Grazing on taboo grounds

Why is it that whenever we have a "home-grown terrorist," that person is depicted as a socially isolated loner or emotionally tormented person who suffers from mental illness, but when we have terrorists from other lands -- even those a stone's throw away -- they are organized criminals (or at least associated with some kind of organization, usually religious and/or political extremists) that are considered trained and calculated? Is there a difference between the two?

Is it because of race? Because of religion? Is it because we can "humanize" them by talking to neighbors/family/friends and show that he or she actually had a life? Or does it just make us feel better to tell ourselves and our kids that this person, though he or she may have lived in a suburb just like ours, is not the norm?

And where does the social norm play in these situations? There are many troubled citizens in today's cities. People are overly stressed and tired of the norm. People are tired of the paths their lives are taking, and want a way out. People are looking for their flock.

Because, like my Baby Girl will tell you as she sits guard watching over me, people are all sheep. We are all herd animals, associating ourselves with a clique or party or standard. Geek. Jock. Socialite. Gamer. It's easy to look back on school days and laugh at the social structures we set for ourselves. It's easy to say that in the real world -- with jobs and families and maturity -- we don't have time for those classifications. But ask the majority of U.S. citizens and they will quickly give you their political party, self-perceived economic class and prefered social habits. We may not stick to the labels or self-enforced dress codes we did in school (Acid-wash jeans? Mullets? Seriously?), but we surely will correct someone when they place us in the wrong classification.

Loner? Outcast? Bullied victim? Or just a lost sheep looking and listening for a flock. Listening is the key word there. When we don't fit in, we shut up and we listen. It's one of the first ways a new member of the flock finds it's mom. It listens. When it doesn't hear what it likes, it listens some more, and keeps listening till it finds a familiar voice. A tone that makes sense. And, unfortunately, there are a lot of radical and misleading wolves in sheep's clothing. Call it freedom of speech. Call it crying wolf too many times in a world of mass media. But these "tormented individuals," both from home and foreign lands, either find a flock to follow or die trying.

We might say it's easier to find a bad flock in some other pasture. We see organized meetings and marches on t.v. all the time. On the other hand, with our computers and radios and 600-channel cable feeds, maybe it's simply easier for lost sheep in America to find flocks without leaving the comfort of home. After all, the judging world they've grown to dislike is right outside the door.