mad4u689

As I quoted earlier: [silke, A. (2003). Retaliating against terrorism. In A. Silke (Ed.), Terrorists, victims and society: Psychological perspectives on terrorism and its consequences (pp. 215-231). New York: Wiley.] [Zimbardo, P. G. (2004). A situationist perspective on the psychology of evil: Understanding how good people are transformed into perpetrators. In A. Miller(Ed.), The social psychology of good and evil (pp. 21-50). New York: Guilford.]

It is not so simple to just say that terrorists are "bad people" and so they will always exist in the world. They are not crazy, and they are not inherently evil - read on to hear more :D I took a course in social psychology this semester, and one of our lectures was on the psychology of terrorism. I learned a lot that day, and thought about making an OT topic at the time, but never got around to it. The following information is taken from a handout made by Professor Scott Plous of Wesleyan University. I have bolded things on my own that I find interesting, and italicized my own comments: TERMINOLOGY - According to the U.S. State Department, terrorism refers to "premeditated, politically motivated violence perpetrated against noncombatant targets by subnational groups or clandestine agents, usually intended to influence an audience. Note that terrorism by a unified government is thus ruled out by this definition; this makes sense, since it's the definition given by the US State Department! It is debatable whether this is a valid restriction on the definition of terrorism. - Arabs are an ETHNIC cultural group united by history and the Arabic language. There are millions of Christian Arabs and thousands of Jewish Arabs. Sudan, for example, is not an Arabic nation! - Muslims are believers in Islam. ARE TERRORISTS "CRAZY?" "Terrorism would be a trivial problem if only those with some kind of psychopathology could be terrorists. Rather, we have to face the fact that normal people can be terrorists, that we are ourselves capable of terrorist acts under some circumstances. This fact is already implied in recognizing that military and state police forces involved in state terrorism are all too capable of killing noncombatants. Few would suggest that the broad range of soldiers and policemen involved in such killing must all be suffering some kind of psychopathology." (p. 6) [McCauley, C. (2002). Psychological issues in understanding terrorism and the response to terrorism. In C. E. Stout(Ed.)., The psychology of terrorism (vol. III, pp. 3-29). Westport, CT: Praeger.] WHO ARE THE MOST LIKELY TERRORISTS? Interestingly, there are a lot of stereotypes about terrorists that just aren't true. ACCORDING TO DATA, the likelihood of terrorism does not increase when people are politically repressed (the most repressed countries don't need to worry about public opinion), impoverished (no data to support), or uneducated (in Palestine, the more educated actually tend to be the more likely to be terrorists). Research and data likewise do not suggest terrorists are more likely than non-terrorists to be religious, unemployed, fatherless, or friendless. Males in their teens and twenties do tend to be the most likely terrorists - this is the same demographic trend that is seen for violent crimes in general. For suicide attacks, they tend to be unmarried. Most importantly, they also tend to be angry in personality type and situational background, and seek retribution. However, the ONLY similarity that data is extremely clear about is that TERRORISTS HAVE A LACK OF FEAR. In terrorism from all different areas and situations, those who commit terrorist acts are not scared about the consequences of their actions. REDUCING TERRORISM "Military retribution in response to terrorism fails so often in its stated aims because it so badly misunderstands and ignores the basic psychology of the enemy and of observers. Terrorist groups can endure military strikes and 'targeted assassinations' ... because the violence works to increase the motivation of more members than it decreases, and works to attract more support and sympathy to the group than it frightens away." [silke, A. (2003). Retaliating against terrorism. In A. Silke (Ed.), Terrorists, victims and society: Psychological perspectives on terrorism and its consequences (pp. 215-231). New York: Wiley.] "The 'war on terrorism' can never be won solely by current administration plans to find and destroy terrorists, since any individual, anywhere, at any time, can become an active terrorist. It is only by understanding the situational determinants of terrorism that programs can be developed to win the hearts and minds of potential terrorists away from destruction and toward creation." [Zimbardo, P. G. (2004). A situationist perspective on the psychology of evil: Understanding how good people are transformed into perpetrators. In A. Miller(Ed.), The social psychology of good and evil (pp. 21-50). New York: Guilford.]

