Paris Terrorist Attacks and the Motivation of Violent Criminals

Paris has experienced yet another terrorist attack.  Although terrorist attacks are regular occurrences in other corners of the world, where oppressive governments also tend to reign supreme with iron fists, the West is far more comfortable with gang shootings, murders of passion, and madman massacres.  If the victims of the Champs-Élysées shootings had simply been casualties of a criminal seeking revenge on the police and the collateral damage of a shootout, the tragedy would have provided the French media an interesting story for a couple of days.  Because the suspect was an ex-convict, who happened to be a terrorist suspect and likely supported the Islamic State, the media outlets and political figures of the West feel compelled to lead the world in a global panic and security crackdown.  
 
Violent crime, in general, plagues all communities of the world to varying degrees.  Terrorism is a particularly scary form of violent crime, because terrorists use seemingly random violence and the indiscriminate murder of innocent civilians to force their will onto society as a whole.  In modern society, violence is seen as a disruptive force that undermines the very fabric of communities and destroys the accomplishments of the human race.  The developed world has managed to suppress the violent side of human nature so well that events involving brutal and widespread destruction spark massive outrage and grievance throughout the International Community.  This is why Westerners struggle so much to understand why people are attracted to terrorism and the motivations behind acts of violence. 

Recognizing that terrorism is another form of violent crime, just like domestic abuse and police brutality, reminds all people that the outcome of violence and murder is the same no matter the motivation.  Understanding why perpetrators of violent crime ultimately choose to engage in their attacks of violence, however, can help people cope with the consequences and help authorities decrypt the patterns they need to prevent future violent crimes.  Although politicians and pundits squabble over whether these mass murders are terrorist attacks, the simple truth is that the motivation only matters when trying to prevent the next act of violence.  Just as blaming mental health and guns will not eliminate violent crime, calling attention to the religious beliefs, moral objections, and political stances of a murderer cannot eradicate acts of violence. 
 
Even if someone is classified as a terrorist, the reality is that a terrorist cause can be nothing more than an avenue for a recruit to express his, or her, violent feelings and/or tendencies.  After all, the perpetrators of terrorism and other violent crimes are motivated by many factors.   When trying to understand individuals in crisis, such as those on the verge of committing a violent act, it is important to understand their state of mind by looking at what costs these individuals do not consider.  It is, therefore, important to understand what costs these individuals are willing to endure versus what others typically will not.  All choices have economic, emotional, and social consequences to the decision-maker and others.  Even the act of making a choice has costs as the decision-making process requires time and effort that takes away from other endeavors.  
 
Consequently, a preoccupation with emotional or social issues can very much limit the ability of a person to focus on essential intellectual endeavors.  For example, someone who is in a critical stage of suicide, i.e. thoughts of suicide have been crystallized into worsening suicidal impulses after decades of suffering, struggles to make the choice to live on a daily basis.  The decision to live for a suicidal person is based on whether or not the individual can live with the short-term consequences of a given choice or the day's events.  Decision-making becomes ever more dependent upon emotion, even when inappropriate.  In turn, the suicidal person becomes unable to make long-term choices to ensure a brighter future.  
 
Unless a critically suicidal person can find a significant enough purpose to live for, such as having a child, an equivalent love of science, or meaningful job, he cannot progress beyond this degenerative state.  Because of the short-term nature of these individuals' reactions to life events and ongoing stressors, suicidal individuals may not be able to address their broader and long-term interests, even when they thoroughly understand those needs.  Suicidal victims eventually regress to a state where they no longer consider social costs, e.g. the impact of their death on others, and economic costs, e.g. personal interests like finances, as their focus is on the emotional costs associated with continuing to live.  Similarly, an individual considering a first act of violence narrows his, or her, decision-making capacity to include only a few factors.  
 
Instead of recognizing the pain and suffering an act of violence will do to potential victims, or the legal fallout, a would-be attacker might consider the cost of disappointing peers.  For Boston Marathon Bomber Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, the cost of disappointing his brother, i.e. a social/emotional cost, was likely more "expensive" than the cost of hurting others, being punished criminally, and distressing other family members, if these factors were even considered.  For those who have been radicalized by terrorists or their own circumstances, the choice to commit a violent act may depend upon a feeling that the rules of society do not address a critical set of their interests.  These individuals feel neglected by our broader society, so the social cost of not acting violently for the approval of a small group of peers is far more costly than the cost of going to prison or being killed.
 
What make acts like suicide or violent crimes so mystifying to healthy, well-assimilated individuals stems from the ancient Western philosophies that influence modern day thinking.  Much of the world has been indoctrinated by Socrates' assertion that motivation is rooted in the fear of death.  Shifted to modern, more accurate terms, motivation is based on an avoidance of discomfort.  In ancient Japanese tradition, as an example detached from Western thinking, suicide was seen as an acceptable means of avoiding the discomfort of shame.  In a similar fashion, emotionally damaged people use suicide as a means of avoiding emotional pain.  In turn, violent criminals use violence to avoid the discomfort associated with having their interests neglected.  In other words, they feel a need to "fight back" against what they perceive to be an attack on them by society.  
 
If an individual's decision-making processes have been distorted by an emotional or social deficit, making an economic argument will have little influence on their actions.  For example, society offers prison time for a violent offense, which is an economic incentive not to commit a crime.  Most people make the choice not to cause harm due to the consequences; however, most violent offenders will not, because they do not respond to such motivations.  Like a suicidal individual, a person contemplating a violent crime, including an act of terrorism, may offer a few subtle hints in order to find an "out," as these people may want to maintain their options, or legitimatize their actions as the only path.  For potential terrorists and other outcasts, violent groups, characters, and ideals can fulfill the needs that our broader society has neglected.  Consequently, an emotional or social deficit is often the motivation behind an act of terrorism and other violent offenses. 
 
Furthermore, much of the developing world faces unchecked violent crime and war and their norms.  The fallout of violence is, however, just as devastating to those who experience the horror and pain of crime, terrorism, and war on a daily basis as those who are luckily enough to live in stable countries.  In other words, terrorism periodically happens in the West, yet the Peoples of violence plagued, unstable regions, e.g. the Middle East, Africa, etc., must cope with it on a daily basis.  Given how most the developed world struggles with the trauma of violence, it should be self-evident that those living in violent regions need the International Community to help them overcome terrorism. 
 
Where nations could once focus on their own national security, centuries of globalization have gradually created the need to guard against threats from all over the world.  Consequently, the many Peoples of the world have a common interest in fighting terrorism and other forms of violence.  Remembering the Arab Spring Revolutions, along with the long history of sacrifice Westerners made to ensure freedom endured in the face of war, there is also a common interest to ensure freedom and democracy for all. This means pursuing our common interest to fight terrorist without surrendering our way of life to the tyranny of national security overreach.