Like many of you, I was watching TV on Thursday evening when the news channel broke in with devastating news. A demonic truck driver had just run over scores of people who were watching a fireworks show in Nice, France.

Immediately after the attack, social networks like Facebook and Twitter went crazy with scores of people commenting, sharing photos, and just wondering why this sort of tragedy has become so common.

I was struck by something that Newt Gingrich said on Fox News later that night, pointing out that any military response should not just be about attacking terrorist cells, but also attacking their information network.

Of course, he’s totally right. And that makes this war perhaps completely unlike any that the world has ever seen before.

That same Internet, which can be used for so much good, can also be used as an instrument of evil. It is a symptom of the world that we live in, where it is easy to communicate across the globe in seconds.

There is no doubt that websites and social networks are used behind the scenes to encourage this radical jihadist Islamic perversion. Gingrich said that we should not only punish those who encourage and view these sites, but also hold accountable the individuals who host them.

I feel sad that this is the world we live in. After all, the Internet can be used for so many wonderful things. It allows me to chat face-to-face with my parents, even though they live many states away. It allows us to raise millions of dollars for worthy charitable causes. It allows us to learn useful information instantaneously, rather than spending hours researching.

But that same Internet can also be used for evil, as recent events have proven. There are even allegations that the Dallas police shooter was a member of radical domestic terrorist organizations that cultivated their evil brainwashing through Facebook and Twitter.

Yes, we live in a country where the First Amendment and free speech is a crucial part of what makes us special. But, like the proverbial “falsely shouting fire in a crowded theater,” there are limits to free speech.

For the sake of Western civilization and humanity, we must win this war. But perhaps the most important battle is the one for information, and it won’t require a single bullet.

Justin Schuver is the publisher and editor of The Daily News. You can call him at 985-732-2565 or email him at justin.schuver@bogalusadailynews.com.