Terror Attacks in Mumbai: First reflections

Despite a history of violence, human beings actually have a natural resistance to killing. Dave Grossman's On Killing reveals that there are various mechanisms that work to break down this resistance. Slightly irrelevant to yesterday's terrorist attacks in Mumbai—but nonetheless revealing—is the oppressive military training which desensitizes the modern soldier. By exposing the soldier to prolonged physical and mental exhaustion along with relentless violent simulation, the desensitization process is completed. On the battlefield, the solider no longer fears death and is less resistant to killing fellow human beings; fortunately there are exceptions to this generalization. How is this relevant to terrorist attacks? Documentation of terrorism reveals that persistent hopelessness breaks down the natural resistance to killing. Terrorists often live in poverty-ridden areas of the world and they struggle to live meaningful lives. This lack of comfort and meaning leads to the above mentioned hopelessness. For terrorists, this void is filled with radical doctrines that lead to the violent acts we witness. Hence, the natural resistance to killing is destroyed or at least partially veiled. This process is observed throughout the Middle East when ordinary Muslims become radical fundamentalists. The manipulation of jihad results in the following transition:
FROM:
Inner Jihad: The struggle to remain pious. This struggle exists largely inside the individual and involves the accurate observance of holy scripture and practice.
TO:
Outer Jihad: The struggle to defend Islam. This struggle includes violent acts and in the most radical cases the proliferation of Islamic doctrine via terrorism. Furthermore, this jihad includes acts of retaliation in which Islamic radicals right a wrong committed by non-Muslims—for example, many argue September 11th occurred as a result of the failed United States policy which upset Al Qaeda.
As the dust settles on Mumbai, it will be noteworthy to discover the intentions of the perpetrators. What psychological process occurred to break the natural tendency to resist murder? Conversely, were the perpetrators natural born killers (only two percent of the world population)? One thing is for sure: we live in a violent world in which human beings find motivation to kill—regardless of some inborn resistance to violence.