New Political Religions, Or an Analysis of Modern Terrorism

Download or read book New Political Religions, Or an Analysis of Modern Terrorism written by Barry Cooper and published by University of Missouri Press. This book was released on 2005-08 with total page 268 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: While terrorism has been used throughout the ages as a weapon in political struggles, there is an essential difference between groups who use these tactics for more or less rational political goals and those seeking more apocalyptic ends. Cooper argues that today's terrorists have a spiritual perversity that causes them to place greater significance on killing than on exploiting political grievances. He supports his assertion with an analysis of two groups that share the characteristics of a pneumopathological consciousness - Anum Shinrikyo, the terrorist organization that poisoned thousands of Tokyo subway riders in 1995, and Al-Qaeda, the group behind the infamous 9/11 killings.