TERRORISM IS COMPARED TO CANCER, WHOSE CAUSES ELUDE ANALYSIS SUCH THAT PREVENTION IS DIFFICULT WHILE PARTICULAR MANIFESTATIONS OF THE DISEASE ARE DEALT WITH BY RADICAL SURGERY. RADICAL SURGERY IS THE ANALOGY FOR THE 'NO RANSOM' POLICY BEING ADOPTED BY MOST NATIONS HAVE RECENTLY DEALT WITH TERRORIST HOSTAGE SITUATIONS. THIS POLICY IS CONSIDERED EFFECTIVE IN REDUCING TERRORIST KIDNAPING OPERATIONS, BECAUSE THE TERRORISTS ACHIEVE NOTHING, AND IN SOME CASES THEY LOSE PERSONNEL THROUGH DEATH OR IMPRISONMENT. IT IS NOTED THAT WHILE THIS POLICY IS PAINFUL, PARTICULARLY FOR GOVERNMENTS PLEDGED TO THE VALUE OF THE LIFE OF EACH CITIZEN, THE ALTERNATIVE IS TO SEE A PROLIFERATION OF TERRORIST ACTIVITY BASED UPON A PRACTICED SUCCESSFUL TACTIC FOR MANIPULATING GOVERNMENTS. IN ADDITION, THE WILLINGNESS OF GOVERNMENTS TO CHALLENGE TERRORISTS WITH COUNTERMEASURES AFTER THE PATTERN OF THE ENTEBBE, UGANDA RAID IS APPARENTLY GIVING TERRORISTS AN ADDITIONAL RISK AND LOGISTICS PROBLEM THAT IS LIKELY TO LIMIT THEIR ACTIVITY. THUS, WHILE DENYING TERRORISTS THE FRUIT FROM THEIR LABOR SEEMS TO BE A REASONABLY SUCCESSFUL TACTIC, IT IS BELIEVED THAT UNTIL MORE IS KNOWN ABOUT THE ROOT CAUSES OF TERRORISM, GOVERNMENTS WILL BE SEVERELY HAMPERED IN DEALING WITH THE PROBLEM. (RCB)