ABSTRACT
What we have learned, our personal experiences, and our “common sense” tell about the levers that move the world of human behavior. In our culture, we assume a rational, logical universe capable of being comprehended. We assume that much of what happens may be understood by putting ourselves in someone else’s place and understanding his or her motives, feelings, and intent. When an out-of-shape, middle-aged man puts on a Batman suit and climbs the front of Buckingham Palace, the behavior at first appears so much beyond anything we would think of doing (at least until we get into better shape) that we conclude, “He must be crazy.” When a group of political/religious fanatics takes over an elementary school in Russia, we first think, someone who would go to this extreme must be desperately trying to send a political message. However, when we see Batman’s handlettered sign pleading for increased rights for divorced fathers, we can at least understand his motivation. When we hear that the radicals have denied the children water and bathroom privileges, we have difficulty understanding their behavior. When we see them blow up a school full of parents, teachers, grandparents, children, and themselves, the action is so far from our comprehension that we conclude the political message they are trying to send is “We are crazy!”
