--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Take a look at the Supreme Court decision…" description: "\"Take a look at the Supreme Court decision that just authorized an effort by U.S. claimants against Iran for terrorist acts. What are the terrorist acts..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5de/noam-chomsky-42_arabia_take-a-look-at-the-supreme-court-decisio_1741461.jpg" --- # Take a look at the Supreme Court decision that just… ![“Take a look at the Supreme Court decision that just authorized an effort by U.S. claimants against Iran for terrorist acts. What are the terrorist acts? The terrorist acts are bombings of U.S. military installations in Lebanon and Saudi Arabia, which Iran is claimed to have something to do with…” quote by Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5de/noam-chomsky-42_arabia_take-a-look-at-the-supreme-court-decisio_1741461.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5de/noam-chomsky-42_arabia_take-a-look-at-the-supreme-court-decisio_1741461.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5de/noam-chomsky-42_arabia_take-a-look-at-the-supreme-court-decisio_1741461.jpg) > “Take a look at the Supreme Court decision that just authorized an effort by U.S. claimants against Iran for terrorist acts. What are the terrorist acts? The terrorist acts are bombings of U.S. military installations in Lebanon and Saudi Arabia, which Iran is claimed to have something to do with. Well suppose they did. That's not terrorism. I mean if we have a military base in Lebanon that while we're shelling Lebanese naval ships, the Navy is shelling Lebanese installations and somebody attacks \[that's not terrorism\].” [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The definition of terrorism is contested; state actions may be labeled differently than non‑state attacks. **In simple terms:** Terrorism definitions vary between state and non‑state actions. Key Takeaway Question labels applied to violence. Themes politics law terrorism state violence Mood critical thought‑provoking Type philosophical political When to use this quote - academic debate - policy analysis - human rights advocacy - media critique Key Concepts definition of terrorism legal double standards state vs. non‑state actors Questions to Reflect On - How do power dynamics shape terrorism definitions? - Should state‑sponsored violence be classified as terrorism? A Different Perspective Labels can obscure accountability. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Acts Terrorist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/acts-terrorist-1523771/) [Arabia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/arabia/) [Attacks Terrorism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/attacks-terrorism-1523772/) [Bombing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bombing/) [Court](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/court/) [Court decision](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/court-decision/) [Decision](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/decision/) [Effort](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/effort/) [Ifs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ifs/) [Installation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/installation/) [Iran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/iran/) [Iran Terrorist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/iran-terrorist-1523773/) [Israel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/israel/) [Lebanese](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lebanese/) [Lebanon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lebanon/) [Looks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/looks/) [Mean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mean/) [Military](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/military/) [Naval](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/naval/) [Navy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/navy/) [Saudi arabia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/saudi-arabia/) [Saudis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/saudis/) [Ships](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ships/) [Supreme](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/supreme/) [Supreme court](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/supreme-court/) [Terrorism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/terrorism/) [Terrorist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/terrorist/) [Terrorist Acts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/terrorist-acts-476824/) [Wells](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wells/) ## Related quotes > [I will go to the UN General Assembly and, in a clear voice, tell the nations of the world the truth about Iran's terrorist…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-netanyahu/i-will-go-to-the-un-general-assembly-and-in-a-clear-voice-tell-the/) [Benjamin Netanyahu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-netanyahu/) > [I choose to live in what I think is the greatest country in the world, which is committing horrendous terrorist acts and should stop.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/i-choose-to-live-in-what-i-think-is-the-greatest-country-in-the-world/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [Remember, the U.S. is a powerful state, it's not like Libya. If Libya wants to carry out terrorist acts, they hire Carlos the Jackal…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/remember-the-u-s-is-a-powerful-state-it-s-not-like-libya-if-libya/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [Well, they really didn't have to worry, because the way power politics works, the World Court can't do anything. Look, there's one country in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/well-they-really-didn-t-have-to-worry-because-the-way-power-politics/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [From the late 1940s, into and through the '50s, there developed a complex interaction between federal government, state and local government, real-estate interests, commercial…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/from-the-late-1940s-into-and-through-the-50s-there-developed-a/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [For decades Israel has been capturing, and kidnapping Lebanese and Palestinian refugees on the high seas, from Cyprus to Lebanon, killing them in Lebanon,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/for-decades-israel-has-been-capturing-and-kidnapping-lebanese-and/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [From a moral point of view, there is no excuse for terrorist acts, regardless of the motive or the situation under which they are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jurgen-habermas/from-a-moral-point-of-view-there-is-no-excuse-for-terrorist-acts/) [Jurgen Habermas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jurgen-habermas/) > [Muslims who commit terrorist acts are perverting their religion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-r-mcmaster/muslims-who-commit-terrorist-acts-are-perverting-their-religion/) [H. R. McMaster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-r-mcmaster/) > [When people, particularly young people and especially young men, can't imagine themselves as heroes in narratives that they construct for themselves, they look to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mohsin-hamid/when-people-particularly-young-people-and-especially-young-men-can-t/) [Mohsin Hamid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mohsin-hamid/) > [“The Executive Committee of the People's