Here in Madrid, at the International Summit on Democracy, Terrorism and Security, there are a lot of people who study terrorism and try to figure out how best to counter-act it: government officials, law enforcement people, technologists, psychologists, sociologists, and academics. Many of them are honorable, hard-working, ethical, and admirable people.
However I've also encountered a number of people - mainly academics as well as people from government agencies and even non-governmental organizations - who are using the terrorism phenom to advance their careers and get grant money. This is disgusting. It reminds me of journalists who are gleeful about covering wars because it advances their careers. Sick.
I kept a clipping of the Brill's Content cover story 'JonBenet, Inc.' which detailed the career-advancement of the true crime pundits. That the misery of a family was a commodity to be traded in for a higher-paying book deal. It applies to so many facets of journalism and academia.
Posted by: Andy Wibbels | March 15, 2005 at 04:56 AM