“Grab-bag” extremists, a new breed of self-made radical, are driving the deadliest wave of political violence in the United States in half a century.

Aldrich is an example of a new and troubling type of violent American extremist, according to law enforcement officials and political scientists: the grab-bag radical.

Past perpetrators tended to fall into two broad categories.

One includes militants recruited and trained by others to defend a cause, such as the anti-government beliefs of far-right militias. The other was a previous breed of “lone wolf” terrorist, obsessed and informed by a clear issue that motivated attacks, like the bombings by Ted Kaczynski, the “Unabomber,” because of his opposition to technology.

Aldrich, by contrast, embodies a novel extremism forged distinctly by today’s polarized politics, fragmented online discourse and prevalence of fictional narratives. Like other actors behind a wave of political violence analyzed by Reuters, Aldrich wove his own brand of fanaticism from disparate strands of conspiracy theories widely circulating on the internet.

  • @[email protected]
    14•1 year ago

    One reason people get radicalized online is that meme culture can quickly reduce issues to a punchline or a call to arms. And by circulating entirely online, with no checks on factuality or origin, memes and the joking around them can convey messages and provoke reactions with none of the back-and-forth that happens in person, let alone the learning acquired through research or deep study.

    Something that is not talked about enough.

    • @interceder270
      6•1 year ago

      Yeah, I hate memes. I call them ‘reference humor.’ People who aren’t funny rely on them to get cheap laughs with familiarity.

    • @extantEnglish
      5•1 year ago

      I don’t see how headlines for articles are much different.

      • @[email protected]
        2•1 year ago

        I agree. I would argue that headlines are passed around almost as easily as memes, though often without the humor element.

        • @extantEnglish
          6•1 year ago

          It’s a shame we don’t have any systems in place to promote learning to combat such issues but alas that’s just impossible.