The US government by far, especially the radical elements within it who seek to oppress others based on race, gender, religion, or mere political affiliation.

I think that there are more dangers than the two that you identified, but I’ll play along.

The US Government – by far – is the greater danger. Why? because they have all the power (and the force of law) behind them, and they can essentially force anyone to do anything because of that power. And their intelligence (we now know) is overwhelming and complete. Basically the US government has made a joke of privacy and individual rights.

Terrorists (US right wing, Islamic, left-wing) are dangerous, but they don’t have the intelligence networks that the government has. Besides, terrorists are generally driven by ideology – as whacko is it is – and are amateurish. The government is after POWER and CONTROL (and its brother, subjugation), and power for its own sake is far more dangerous than ideology.

Finally, terror attacks are far more likely to be random and unpredictable, and therefore your chance of being affected is comparatively small.

Government is ubiquitous. It’s everywhere, and there is no escape.

Great question. Both are clear and present dangers that need to be kept in check. But the history of nations shows governments are by far the greater threat to their own people and to people everywhere. Even including terrorism hotbeds like the tribal regions of Pakistan, Afghanistan, Iraq and Chechnya, the average earthling’s odds of being killed by terrorism are 1 in 20,000,000. Compare that to the 9 million of his own people Hitler exterminated and the 60 million his military adventures killed, the 20 million Russians that Stalin wiped out, and the stunning 50 million Chinese that Mao and his policies left dead. There’s no contest.

I’m more afraid of terrorists, especially home-grown ones, than of the government. I have, and always have had, all the freedom I need.

The bottom line is that Big Brother is watching us, so we’d be wise to also watch Big Brother. History has also shown that when governments completely squander the consent of the governed, they cannot stand. And with the Constitution the US is established under, and the extremely well armed populace here, I do not think any leader would want to take a power grab so far as to provoke open rebellion. Yes, the US military has all the really cool weapons of war, but they also are sworn to uphold the Constitution, not to blindly do whatever they are told by some would-be usurper of Constitutional Government.

Rogue cows, never trust anything with a square arse!

Terrorists. I’m with @Pachyderm_In_The_Room on this one, and agree 100%.

The so-called war between the US government and terrorism is what I am most afraid of.

I’d have to say the government, as they already have the power to do this if they wish it. They run our lives, our jobs and the law, while terrorism is many steps behind as far as that’s concerned. They want to change how we live and think…or kill us all, but they don’t have what it takes to actually control anyone, at least not in the Western hemisphere, while the government does.

The US government. On two counts. One; I’m a woman. Two: I live in a different country. Drone strikes anyone? I also think the US is responsible for a higher body count, if I’m not mistaken. Statistic anyone?

I have absolutely nothing to fear from my own government.

I far more afraid of some maniac with a gun shooting up my grocery store or shopping mall, which I see as a domestic version of a terrorist.

This is an odd question. Terrorist simply kill random, small-ish pockets of population. They don’t take my freedom. The governments involved have taken away freedoms. I see this when I travel, when I fill in paperwork for government loans, walk into any government building, and they are slowly scaring their own populations into more restrictions and moral judgements under the guise of ‘safety’ and ‘morality’. Terrorist? Me and everyone else on this planet is more likely to be eaten by a shark, killed in a plane crash, killed by malpractice, food poisoning…....

http://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2013/06/the-irrationality-of-giving-up-this-much-liberty-to-fight-terror/276695/

Yet, federal and state law enforcers have been given more and more power, while the average joe on the street is being stripped of basic civil rights (like the right to bloody VOTE!) now THAT is scary because that isn’t just dying suddenly in a randomly targetted bombing, that is being targeted and victimised by the people who are elected, hired, appointed and SWORN to protect us. Terrorist, yeah…. they want to kill us, but why do the empowered want to steal our democracy?

Terrorists don’t threaten our freedom but governments are the most dangerous thing in this whole sweet Universe. Beware of them all.

The premise assumes they both want your freedom. But that is not true.

Terrorists don’t want your freedom. They want to kill you and your children.

The government is what threatens your freedom. They do it by taking your money and coercing you to not complain.

So if you are talking about freedom, the government is the problem.
If you are talking about being blown up by an Islamist bomber, then terrorists are the problem.

The government writes and enforces laws that take away peoples freedoms. No gray area on it. Terrorists take away from people only as much freedom as people allow. If you live in constant fear of terrorists, then yes, they take away freedom. If you don’t allow them to affect your life, then they don’t.

Terrorists are like pancreatic cancer.

But the National Stasi Agency (NSA) is still like a migraine.

The government of course. I think to some degree they are in cahoots with the terrorists. Our own government wants to disarm Americans, and the terrorists are smiling.
This country, with its institutions, belongs to the people who inhabit it. Whenever they shall grow weary of the existing government, they can exercise their constitutional right of amending it or exercise their revolutionary right to overthrow it. Abraham Lincoln