William Wallace, Professor of International Relations at the London School of Economics and Liberal Democrat Spokesman on Defense in the House of Lords, in his essay 'Europe, the Necessary Partner' writes in Foreign Affairs Journal that:

"Terrorism is another good example of where perceptions are diverging (between the USA and Europe). European governments do not underestimate the threat of terrorism; they have suffered more incidents of terrorism on their soil over the past 30 years -- from Irish Republicans, left-wing revolutionaries in Germany and Italy, Kurdish and Algerian militants, Basques, Corsicans, fundamentalist Muslims, and Sikhs -- than the United States has. But rather than overestimating the threat, Europeans recognize that a political response must accompany counter-terrorism and preventive measures."

In a departure from the norms of rigourous British scholarship, Professor Wallace leaves his statement hanging as a generalization.