The Cause of Terrorism
With all this chest pounding about terrorism and how it has to stop and how we have to catch all terrorists, you just have to ask.......well, what causes people to become terrorists? If we can find out what that is, then we would be a long way to winning the alleged "War on Terror". Well, here are findings from my analysis.
Number one: Most terrorists are male.
There is no denying this fact. If you do the numbers the overwhelming number of people who instigate and participate in terrorists acts are men. Similarly most violent criminals are men. And this is true regardless of race or culture or religion or ethnicity. Now I am not saying that women do not play their part in supporting terrorist activities because they most certainly do, but without their compliance and help terrorists not be given shelter, would be exposed, and booted off the planet. Nevertheless, the people committing the actual acts of violence that we equate with terror are overwhelmingly men.
Number two: Most terrorists are in their teens to early 30's.
You don't see a lot of really old terrorists, unless they are associated with and supported by a religious following. But in general, terrorists are yoga to early middle aged, with numbers decreasing dramatically as men's ages increase to the late 30s, through the 40's and 50's. Perhaps there are so few old terrorists because they manage to kill themselves or get themselves killed before they reach the ripe old age of 60; or maybe it is because they finally become mature enough to realize that killing and destroying is not what makes things better for them or their families or their countrymen. It may also be that by the time anyone lives to be 60, they have people depending on them and too many life responsibilities to take care of that the kind of rhetoric that can get a young man's blood boiling just has no real spark for them. Now, like women, this does not mean that old men do not play a role by encouraging and supporting and hiding young men who become terrorists, because they do; but these old men are not the ones carrying out the actual acts of terrorism.
An exception to this are old religious zealots who have lived their lives preaching hate of other religions by perverting sacred religious texts to their own use; and almost without exception these men are not married and have no children. Because these men have no life outside of their self-sown culture of hate, to keep themselves surrounded by younger men who admire their fire; self confidence; outspokenness; and intransigence, and who give these old men a reason to live, these festering old men have to continue their hateful, intolerant, heated rhetoric; thereby perpetuating until their dying breath the hate that keeps them going, keeps them surrounded by others, and that keeps them from having to face the fact that their lives have been utterly wasted.
Interestingly enough, the age factor is why most armies recruit young men in their late teens and early twenties to serve in the military and only in dire emergencies do they take older men. That is because most males in their teens and early 20's are physical beings and not prone to much introspection and do not have many responsibilities or much to lose in terms of personal baggage or possessions. It is just the right time for a charismatic older male role model (like a military commander or gang or spiritual leader) to seduce, charm or motivate and exert dominance over them. Because young males of these ages are on the lowest rung of the pecking order, they are therefore susceptible to such guiles because they are desperately seeking recognition and a place in the world.
Number three: Most terrorists are not well educated or have good jobs
Although there are some exceptions here that prove the rule, the vast majority of men in the present day terrorist ranks do not come from the college educated ranks or have day jobs that pay a comfortable salary. Why? Because most educated people have learned to think for themselves at least partially and have been exposed to a much wider range of ideas and experiences and have learned that most issues are not just black and white, but there are a lot of shades of gray in the world. People who make a good living generally are reasonably well integrated into their societies and know what it takes to be productive and make things work for them and, lastly, they generally have stuff. Stuff that they worked hard for and that they want to protect. For the most part, the only terrorists that are wealthy are those that have sponged and preyed off of their followers accumulating wealth from the spoils of the hate and destruction they sow.
Western societies would go a long way in eliminating terrorism if they focused on Marshall Plans for developing countries that are the breeding grounds for terrorism because there are so many "have nots", so many unemployed and frustrated youths, so much poverty and no security and there is no decent education. The tens of billions of dollars spent by NATO for defense and the hundreds of billions of dollars (yes, HUNDREDS OF BILLIONS) spent by the US for both defense and Homeland Security EACH YEAR would virtually erase poverty in the third world if it were spent to improve the lives of those people and help educate them and provide them with the intellectual resources to be competitive in the world economy.
Number four: Most terrorists feel no one listens to them or respects them
Most people are not born terrorists. I say "most" because there is some small percentage of people that appear to be prenaturally disposed to violence regardless of their upbringing, the available resources they have at their disposal, or due to mental illness. Terrorists are made. Some are not so different from criminals, and they probably would have been criminals in any regular society. But given the right situation, their violent and inability to grasp or connect with the suffering their actions cause others, makes them perfect recruits for the terrorist ranks. The rest of the ranks are populated by what were once well meaning, hopeful young kids with tousled hair, who ran and played with their friends; but who are now disillusioned, have nothing to do, don't feel that anyone listens to them, don't feel that anyone is looking out for their interests, don't feel they belong anywhere really; don't like what they see happening to them and those around them and feel helpless to make things different. It doesn't matter if the catalyst is differences in class, invasion or occupation by a foreign entity, difference in race or tribalism, all the religious posturing, all the demagoguery, all the political radicalism is just a cheap facade for these fundamental characteristics.
So there you have it. If you want to win the grandiose "War on Terror", you have to recognize the four essential characteristics of terrorists and if you can find a way to defuse those, you will be well on your way to eliminating terrorism. What are the keys? Education, recognition, opportunities for true participation, increasing standards of living, making young men's lives worth living in their home countries. Catching, punishing, and torturing these men, these suspected terrorists, bombing their homes and those of their families, creating economic sanctions that drive them and their families further into poverty, all those punitive things that western culture wants to impose will NOT work! Look at the root cause, that is the only way to solve the problem! If you don't, you are looking at a battle with no end, and maybe that is just want some politicians want because it keeps people in fear and them in power. At least I am not fooled. Are you?
