terrorism is quite effective...
...but it really depends how you define your goals. If you want the opposition to strike back at you in anger and overreact, then it is quite good at generating that effect.
Look at it in the current situation. Practically every country in the world is pissed of at Israel at the moment. They instantly forgot about the terrorist actions that were the cause of the current operation - with world attention being about 15 minutes. Now tell me that the suicide bombers have not achieved their objective.
The mistake is in assuming that the terrorist has any goal of reducing oppression - at least over a reasonable period of time. Indeed, their main goal is to force the enemy to become more oppressive. In turning up the notch, they attempt to cause others to ignore their culpability, and feign victim status when the enemy attempts to strike back.
I'd prefer that they practiced the art as applied by Gandhi - having your enemies strike at you without resorting to force. But alas, that manner seems to be beyond the reach of most people - preferring the instant gratification of violent revenge.
