Taliban, Taliban?
In my terrorism class, I often found myself flashing back to ninth grade English, when we discussed the Romantic philosophical movement. It generally consisted of young men, going off into the woods, becoming ascetic, writing poetry about blue roses (it's possible I'm making that bit up) and generally seeking all the answers from a wacky guru in
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Taliban Membership goes a few different ways:
1) you join because it's cool and suits your ideals so you have no problem with strapping a bomb to yourself
2) Your family is starving and the bomb comes with a really excellent health care package for your family
3) You want your son to have a better life than you, and that means education, which, unfortunately, also means madrassas.
It isn't really a cult so much as the only option a lot of folks there have. It's the only meaningful form of government, but they don't really require everyone to join. If everyone could join, they wouldn't be the chosen ones anymore. So, yes, people can leave, and several do. That's not to say that renouncing the Taliban won't get you killed by the allies and called Taliban, though.
However, there are several reasons people don't leave the Taliban, and a few of them do involve strapping explosives to one's self. One is that there is no civil society in these places. The government gave up and there are no services. If your wife is sick and dying, the only medical plan in town is the rather impressive compensation package the Taliban offers your widow. If you want even some of your children to have an education, well, the nearest overcrowded school run by a government that doesn't care about you is 500miles away. The Taliban Maddrassa is only a few blocks away and when choosing between the ideals of education and disagreeing with what your children are taught, a lot of parents send their sons and hope for the best. This option does not generally involve strapping a bomb to yourself, but it might for your kids. Beyond that, as people get older and see what is happening to their communities and their families, many will choose to give up the health care, pension and education package, moving their families away from where they were known as part of the Taliban, and try to start over. Being a good man trying to look out for his family in these places is far more complicated than it should be.
The point our speaker was making is that, as far as terrorist bombing idealists go, you don't see many over 35 because they either died or quit to be responsible husbands and fathers. The Percy Byssge Shelley exceptions are the recruiters, who often have a lot of wives, money and power, and will never give it up. But as I said before, one man does not a movement make.
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