Name - Mad (short for Madeline) Age - 19 Country - USA City/Town - NYC area :D Connecticut part of the year, New Jersey other part Sports played/followed - I don't... really do sports... I like the Mets (baseball) though? :D Music Taste - most rock. Prog rock, gothic metal, and classic rock tend to be favourites. Some favourite bands - Dream Theater, The Beatles, Within Temptation, Lacuna Coil, King Crimson Instruments played - none :x Belief Inclination - Jewish (atheist reconstructionist) Hobbies/Other Interests - I tend to be involved with a fair amount of activism (Amnesty International, anti-death-penalty work, prison reform) and my campus Jewish community Ideal Travel Location - I'd like to do extensive traveling, backpacking throughout Europe, Africa, South America, and Asia. However, I guess I'm planning on starting with Eastern Europe (I'm hoping to study abroad in Budapest, Hungary next fall for a semester) Future Aspirations/Career Aspirations - I'm a math major in my 2nd year of university, and I guess I hope to one day be a teacher, either for high school students in areas where great education is lacking, or in prison systems, where I believe major reform is necessary. Also, I want to get married and have kids :D

No, I'm sorry, but I don't think I would :x

If the election comes down to McCain and Obama, two of the few big politicians I actually trust and don't dislike extremely, I will be orgasmic.

I'm so sorry :( My condolences to you, and his family, and all his friends.

Yo :D I'm still around, sadly :P Another the people kind of forum started btw :D I'll pm you the liiink if you want it :D

I think it's hilarious how people are trying to use this year's unseasonably warm weather as "proof" that global warming exists. Global warming DOES exist, and there's a lot of proof out there (go see An Inconvenient Truth, which makes the info very accessible) - but this isn't part of it :P

If it's really that bad, that people hurt you horribly for just wearing a non-offensive shirt, then I'd seriously question just what neighborhood this was. I'd notify a principal or a police officer at once. That's not always very effective. But meh - I'm not going to make this into an argument about privilege :P Just - there's nothing noble about getting hurt and martyring yourself for the "cause" of geekiness... anyway. Instead, I will say: Yay geeky t-shirts :D

There's a difference between trying to impress people, and trying not to get beat up/made fun of for the rest of your school year. It's called ignoring them. If people tease you, then tease them back. Stand up for yourself. That's a lot easier in some schools and neighborhoods than others. There's something to be said for not getting your body severely damaged.

Woo thinkgeek :D I have that shirt :D Except when I wear it, I get hit on more often, because geek girls appear to be a commodity :oops: Edit: Ah! It's a different pi shirt - nevermind. But, I still like pi. Yay :D

Best: - the US midterm elections - Rumsfeld's "resignation" - the explosion of youtube and wikipedia and similar in mainstream culture - yaay free and open knowledge :D I think it's the way of the future, honestly, and the way we process and pay for information is going to change greatly - instead of paying for the product (a book, a CD) new ways of paying for the service of music creation or the service of research and writing will develop. Worst: - continued genocide in Darfur - continued death and destruction but little headway toward peace with the War in Iraq - Saddam's "trial" and "appeal" and subsequent execution - the terrible violence in Israel and Lebanon

Yes, you should be nervous. By joining up with the TA, having to kill someone (directly or indirectly) or dying yourself is a real possibility. While I'd like to calm your nerves and tell you "Everything will be okay," people going into the military shouldn't delude themselves and should know what it's really like.

I would suggest seeing a therapist. It took me five years of being depressed and my parents finding a suicidal story I wrote and FORCING me to the therapist in tears before I finally went - and now I trust my therapist more than most anyone. :D If you do go see a therapist, I suggest "shopping around." If you feel like you don't connect with the first one you see, try another one. It's one thing where it's really important you feel comfortable :D

Reading between the lines, I would guess that money from banner advertisements DOES go directly to charity. Clicking on the "Donate!" button once a day, however, will do little to nothing. Also, they probably have alternative funding that constitutes where they get most of their money, and it does not go to charity. Like I said, if you really want to help, click on the banners on the site - and then buy products from those bannered sites you clicked on :D

This is talking about Diet Coke, not Coke. A ton of diet products have aspartame in them. This should be common knowledge.

