Abrahms And Potter Argumentative Analysis

and Potter analyze the motives behind indiscriminate violence. Abrahms and Potter contend that indiscriminate forms of violence carried out against general populations exist because leadership deficits promote civilian targeting. They claim that the incentives for indiscriminate violence are inversely related to their position in the organization. The lower the individual is in the chain of command, the more likely they are to carry out attacks against civilian targets. Terrorists are significantly more likely to gain advantages by attacking military targets rather than civilian. For this reason, higher level members of a terrorist organization are more likely to focus on eliminating military targets while directing low level members to “do what they can” which is almost always an attack on a civilian population. These attacks normally lack complexity, usually being car bombs or suicide vests, and carried out by women, children, or presumably lower ranking

A high level of current distress and dissatisfaction is common in a possible recruit along with cultural disillusionment. Immigrants to the United States are especially a vulnerable demographic and can fit this profile. These individuals may be the target of discrimination and thus face difficulty fitting in and living a normal life. They are separated from their country of origin and thus may struggle to find their own identity. Terrorist organizations provide an attractive community for which those individuals can find purpose. Some possible recruits lack an intrinsic religious belief system or value system. Those who do not have a religious background are susceptible to falling victim to the attractive benefits that these terrorist organizations may promise to those who convert. In addition, recruits generally have some dysfunctionality in their family system as well as some dependent personality