FC: New book gets inside mind of "Assassination Politics" author

[Declan McCullagh <declan () well com>]

Jessica Stern is a lecturer at Harvard's Kennedy School who has made
something of a study of terrorist groups:
http://ksgnotes1.harvard.edu/degreeprog/courses.nsf/wzWebFaculty/Stern306?Opendocument

She also worked at the National Security Council in the mid-1990s.
Jim Bell is in prison currently; he is best known as the author of
the political treatise "Assassination Politics":
http://www.mccullagh.org/subpoena/
http://jya.com/ap.htm

-Declan

----- Forwarded message from John Young <jya () pipeline com> -----

From: John Young <jya () pipeline com>
Subject: Jessica Stern on Jim Bell
To: cypherpunks
Date: Sun, 17 Aug 2003 18:14:00 -0700
X-Mailer: QUALCOMM Windows Eudora Pro Version 4.0

Jessica Stern's new book, "Terror in the Name of God : Why
Religious Militants Kill," has about 8 pages on Jim Bell, in
a chapter called "Lone Wolf Avengers," which is shared with
the Pakistani Kansai, assassin of CIA employees.

Stern says that while Bell is not a religion-based terrorist
he is included in the book as an example of the solo individual
with a private agenda that smacks of religion. This appears to 
be a stretch, but Stern stretches her material to fit an agenda.

A Stern footnote says the Bell material is based on the
forthcoming publication, "James Dalton Bell." She says
she had numerous telephone interviews with him beginning
in 2000 after making a request in 1998 during Jim's first
imprisonment.

Her capsule version of Jim's "crimes" and punishment is
a bellweather of what may be in store for other miscreants
who are fodder for terrorism careerists.

To be sure, Jim may get a movie made about him, and I guess
that would be his finest hour.

Stern says Jim's leadership potential has so far led only to
inspiring Carl Johnson to get himself thrown into prison.

----- End forwarded message -----



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