When the WTC was burning, we saw the awful scene of a number of people who decided to jump rather than face the fire and the collapse. It's painful to imagine what went through their minds just before. What must have been a factor was seeing a first person jumping. Others, in the same case, decided to follow. They must have felt relieved, in a way, that someone else did it first. Nevertheless, it's a kind of suicide. We know how our culture abhorres suicides; I wonder when it's a no win solution what those who believe in afterlife think about this.
The same goes for the terrorists: the hijackers meticulously prepared their coup knowing fully well they would not survive it. They have seen others commit suicide in Israel and the occupied territories and felt "if they can do it, so can I". This is gruesome imitation. And it means there are, on this planet, many many others who are ready to follow. They know where and when they'll hit; we do not.
Raoul