There will always be some terrorism as a means of evoking change, there always has been. The current philosophical mindset of being in a "war" has more to do with there being a spectacular attack on our own soil.

When homegrown terrorist like McVie or the Unabomber did their work, was a "war" declared? If so, I missed it. Even when the initial attempt on bombing the World Trade Center occured, was there a war . . . or a criminal investigation?

We have a "war" because there needed to be that visceral response to the attacks.