The ISIS operational strategy is like a fishing net cast into the sea – from time to time it pulls in the required catch. In the present, it does not require the physical presence of a radical preacher – the internet serves the purpose. The organisation’s ideology attracts individuals in a particular state of mind – troubled by life and seeking solace by transcending to a higher cause that will justify however they vent their grief. This death wish is to be found everywhere, and terrorist organisations – not just those inspired by fundamentalist Islam but also Naxalism, Maoism, etc. – utilise it to serve their purposes. Glorification in popular discourse of those fighting an ‘oppressive system’ opens the doors for violent acts such as attacks on kindergartens or the killing of an insurance company CEO. Or it may be a symbolic protest against bullying by the more powerful. The Naxalites arm the village malcontent or misfit, who is willing to serve their cause as long as he or she can take revenge for past ill-treatment. So, what would otherwise be a random acting out becomes a political or religious statement.
No one with even a semblance of humanity would inflict cruelty on the innocent, particularly children. Unfortunately, sickness of the mind overcomes morality and such horrors are perpetrated. It is important, therefore, for societies worldwide to focus on the mental health of individuals who may be isolated and ignored, festering in their loneliness. Where such people have families, there needs to be alertness to the deteriorating state of mind. Conversations can reveal if there is radicalisation taking place, or an anti-social attitude developing. The neighbours of the man who killed his mother and four sisters in a Lucknow hotel, recently, were aware of ongoing strange behaviour for some time but did not feel it necessary to intervene.
In the case of radicalised individuals, the preparatory stage is established by everyday preachers drumming in a sociopathic philosophy of life through mostly symbolic phraseology. When the time comes, it is triggered by events or the exhortations of some charismatic person. However, what comes next is of the lone wolf’s own making, a personal release and an offering to the higher cause. In such random events, it is almost always the innocent that pay the price. It is important, therefore, for society to develop a response to this emerging danger through appropriate means. The psychological distress of individuals should be ameliorated before it becomes a danger for others.
