Terrorism, Tyranny, and Religious Extremism as Collective Activity: Beyond the Deviant, Psychological, and Power Mystiques.

While not focusing on any particular instances of terrorism, tyranny, or religious extremism, this paper examines these matters from an interactionist (Mead, 1934; Blumer, 1969; Strauss, 1993; Prus, 1996, 1997, 1999) viewpoint and indicates how these realms of human endeavor may be approached in more direct empirical (i.e., ethnographic) and instructive analytic terms. After (a) defining terrorism, tyranny, and religious extremism within the context of instances of collectively engaged activity, consideration is given to (b) three mystiques (deviant, psychological, power) that commonly obfuscate and distort analyses of human activity. The paper then (c) outlines a series of conceptual, methodological, and literary resources that would enable scholars to engage these and related subject matters in more direct research terms and develop more viable conceptualizations of instances of these collectively engaged activities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]