This is by far the best comment IMHO

> Plan: shoot some people in the group you want to leave, striking fear into the rest.

The exact same actions could've been terrorism with this as the plan, but it sounds more like an angry drunk than executing on a premeditated plan.

Contrast that with someone like Dylan Roof, who would match the terrorist label much better:

> A friend recalled a drunken Roof ranting one night about his unspecified six-month plan "to do something crazy" in order "to start a race war."

There are a lot of conflicting definitions of terrorism out there, but they generally don't seem to require an elaborate or long-premeditated plan.

The definition of terrorism - is what attorney general define it as on a whim.

Just like in USSR - where the dictionary definition of communism and 20 other *isms was changed and amended every year

Not sure who downvoted you. I agree with you.

> Plan: shoot some people in the group you want to leave, striking fear into the rest.

A person who shoots two people and then immediately goes to another bar to brag about it probably lacks the mental faculties to come up with such an elaborate plan.

What exactly is elaborate about a plan to shoot people?

It isn't, but people accuse him of shooting people to scare away others which requires more thought. The murder is obviously premeditated, I am not arguing about that, I just argue that he probably didn't do it for any higher purpose than wanting them dead.

He shouted "Get out of my country!" I'm pretty confident that was not directed solely at the person he then shot.

So you argue that it wouldn't have been terrorism if he instead said "Death to all naggers!" because then it wouldn't serve a higher political purpose? To me those two statements are basically interchangeable in this scenario.

"Death to..." and "Get out of my country" don't seem very interchangeable to me.

Ok, better example: Imagine that he yelled "Get out of my lawn!", would that be obvious terrorism?

Only if they were part of a political movement whose platform included keeping people who look like that off lawns.

Are you saying you think he only wanted specifically those two men out of "his" country? I suppose it's possible but I wouldn't bet money on it.

Elaborate plans are not necessary. All you need to do is radicalize the right people, and plans (and actions) will take care of themselves.

You're right. He should have bragged about it on YouTube instead. Everyone knows that's where the real terrorists do their bragging.