If there is any truth to the "move the NYC mosque" angle then Jones is now a terrorist of some sort

[Kurt_and_Hunter]

The addition of overt extortion to the hate-fest makes it a quasi-terrorist act.

Burning the books isn't terror, of course, but then again nobody would do anything to prevent some guy from destroying some books he owns. If my neighbor demanded $5 or else he would slash his own tires it wouldn't be very effective extortion.

So the only power behind the threat is the assumption that Muslims will commit atrocities in response to the burning and that he is willing to forestall that possible effect in exchange for something.

Demands.

Extortion backed by assumption/implication of violence to achieve a political end is pretty close to terrorism. In this case the threat of vilence is by proxy which makes it short of a formal extortion prosecution, but the shape of the thing is there.


And if this stuff is just rumor or mis-reporting then never mind.

[NoNothing]

1. Not buying it

You can't be a "terrorist" unless you are, you know, committing acts of terror, which even you acknowledge burning the books *isn't.* Otherwise, you veering off into "with us or with the terrorists" territory.

[Kurt_and_Hunter]

5. Yes and No. The distinction is...

I will grant that you are correct insofar as extortion usually requires a threat of something illegal. Though blackmail doesn't, come to think of it... telling Mike's wife that Mike has been cheating on her isn't crime, particularly if he has been. But requesting money from Mike to not tell is a crime. Hmmmm.

And I said in the OP that it would not be a prosecutable extortion case.

But extortion and coercion can certainly occur with no threat of violence by the person making the demand.

Say a policeman says he cannot guarantee your protection if you do not donate to the Policemen Relief Fund.

Say a guy tells a girl that if she doesn't have sex with him she can get out of the car now... and they happen to be in a very dangerous neighborhood.

Say a guy says, if you don't fix my car for free I'll tell Big Tony you've been sleeping with his wife.

None are threats of violence by the person making demands but all depend on an expectation/risk of violence as the enforcement mechanism.

[mdmc]

2. There may be some financing problems with the project

so perhaps it will not happen..

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

3. No terrorism. No extortion.

These threads just keep getting funnier and funnier.

[Swamp Rat]

4. Terry Jones is a terrorist.

Plain and simple.