One of the unintended consequences of the flattening world is that it puts different societies and cultures in much greater direct contact with one another. It connects people to people much faster than people and cultures can often prepare themselves. Some cultures thrive on the sudden opportunities for collaboration that this global intimacy makes possible. Others are frustrated, and even humiliated by this close contact, which, among other things, makes it easy for people to see where they stand in the world in relation to everyone else. All of this helps to account for the emergence of one of the most devastating forces today — the suicide bombers and other terrorist organizations which have no regard for human lives and which it is in our best interest to wipe out.