Will had scored it's biggest success on 1 March 1881 by assassinating Alexander II, but also its biggest…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tariq-ali/the-executive-committee-of-the-people-s-will-had-scored-it-s-biggest/) [Tariq Ali](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tariq-ali/) > [No Afghans, as far as we know, have been involved in terrorist acts against our country. We shouldn't be swatting at hornets' nests we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-goetzman/no-afghans-as-far-as-we-know-have-been-involved-in-terrorist-acts/) [Gary Goetzman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-goetzman/) > [A total of 1,580 people, the civilian population, suffered as a result of the bloody wave of terrorist acts that swept over Moscow and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/boris-yeltsin/a-total-of-1-580-people-the-civilian-population-suffered-as-a-result/) [Boris Yeltsin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/boris-yeltsin/) > [We seriously suspect the agents of the Americans and Israelis in conducting such horrendous terrorist acts and cannot believe the people who kidnap Philippines…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ali-khamenei/we-seriously-suspect-the-agents-of-the-americans-and-israelis-in/) [Ali Khamenei](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ali-khamenei/) > [It is impossible for a person who fears Allah to commit terrorist acts because of his faith. Such acts are committed by people who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harun-yahya/it-is-impossible-for-a-person-who-fears-allah-to-commit-terrorist/) [Harun Yahya](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harun-yahya/) > [True terror is a language and a vision. There is a deep narrative structure to terrorist acts, and they infiltrate and alter consciousness in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-delillo/true-terror-is-a-language-and-a-vision-there-is-a-deep-narrative/) [Don DeLillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-delillo/) ## More by Noam Chomsky > [The costs of the Bush-Obama wars in Iraq and Afghanistan are now estimated to run as high as $4.4 trillion - a major victory…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/the-costs-of-the-bush-obama-wars-in-iraq-and-afghanistan-are-now/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [If you believe in democracy, why shouldn't you know what the government is doing?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/if-you-believe-in-democracy-why-shouldn-t-you-know-what-the/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [It’s a shameful moment for U.S. media when it insists on being subservient to the grotesque propaganda agencies of a violent, aggressive state.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/it-s-a-shameful-moment-for-u-s-media-when-it-insists-on-being/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [There are questions as to whether it should even exist. Who should corporations be responsive to, the management of a corporation? Theoretically they are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/there-are-questions-as-to-whether-it-should-even-exist-who-should/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [Governments regard their own citizens as their main enemy, and they have to be - protect themselves. That's why you have state secret laws.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/governments-regard-their-own-citizens-as-their-main-enemy-and-they/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [I don't join the New Atheists. So, for example, I wouldn't have the arrogance to lecture some mother who hopes to see her dying…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/i-don-t-join-the-new-atheists-so-for-example-i-wouldn-t-have-the/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [The first thing you ought to do is verify what I present. Just because I say it doesn't make it true. So check it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/the-first-thing-you-ought-to-do-is-verify-what-i-present-just-because/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [ I wrote an article about the marine landing \[in Haiti\] right away, but barely mentioned the oil, because my article would come out two… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/i-wrote-an-article-about-the-marine-landing-in-haiti-right-away-but/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [American society is now remarkably atomized. Political organizations have collapsed. In fact, it seems like even bowling leagues are collapsing. The left has a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/american-society-is-now-remarkably-atomized-political-organizations/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [Discovery is the ability to be puzzled by simple things. Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/discovery-is-the-ability-to-be-puzzled-by-simple-things-noam-chomsky/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [There's an interesting book about that called The Third Reich and the Ivory Tower, written by Stephen H. Norwood. It has a long discussion…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/there-s-an-interesting-book-about-that-called-the-third-reich-and-the/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [This is class war on an international scale, and power is in the hands of those who control the international economic system.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/this-is-class-war-on-an-international-scale-and-power-is-in-the-hands/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [There are big, extremely irrational parts of the society, and they have now been mobilized politically by the Republican establishment, hoping that these people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/there-are-big-extremely-irrational-parts-of-the-society-and-they-have/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [There's plenty to criticize about the mass media, but they are the source of regular information about a wide range of topics. You can't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/there-s-plenty-to-criticize-about-the-mass-media-but-they-are-the/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [The 50,000 Korean mercenaries we had in Vietnam were professional killers and just massacred people outright. And the American army did plenty of that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/the-50-000-korean-mercenaries-we-had-in-vietnam-were-professional/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) [Explore all 2,129 Noam Chomsky quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) ## More Arabia quotes > [There is nothing in the desert and no man needs nothing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david/there-is-nothing-in-the-desert-and-no-man-needs-nothing/) [David](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david/) > [You know, in Saudi Arabia, you're innocent until proven Jewish. Female. Guilty! They're guilty!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-stewart/you-know-in-saudi-arabia-you-re-innocent-until-proven-jewish-female/) [Jon Stewart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-stewart/) > [America is the Saudi Arabia of coal.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-duhigg/america-is-the-saudi-arabia-of-coal/) [Charles Duhigg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-duhigg/) > [In Saudi Arabia, among other countries, Muslims are not free to convert to Christianity, and Christians are not free to practice their faith. 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