His interest in extremism stems initially from his experience as a student at a college in an Israeli West Bank settlement during the First Lebanese War and later after his mother, who had worked in lower Manhattan during 9/11, recounted having witnessed the collapse of the twin towers and fleeing the area on foot. Both of these events sparked a rapidly rising acceptance of hatred and violence as inevitable. He feels that in some way, understanding terrorism can turn this tide of pessimism by "de-normalizing" violence. Email: fischmand@yahoo.ca