Also, it's really easy to forget or lose track of how much the costs of things add up. - internet or cable costs - cell phone plan - landline plan - groceries - not just food, but toiletries, detergent, paper towel, random things you don't even think about now - furnishing your house with furniture, dish towels, etc. - the snacks you'll inevitably buy when you pass someplace on the street - gas and electric - spending money for going out (movies, parties, concerts, going out to dinner with friends, etc) - spending money for staying in (that latest video game, renting a movie, having over guests) - presents you'll have to buy for people - rent / mortgage - etc :D

Try looking at craigslist (for serious) and start looking at the costs of the apartments in the areas you might want to live. Beware that popular trendy areas, where lots of young people are living, are going to be the most attractive places to live (it's hard to meet people otherwise after you've finished school!) but also more expensive. Craigslist is a great way to get an idea about this kind of thing and look at apartments you could actually consider getting now. I've been doing that with apartments in New York, even though I'm not planning on graduating for another two and a half years :D

I like it :D Especially the back :D This reminds me; I'm going to go order mine now :D

Ashkenazi Jewish, pretty much all of it :D Though from different countries - Austria, Hungary, Romania, the former Czechoslovakia, Russia, etc :D

^^^^ Note the bit I bolded. The actual clicking of the link does little, I suspect. Clicking on the sponsors' advertisements, and subsequently buying products from their site, does a fair bit more. You make a fair point :D However, instead of getting discouraged, I recommend doing other and more significant actions instead. Join a local chapter of an organization you believe in. Or, if you're religious, maybe do some activism (i.e. soup kitchens) with your local church or synagogue or other place of worship. :D Alternatively, donate $5 (or more!) to an organization of your choice. Try to check and make sure that the money will really be going to what you want it to - and not just to the bureaucracy of the organization. UNICEF is a good one that really has relatively little overhead cost :D While organizations always need money, you can feel more secure that your direct action and volunteerism will actually be productive. Working in a soup kitchen is a great way to see your volunteerism have an immediate effect - and it's really quite helpful. Bring baked ziti :D

I feel pretty proud of the wardrobe I've acquired. I do my shopping at discount stores, and don't spend too much; however, I think my clothing does a decent job of kind of portraying the type of image I'd like to portray - and is generally pleasing to the eye. I wear a lot of colours, bright colours, often mismatched colours - and pretty patterns with some kind of hippie themes. My clothing tends to be "form-fitting" - and I don't think that's a problem. It makes me sad that there's always a counter-reaction to whatever fad is going on. Just because a woman is wearing a shirt that is fairly low-cut, allowing her to take pride in her body and also to create an eye-pleasing effect, doesn't mean she (a) has no self-respect or (B) is supporting a sexist and patriarchal society or © is being disrespectful in any way. In fact, to deny her the right to wear what she wants and what gives her higher self-esteem is sexist - to demand that, because she is a woman, she must fit certain "standards of decency" that men don't have to worry about - that's something to create more concern. If people want to wear tight jeans that allow you to see their butt cracks, just let them. It's their style. You don't have to wear it if you don't want to. And just because something's a fad, doesn't make it automatically bad. If the color yellow is in this season, and you've been wearing yellow forever, that doesn't make the color any less good.

Yeah. I was thinking about that today. My freshman year (last year) I'd planned to spend two hours a day in the library doing work, and it would be scheduled into my day so I would just get into the routine. Of course, I never wound up doing so. Next semester, I am going to :D 7-9 when I'm not on RA duty; 4 - 5:45 when I am.

Hehehe - you have to be clever like me, and make long term goals so that there is no specific point at which you "break" them, and you never feel bad... defeats the purpose of a resolution, but meehhh! :D

Okay, this is a little off topic, but whoa. That's pretty arguable. I would definitely say California has the best non-Ivy University system in the US - and I'm from the East Coast.