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When a person is abducted and held hostage for ransom, or when a building or entire region is threatened with destruction, it can be tempting for would-be heroes to negotiate with the terrorists and comply with their demands to ensure that their civilian targets remain unharmed. One wants, of course, to "talk down" an insane person from committing rash acts; this should be distinguished from serious negotiations, which are the subject here.

In the heat of the moment, saving the innocent at all costs may seem like the only moral thing to do. However, such heroism comes with a steep price. The payment conceded to one terrorist group may encourage others to extort similar concessions by the use of similar criminal acts.

Furthermore, where an individual might quickly cave into the demands of an oppressor, a government is expected to have sufficient military backing to remain standing. A government that quickly retreats from a standoff with a small group of people may be perceived by other nations as weak, insecure, or incompetent. This may harm its foreign relations and future negotiations of all kinds.

A government has no need to negotiate with significantly weaker, more vulnerable terrorists-for example, lone, crazed gunmen or isolated cults. More threatening terrorist groups, such as organized militia, might actually rival the government's power, but the government is still probably better off assuming an air of confidence and assuming that the militia will not call its bluff. However, if the government knows that its population is at the mercy of a terrorist group distinctly more powerful than itself-for example, a group with multiple nuclear weapons-and if the situation is unlikely ever to repeat itself, it might be more advantageous for the government and for the people it serves to engage in formal negotiations to deflect a major threat.

Learn more about this author, Tucker Lieberman.
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