A frustration of societal expectations, rather than outright poverty and rejection, were characteristic of these terrorists' profiles.
This shifting profile should not have come as much of a surprise as it did to experts. As early as 1999 some experts noted, regarding terrorists in general (as opposed to Islamic terrorists) that all "terrorist groups are recruiting members who possess a high degree of intellectualism and idealism, are highly educated, and are well trained in a legitimate profession...More than two-thirds of the terrorists surveyed came from middle-class or even upper-class backgrounds" (Hudson 1999: 46; 49)
In Britain, there remains a concern about Pakistani training camps, given the large population of Pakistanis in the region. One red flag, the parents of a terrorist noted, that they did not spot was when their rebellious son was sent away to relatives in Pakistan, and he came back sober and religious. They thought their effort to discipline the boy had worked, only to discover he had gone to a 'school' run by terrorists during his visit. Before 9/11, "volunteers lived rough in the desert with hundreds of other foreign recruits and were taught to handle weapons and explosives, as well as spending hours listening to tape recordings of Osama bin Laden and other zealots...the camps are more like youth hostels...Recruits don't spend hours scrabbling about on outward bound courses. It is more like being in a school room...Organizers don't want to turn out warriors who can strip down a Kalashnikov rifle blindfolded....
They want to shape the mind, not the body...to embrace the idea of giving their lives for their cause, and doing nothing more technical than triggering the bomb they carry" (McGrory & Hussein 2005). Today, all terrorist training camps are more devoted to producing loyal, calculated, and long-term recruits, able to blend in with society. Other than a shift in attitude and taking concrete steps like going flight school, buying explosives, or maintaining a radical website, radical terrorists increasingly resemble 'you and me.'
Works Cited
Hudson, Rex a. (1999). "The Sociology and psychology of terrorism: Who becomes a terrorist and why?" Federal Research Division. Library of Congress. Retrieved 24 Feb 2008 at http://www.loc.gov/rr/frd/pdf-files/Soc_Psych_of_Terrorism.pdf
McGrory, Daniel & Zahid Husain. (14 Jul 2005). New wave of British terrorists is taught at schools, not in the mountains." The Times. Retrieved 24 Feb 2008 at http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/article543782.ece
Nicolson, Brendan. (14 Jul 2004). "Paper paints a terrorist profile." The Age. Retrieved 24 Feb 2008 at http://www.theage.com.au/articles/2004/07/15/1089694488731.html
Wilgoren, Jodi. (21 Sept 2001). "After the attacks: The hijackers. A terrorist profile emerges that confounds the experts." The New York Times. Retrieved 24 Feb 2008 at http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9C0DE1D61F38F936A2575AC0A9679C8B63&sec=&spon=&st=cse&sq=terrorist+psychological+profile&scp=3
