Alchemists of Revolution : Terrorism In The Modern World - Hardcover

Rubenstein, Richard E.

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 1850430489 ISBN 13: 9781850430483

Publisher: St Martins Press, 1987

Synopsis

Alchemists of Revolution sets out to disentangle the truth from the demonologies of state-sponsored terrorism. It asks--and answers--a number of crucial questions: In what ways does the terrorist organization reflect the wishes of larger groups? Why, in spite of the extreme danger and the small chances of success, do some young people, disaffected intellectuals particularly, embrace terrorism as a way of life? Under what circumstances does terrorism work? What is the relationship between social revolution and terrorism? Is terrorism really radical?

About this title

From Publishers Weekly

In a calm, level-headed analysis, Rubenstein offers a powerful rebuttal to many assumptions about terrorism. He maintains that terrorist acts are often the responses of frustrated people to American-sponsored oppression that is intended to protect U.S. imperial interests. The average terrorist may be like "the guy next door," living on the edge of despair. A professor at the Antioch School of Law in Washington, D.C., Rubenstein refutes the notion that terrorist movements are products of outside manipulation or links in a unified "red terrorist network." The conditions that allowed the early Ku Klux Klan to flourishpostwar disorder, nationalist solidarityhave much to tell us about current terrorist activity around the world. The logic of terrorist acts, according to the author, makes terrorism an appealing tool for some Third World nationalists and conservatives, but a bane to social revolutionaries who favor mass activism and genuine change.
Copyright 1987 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal

Terrorism, claims Rubenstein (Antioch Sch. of Law, Washington, D.C.), is initiated by militants who are unable to organize mass violence or mobilize political support for their cause. He seeks to survey the contemporary upsurge in terrorist activity objectively and discover an underlying thread in its history. He focuses on terrorism as it is used by both political agitators and the state, as well as the prominence of the urban guerrillas and revolutionaries. His span is sufficient to cover groups ranging from the far right nationalists to the leftist communists. The author's "solution" to the "problem" is to encourage wide-scale political participation in those states that experience terrorism. A good intellectual survey for current affairs collections. Sanford R. Silverburg, Political Science Dept., Catawba Coll., Salisbury, N.C.
Copyright 1987 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Edition details

• Publisher: St Martins Press
• Publication date: 1987
• ISBN 10: 1850430489
• ISBN 13: 9781850430483
• Binding: Hardcover
• Language: English
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 288