in which the Premier of South Australia said:
"...it's my view that anyone who is illegally involved in diverting water in the Murray-Darling system during this crisis is engaging in an act of terrorism against the people of Australia..."
While I understand that water is a precious resource that must be protected, I don't see how anyone taking water out of a river can be classed as a terrorist. Mr Rann is quoted using the 'T' word three times in this short artical - about once every three paragraphs!
Last time I checked we speak English here in Australia - it's similar to the English that they speak in England, not that crazy US English that seems to pollute every corner of the Internet - so I refer to the Oxford English Dictionary.
That sounds right. Mr Rann doesn't seem to have used the word in it's correct context though. I wonder if it's a good idea for someone to lead when they don't really have a good grasp of the English language. It didn't go well for America.terrorist
• noun a person who uses violence and intimidation in the pursuit of political aims.
— DERIVATIVES terrorism noun.
Lets have a look at the headline which uses another very common term - 'Act of Terror'
I gotta say, the thought of someone throwing a pipe in a river and starting a pump doesn't make me fill my pants. I might be a bit upset, maybe a little angry if it was my pond or water tanks that are getting drained, but I wouldn't suffer from the extreme fear that you might get when a guy walks into your coffee shop with some kind of improvised explosive device strapped to their chest.terror
• noun 1 extreme fear. 2 a cause of terror. 3 the use of terror to intimidate people. 4 (also holy terror) informal a person causing trouble or annoyance.
— ORIGIN Latin, from terrere ‘frighten’.
Just for the record Mr Rann, someone illegally involved in diverting water from any river is a criminal - not a terrorist.
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