A Mind for Murder: The Education of the Unabomber and the Origins of Modern Terrorism

No book I have read recently has made me think more and want to read more. I knew little or nothing about the rise of General Ed, the rationale behind it, Truman's involvement and nothing about Murray, his experiments and the extent of government involvement with the the various elite universities in various departments. For those who blame Obama for everything related to our government spying on us...this should be compelling reading. This ain't a new phenomenon guys!! Been going on for decades.I found the book appalling and enthralling. Made me want to re-read Conrad and Eugene O'Neill. Is Kaczynki right...yes...in many ways..are his methods totally unacceptable...and does he belong where he is...without question. Chase's picture of Kaczynski ...made so compelling by his pathetic self pitying letters to his family really flesh out this man...brilliant, immature and violent..but not crazy...just desperately neurotic. This is a sad book and made me very reflective about how I think...and how I do not want to think. Apartness from other human beings and where that can take me even within my own family. The importance of contemplation before action is taken.Chase's comments about where intellect without morality can lead us are fascinating and that many of the tyrants of the 20th century were incredibly bright...Hitler, Stalin, Pol Pot and those tried at Nuremberg...yet they killed over 100 million. ..made me think about how I can dehumanize those I disagree with.....It is easy to demonize our opponents and see them as less than human and expendable. Again...I cannot recommend this book more highly.Thank you Dr. Chase...I loved the book!!Dianne Gardner

Chase's book on the Unabomber, Ted Kaczynski, is divided into three sections: the life of Kaczynski (including the bombing attacks), the psychological experiments that characterized his youth while at Harvard and shaped his psyche, and the ultimate effect of Kaczynski, including why he ultimately became who he was. Chase does an excellent job at presenting these components:-Source material is well-written (the psychological experiments at Harvard are well-documented, as is the rest of the book)-Chase has an eye for the overall picture of Kaczynski's life, focusing more upon why he developed into a serial killer than the actual attacks themselves-The section on psychological experiments, while it may seem to be out of place, is accurately described and is further explained in the context of Kaczynski's life throughout the rest of the book, including its impact upon his anarchist, anti-establishment philosophy.-The author does an excellent job at relating how Kaczynski escaped capture as his philosophy continued to evolve in the wilderness (connection with Henry David Thoreau is also made)All-in-all this is a very good read. Chase delves into Kaczynski's mind to a large degree, seeking to answer the question as to why an intelligent former professor would so suddenly move into the wilderness to begin a path towards murder.

This book is useful as required reading for college students if the professor would like to help get the students past the trivial debates about whether Ted Kaczynski was a serial killer, ecoterrorist, or what. Far too often, attempts at criminological writing reduce to an essay on a "How crazy were they?" and this book helps correct that, making sense out of an episode in American history which frequently baffles explanation. For a taste of the author's writing, one should look for much of the same writing easily found on the web as a series of articles in The Atlantic.

This book is in 3 sections. The 1st one is pretty good, a recap of the crimes but the author goes to great lengths to find blame for Kazinskys state of mind, his parents, Harvard and even the era he grew up in. The 2nd section is worthless, he goes on and on about Harvard and a professor at Harvard. I was ready to throw the book in the trash can.The 3rd section is interesting, more about the crimes and what Kazinsky was doing during this time. Unfortunately in the 3rd section the author goes off on a tangent about the ecology movement and other events that have nothing to do with the Kazinsky. You could probably find a better book if you just want info on the Unabomber.

An emotionally challenged, high IQ young man goes to Harvard. Virtually friendless and without a support group, he is subjected to harrowing experiments. Hard to read. Impossible to disbelieve. Scientific experiments had the effect of destroying what little sense of self this poor human being had at the time.

Together with 'Unabomber: The Secret Life of Ted Kaczynski' by Chris Waits, this is a superb, deeply researched biography of the Unabomber, with particular and truly fascinating attention paid to his time at Havard, his family upbringing and the cultural trends surrounding American education and the CIA's involvement in university research programmes at the time. A real shame the book came to an end! Deeply illuminating.

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