism and the war on it.

Owatonna, MN Correspondent- With the recent terrorist attacks in the New York City area taking more lives and damaging more property, the question must be asked: Is terrorism here to stay? To answer that, we must ask two other questions. The first is why are terrorists attacking us? The second is can either side prevail in this new type of guerilla warfare?

Terrorists from the Middle East presumably attack Westerners because we imposed ourselves and our will into the middle of their lands without their blessing or permission. We “invaded” mainly to access their cheap oil, and then proceeded to set up arbitrary political boundaries and installed rulers friendly to our interests. Unfortunately, many of these puppet rulers turned out to be the worst sort of despots. All during our “invasion” we paid little heed to Muslim culture, religion, or tribal sovereignty. Is it any wonder radical elements feel the need to fight back? U.S. citizens would most certainly fight back against any foreign invader who declared war on us, or even on an invader who didn’t.

The question of one side winning this war is difficult to answer. How does a sovereign nation declare victory against an unknown, uncountable enemy? Even if we bomb the crap out of the entire Middle East, primarily nations whom we believe have supported terrorists against us, there is no guarantee that rogue elements who still feel disrespected won’t continue attacking Western targets.

Moreover, can a small group of terrorists ever declare victory over the most powerful nation in the world? What if we went so far as to “surrender” and cave in to all the terrorists’ demands? What would that entail? Most importantly, the disbanding of or disintegration of the nation of Israel. Past that, would terrorist victory require a total retreat of everything Western from countries like Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Jordan, Dubai, and Oman? It is hard to imagine Middle Easterners who have adopted western ways completely giving up what they have become accustomed to in order to return to some sort of tribal existence that characterized Muslim life only a few decades ago. This seems to be an impossible scenario.

What if the United States took a “slightly less radical approach” and essentially pulled out of the Middle East (in effect, taking our toys and going home)? Disgruntled Muslims might still feel slighted and continue to attack us with suicide bombers and localized attacks, just to “teach us a lesson” and make sure we do not try any funny business in the future.

Since the prospect of any of the previous scenarios coming true seems remote, the logical conclusion is that terrorism will continue unabated, with ebbs and flows of intensity depending upon the latest political and diplomatic shenanigans. Since terrorist attacks have literally become main street, mainstream events, it appears that terrorism has indeed become the New Normal.

Sheffield Jamaica Correspondent-Terrorism is just awful! I wouldn’t even wish it on my enemy. People should not be forced to live in fear. People should not worry about their kids and whether they’ll safely return home from school. I’ve seen so many YouTube pranks downplay the importance or seriousness of terrorism and it makes me sick. In light of all that’s happening, especially the recent terrorist attack in Berlin, people are definitely crawling into caves. They are definitely skeptical, especially when sharing the same space with a Muslim.

No wonder so many people laud the recent success of Donald Trump and his moment of fame. With his strict and disdainful attitude toward anyone who’s not Caucasian, America looks to him for war on terrorism. Is that the new normal? I’d say it is. In whatever way possible, people are trying to fight back. This includes denying those the right (especially from countries prone to acts of terror) to seek refuge in America. It’s quite difficult to accept these people when all they do is revel and pride their murderous path.

I’m never one to hail war, but what is America’s response to these threats? I can assure you, once these individuals are caught, they are pretty much dead. So, yes, based on recent occurrences and the roll-out of armed forces, the war on terrorism is definitely the norm today.