A Study to Develop a 'Theory' of Non-violent Radicalism

This project aims to examine an important question: Why do individuals eschew violence? Since the 1990s, scholars have periodically conducted fieldwork among terrorists in order to understand the motivation of individuals who decide to engage in violence. The body of literature that resulted from these endeavors has been too deterministic. In every context we find many individuals who share the demographic, family, cultural, and/or socioeconomic background of those who decided to engage in terrorism, and yet refrained themselves from taking up armed militancy, even though they were sympathetic to the end goals of armed groups. The field of terrorism studies has not, until recently, attempted to look at this control group. This project is not about terrorists, but about supporters of political violence. Our goal is twofold. First, we propose to study supporters of armed militancy, in order to describe the panoply of activities they are willing to undertake short of violence, and the determinants of those actions. At the same time, we aim to contribute to theory building in the field of individual radicalization by looking at a control group that has, so far, never been studied.

Our research design is straightforward. The principal investigators will prepare a questionnaire of closed- and open-ended questions to be used in fieldwork. We will then commission 14 case studies. Each case study will involve extensive interviews with ten or more activists and militants in parties and NGOs who, though sympathetic to radical causes, have chosen a path of non-violence. This research will yield over 140 life histories. Following the fieldwork, we will bring together all case study authors for a conference in which they will discuss the findings from their interviews. The co-PIs will then commission a content analysis of the interview transcripts, and work on a final manuscript that analyzes the main findings from systematic, cross-regional and cross-national comparisons, and suggests avenues for further research.

This project will provide substantial empirical evidence on which to base sound policy. The field of terrorism studies cannot as yet generalize with great confidence about the issues that drive individuals to armed militancy and the factors that prevent such radicalization. This study will broaden our knowledge base on the subject of support for violence, and thereby inform sound policymaking in the area of counter-radicalization and counter-terrorism.

[Editor's Note: The above is the prologue to initial 'fact' gathering activities that will lead to many studies.
The above study was funded by the DoD's Minerva Initiative. Ostensibly, the study intends to formulate a complete theory of Terrorism and all of its sociological components. While many might call me a conspiracy theorist, I think this 'initiative' is the beginning of attempts to formulate methods to both squelch free speech in the USA and control and minimize the effects of political demonstrations and radicalization against the American ruling political oligarchy of elected and union officials who continue to function on their own behalf and not the people's. The feds want to prevent terrorism both at home and abroad. At home, activists continually report and hypothesize about governmet intentions to eventually takeover all industry and communize America. Over 125 years the feds have proved successful.

The final operational implementation of the above studies will include without limitation:

1. more regulations to further control media such as radio and television, and
2. more regulations and taxes to initiate controls of the Internet, and
3. more sophicated, phychological lies (propaganda) presented on radio and television and used to defuse activism and demonstrations against government policies, and
4. more use of 'political correctness' to quash free speech by appealing to the adolescent, peer popularity nature of many ignorant people who lack understanding of liberty and freedom.
5. new laws that equate activism and radicalization with sedition or incitement to riot and even terrorism.
6. use of government police force to quell peaceful or violent protests (group associations) against government policies using various political and bureaucratic pretenses.
7. future police actions will be much more forceful.

Americans have already experienced the government's frequent redefinition and/or definition expansion of the term "terrorism", and the federal government with its new massive weapons store fears the increasing probability of a 21st century revolution in the USA to restore liberty and redirect the federal government to its primary purpose which is almost entirely just the DEFENSE of the USA against foreign encroachment. The weapons build-up is not just replenishment of agency defensive weaponry. The weapons build-up is a fearful response to the growing angry and very uncooperative view of Americans which reflects the realization of lost personal and economic freedom. A new revolution and subsequent restoration could be accomplished peacefully by the States who remember, relearn, and realize the history of the federal government (how it got its power) and are willing to initiate a Constitutional Convention to correct all the EXCESSES of 125 years.]

 

Police State: Orwell's Nightmare Is Reality!   Police State: Orwell's Nightmare Is Reality!   POLICE STATE: Orwell's Nightmare Is Reality!   Cops ‘prepared to deal with’ Protesters Outside New Immigrant Facility “My main concern is public safety and protesters,” says Karnes County Sheriff In response to rising objections from the American public, federal authorities are now transplanting illegal immigrants into small, rural towns in efforts to minimize citizen resistance, and local and state law enforcement agencies are getting in on the action by readying themselves to face-off with potential anti-illegal immigration demonstrators. ... more

[Editor's Note: If you like paying for the schools, healthcare, food stamps, and housing of illegal aliens and for the future, expand the population of Democrat Party voters, then you should listen and idolize these precious, heart-rending, highly emotional, very sympathetic words of the great Mr. Joe Biden! There are few better ways — short of a coup — to transform America from implicit socialism to full-blown Socialism. The very obvious difference between Latin American 'illegal aliens' and immigration of the early 1900s is the very porous, easy to cross southern border of the U.S. Before any system for handlng Latin American immigrants can be designed and implemented, the southern border with Mexico MUST BE SECURED. The United States IS proud of its freedom-seeking immigrant history and IS a land of immigrants, but the United States has NEVER had uncontrolled entry into the U.S. Such a new system requires the dissolution of the very antiquated Immigration & Naturalization Service which 'served' immigrants in the 1930s and a COMPLETE rewrite of the Justice Department's controlling regulations. Past policies of accepting educated, non-criminal persons of financial means is acceptable and preferrable. Such policies are the requirements of most countries worldwide.]

 

FROM Project to RESTORE AMERICA The FairTax is a consumption tax unilaterally applied to all Americans at the same rate. For businesses, payroll taxes would no longer exist. Our exports would include a heavy tax for overseas buyers purchasing our products, while our imports would be cheaper for us to purchase. I'm not sure how this would affect GDP, as more information is necessary. According to the FairTax website, "Under the FairTax, every person living in the United States pays a sales tax on purchases of new goods and services, excluding necessities due to the prebate." The prebate gives every legal resident household an "advance refund" at the beginning of each month so that purchases made up to the poverty level are tax-free. So a family of four making something like $50,000/year should not have to pay taxes, thus preventing an unfair burden on low-income families. Since the FairTax eliminates both federal and payroll taxes, you get to keep your gross pay amount of each paycheck earned.

 

FROM An Unhappy Summer for Liberty At the root of the chaos in the Middle East and here at home are governments that respect no limits on their exercise of power. Public officials — who are supposed to be our public servants — routinely behave as if they are our masters. They reject the confines of the Constitution, they don’t believe that our rights are inalienable, and they fail to see the dangerous path down which they are leading us. It is a path to an authoritarian America, predicted by the British writer George Orwell in his dark and terrifying novel “1984,” in which governmental power was fortified by fear at home and war abroad. Other Andrew P. Napolitano Articles