Number one: Most terrorists are male.
There is no denying this fact. If you do the numbers the overwhelming number of people who instigate and participate in terrorists acts are men. Similarly most violent criminals are men. And this is true regardless of race or culture or religion or ethnicity. Now I am not saying that women do not play their part in supporting terrorist activities because they most certainly do, but without their compliance and help terrorists not be given shelter, would be exposed, and booted off the planet. Nevertheless, the people committing the actual acts of violence that we equate with terror are overwhelmingly men.
Number two: Most terrorists are in their teens to early 30's.
You don't see a lot of really old terrorists, unless they are associated with and supported by a religious following. But in general, terrorists are yoga to early middle aged, with numbers decreasing dramatically as men's ages increase to the late 30s, through the 40's and 50's. Perhaps there are so few old terrorists because they manage to kill themselves or get themselves killed before they reach the ripe old age of 60; or maybe it is because they finally become mature enough to realize that killing and destroying is not what makes things better for them or their families or their countrymen. It may also be that by the time anyone lives to be 60, they have people depending on them and too many life responsibilities to take care of that the kind of rhetoric that can get a young man's blood boiling just has no real spark for them. Now, like women, this does not mean that old men do not play a role by encouraging and supporting and hiding young men who become terrorists, because they do; but these old men are not the ones carrying out the actual acts of terrorism.
An exception to this are old religious zealots who have lived their lives preaching hate of other religions by perverting sacred religious texts to their own use; and almost without exception these men are not married and have no children. Because these men have no life outside of their self-sown culture of hate, to keep themselves surrounded by younger men who admire their fire; self confidence; outspokenness; and intransigence, and who give these old men a reason to live, these festering old men have to continue their hateful, intolerant, heated rhetoric; thereby perpetuating until their dying breath the hate that keeps them going, keeps them surrounded by others, and that keeps them from having to face the fact that their lives have been utterly wasted.
Interestingly enough, the age factor is why most armies recruit young men in their late teens and early twenties to serve in the military and only in dire emergencies do they take older men. That is because most males in their teens and early 20's are physical beings and not prone to much introspection and do not have many responsibilities or much to lose in terms of personal baggage or possessions. It is just the right time for a charismatic older male role model (like a military commander or gang or spiritual leader) to seduce, charm or motivate and exert dominance over them. Because young males of these ages are on the lowest rung of the pecking order, they are therefore susceptible to such guiles because they are desperately seeking recognition and a place in the world.
Number three: Most terrorists are not well educated or have good jobs
Although there are some exceptions here that prove the rule, the vast majority of men in the present day terrorist ranks do not come from the college educated ranks or have day jobs that pay a comfortable salary. Why? Because most educated people have learned to think for themselves at least partially and have been exposed to a much wider range of ideas and experiences and have learned that most issues are not just black and white, but there are a lot of shades of gray in the world. People who make a good living generally are reasonably well integrated into their societies and know what it takes to be productive and make things work for them and, lastly, they generally have stuff. Stuff that they worked hard for and that they want to protect. For the most part, the only terrorists that are wealthy are those that have sponged and preyed off of their followers accumulating wealth from the spoils of the hate and destruction they sow.
Western societies would go a long way in eliminating terrorism if they focused on Marshall Plans for developing countries that are the breeding grounds for terrorism because there are so many "have nots", so many unemployed and frustrated youths, so much poverty and no security and there is no decent education. The tens of billions of dollars spent by NATO for defense and the hundreds of billions of dollars (yes, HUNDREDS OF BILLIONS) spent by the US for both defense and Homeland Security EACH YEAR would virtually erase poverty in the third world if it were spent to improve the lives of those people and help educate them and provide them with the intellectual resources to be competitive in the world economy.
Number four: Most terrorists feel no one listens to them or respects them
Most people are not born terrorists. I say "most" because there is some small percentage of people that appear to be prenaturally disposed to violence regardless of their upbringing, the available resources they have at their disposal, or due to mental illness. Terrorists are made. Some are not so different from criminals, and they probably would have been criminals in any regular society. But given the right situation, their violent and inability to grasp or connect with the suffering their actions cause others, makes them perfect recruits for the terrorist ranks. The rest of the ranks are populated by what were once well meaning, hopeful young kids with tousled hair, who ran and played with their friends; but who are now disillusioned, have nothing to do, don't feel that anyone listens to them, don't feel that anyone is looking out for their interests, don't feel they belong anywhere really; don't like what they see happening to them and those around them and feel helpless to make things different. It doesn't matter if the catalyst is differences in class, invasion or occupation by a foreign entity, difference in race or tribalism, all the religious posturing, all the demagoguery, all the political radicalism is just a cheap facade for these fundamental characteristics.
So there you have it. If you want to win the grandiose "War on Terror", you have to recognize the four essential characteristics of terrorists and if you can find a way to defuse those, you will be well on your way to eliminating terrorism. What are the keys? Education, recognition, opportunities for true participation, increasing standards of living, making young men's lives worth living in their home countries. Catching, punishing, and torturing these men, these suspected terrorists, bombing their homes and those of their families, creating economic sanctions that drive them and their families further into poverty, all those punitive things that western culture wants to impose will NOT work! Look at the root cause, that is the only way to solve the problem! If you don't, you are looking at a battle with no end, and maybe that is just want some politicians want because it keeps people in fear and them in power. At least I am not fooled. Are you?
