Oklahoma City Bombing

Paper Summary:

This paper introduces, discusses, and analyzes the topic of terrorism in America, specifically focusing on why Timothy McVeigh bombed the Oklahoma City Federal Building. The author also assesses whether this type of attack could occur again. The paper describes the actual attack, and then gives a detailed description of the perpetrators, Timothy McVeigh and Terry Nichols. The author also examines McVeigh and Nichols' political ideologies and how they contributed to their extreme act of terrorism. The author concludes that an incident such as the Oklahoma City bombing could happen again.

From the Paper:

"Waco was not the only governmental standoff between anti-government sects and the FBI. Ruby Ridge, Idaho, was the scene of another violent confrontation between Randy Weaver and his family and FBI agents who overreacted and killed two members of the family over a minor weapons charge, which Weaver was eventually acquitted of. More importantly, on April 19, 1985, the FBI leveled an anti-government group's compound in Arkansas. In fact, even before the Murrah building bombing, in anti-government circles, April 19 has become known as the "Day of Doom." It is no wonder McVeigh and his cronies chose April 19 to bomb the Federal building in Oklahoma City. In their world, it was the only day possible to make their statement and "get back" at the government who was so often getting back at their friends and relatives. "

Sample of Sources Used:

• Downey, Dennis B. "Terrorism and the Loss of Being." The Historian 65, no. 4 (2003): 980+.
• Dyer, Joel. Harvest of Rage: Why Oklahoma City Is Only the Beginning. Boulder, CO: Westview Press, 1998.
• Heim, David. "Seeking Justice: Timothy McVeigh and the Death Penalty." The Christian Century, 2 July 1997, 611.
• Jones, Stephen, and Peter Israel. Others Unknown: The Oklahoma City Bombing Case and Conspiracy. New York: PublicAffairs, 1998.
• Linenthal, Edward T. The Unfinished Bombing: Oklahoma City in American Memory. New York: Oxford University Press, 2003.

More papers on Oklahoma City Bombing:

• Term Paper # 115270 : "Oklahoma City Bombing"
• Analytical Essay # 149445 : "The Oklahoma City Bombing and its Aftermath"
• Term Paper # 22210 : "Oklahoma City Federal Building Bombing: How Many Bombs?"

APA Citation:

MLA Citation: