From: Barbara Lamar (barbaralamar@sanmarcos.net)
Date: Mon Sep 01 2003 - 22:55:22 MDT
Robert B. wrote:
> But *what* then is driving these people to irrational behavior?
> Is it simply "salvation" in the afterlife, e.g. really gone wrong
> mental programming? Social pressure? Desire for power by the leaders?
> It simply does not seem rational.
At the root, irrationally violent behavior is motivated by fear. This is
true at the level of the leaders, who are afraid that what they control will
be taken away; and it's true at the level of the followers, each of whom
fears to be alone and longs to be part of something greater than himself.
This is more obvious in cases where people are fighting to keep invaders out
of their own lands. However, when leaders seek to expand the number of
square miles (or number of square blocks in the case of street gangs) and
people they control, the motivation *at the root* is the same.
Barbara Lamar
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