"Given the magnitude of what happened, and the degree to which we were unprepared for it," Lankford said, "Just as there are probably seniors at the University of Alabama right now thinking 'Wow, we need to understand infectious diseases,' it was a clear calling for an area where we don't have enough information."
On Page 2 of the executive summary of the 9/11 Commission Report, it states "The 9/11 attacks were a shock, but they should not have come as a surprise."
"Basically the bipartisan committee said there were multiple failures on behalf of the government," Lankford said.
Now a professor in UA's Department of Criminology and Criminal Justice, Lankford's researched, authored and had published the books "The Myth of Martyrdom: What Really Drives Suicide Bombers, Rampage Shooters, And Other Self-Destructive Killers," and "Human Killing Machines: Systematic Indoctrination in Iran, Nazi Germany, Al Qaeda, and Abu Ghraib", along with several scholarly articles on mental health problems among terrorists and mass shooters, how consequences can spread from media coverage, and the possible prevention of such violent incidents.
Mass shooters and suicidal terrorists
Though mass shooters were once thought to be distinct from suicidal terrorists, Lankford's work highlights crucial similarities, such as suicidal ideation, detailed planning and the targeting of random, unarmed strangers.
"Major misconceptions abound, in part spread by terrorist leaders, who say things like, they refer to their suicide attackers as 'martyrs,' " Lankford said.
"It's the same with suicide terrorists. A high percentage of those appeared to have mental health problems and suicidal motives."
The martyr references made by terrorist leaders, after the fact, is a "... public relations spin to make them look heroic," Lankford said, "When in fact, they're often suffering and in pain."
Psychological autopsy
Studying motivations is challenging, especially concerning those who've carried out suicides, but not impossible, he said.
"Those are obviously failures, because not enough was done," Lankford said, "But there are certainly success stories as well, where they get that person help, or work to keep them away from obtaining weapons."
As pressure mounts on prevention of violence, controversy has arisen over tactics, similar to the idea of "Pre-crime" arrests at the heart of the 2002 Steven Spielberg movie "Minority Report," Lankford said. "
Coercing the mentally ill
Some terrorist leaders actively seek the mentally ill for their purposes, Lankford said.
source: https://www.tuscaloosanews.com/story/news/2021/09/11/ua-professor-mental-illness-not-martyrdom-drives-suicide-attackers/5779453001/
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