# Want to Be an Islamic State Suicide Bomber? Get in Line. **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [May 22, 2015, 5:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/want-to-be-an-islamic-state-suicide-bomber-get-in-line/720570 "2015-05-22T05:15:12Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 13\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Terr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/839c29/32.png) [@Terr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Terr)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2015, 5:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/want-to-be-an-islamic-state-suicide-bomber-get-in-line/720570/1 "2015-05-22T05:15:12Z")
I had to check twice to see whether this was in The Onion. It wasn’t. > **[Want to Be an Islamic State Suicide Bomber? Get in Line.](https://foreignpolicy.com/2015/05/21/want-to-be-an-islamic-state-suicide-bomber-get-in-line/)** > > Even in the self-declared caliphate, it’s hard to shake the yoke of nepotism. Earning that promotion can be tough, and it can be even harder when that top job goes to the boss’s friends and family instead of the most deserving candidate. In the Islamic State, where martyrdom is the aspiration of many militants, reports are circulating that “wait lists” to become suicide bombers in Iraq are being manipulated to favor Saudi fighters over militants from other regions. Even in the self-declared caliphate, it’s hard to shake the yoke of nepotism. … Kamil tells of a would-be suicide bomber who, after waiting on the list for martyrdom in Syria, moved to Iraq where there is a much shorter wait. “He went there [Iraq] because in Syria there is a very long line,” wrote Kamil. But after waiting for three months with no chance to be a suicide bomber, the young militant found that senior Islamic State members from Saudi Arabia were favoring other Saudis by putting them to the top of the list. With his opportunity to be a suicide bomber thwarted by nepotism and bureaucracy, the frustrated young militant returned to Syria. I really would like to believe that this is just subtle propaganda from ISIS and does not reflect the reality. ---
**Author:** ![kaylasdad99](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kaylasdad99/32/3398_2.png) [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2015, 11:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/want-to-be-an-islamic-state-suicide-bomber-get-in-line/720570/2 "2015-05-22T11:20:05Z")
Thread title - username WIN! ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2015, 11:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/want-to-be-an-islamic-state-suicide-bomber-get-in-line/720570/3 "2015-05-22T11:34:49Z")
Consider that those doing the selecting are, oddly enough, not suicide bombers themselves. My suspicion would be that the leadership identifies possible threats to their authority within the organization (who would be more likely to be Saudi), and preferentially “volunteers” them for suicide duty. ---
**Author:** ![bobot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bobot/32/21622_2.png) [@bobot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bobot)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2015, 11:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/want-to-be-an-islamic-state-suicide-bomber-get-in-line/720570/4 "2015-05-22T11:54:49Z")
\*\*esc\_attr( get\_the\_title( $cat\_image ) ) Want to Be an Islamic State Suicide Bomber? Get in Line. \*\*Having clipboard issues today? 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Senegoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senegoid/32/6606_2.png) [@Senegoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Senegoid)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2015, 9:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/want-to-be-an-islamic-state-suicide-bomber-get-in-line/720570/5 "2015-05-23T09:06:20Z")
> [@bobot](#): > > **esc\_attr( get\_the\_title( $cat\_image ) ) Want to Be an Islamic State Suicide Bomber? Get in Line.** > Having clipboard issues today? 😃 And where’s the link to the cat image? ---
**Author:** ![Princhester](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/3e96dc/32.png) [@Princhester](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Princhester)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2015, 9:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/want-to-be-an-islamic-state-suicide-bomber-get-in-line/720570/6 "2015-05-23T09:31:52Z")
Salespeople often use the tactic of trying to make it appear that people are desperate to get what they are selling. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2015, 9:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/want-to-be-an-islamic-state-suicide-bomber-get-in-line/720570/7 "2015-05-23T09:34:01Z")
> [@Senegoid](#): > > And where’s the link to the cat image? It escaped ---
**Author:** ![mascaroni](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/dc4da7/32.png) [@mascaroni](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mascaroni)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2015, 11:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/want-to-be-an-islamic-state-suicide-bomber-get-in-line/720570/8 "2015-05-23T11:17:21Z")
> [@Princhester](#): > > Salespeople often use the tactic of trying to make it appear that people are desperate to get what they are selling. Yes. It suits their purpose to make ‘martyrs’ of people who are no good for anything else. Cannon fodder. ---
**Author:** ![Tamerlane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tamerlane/32/7602_2.png) [@Tamerlane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tamerlane)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2015, 6:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/want-to-be-an-islamic-state-suicide-bomber-get-in-line/720570/9 "2015-05-23T18:25:50Z")
> [@Senegoid](#): > > And where’s the link to the cat image? See, I was fearing a _scat_($cat) image. And unless it was of Ella Fitzgerald singing, I want none of that :eek: ;). ---
**Author:** ![Terr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/839c29/32.png) [@Terr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Terr)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2015, 6:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/want-to-be-an-islamic-state-suicide-bomber-get-in-line/720570/10 "2015-05-23T18:31:24Z")
I asked a mod to change the title 10 seconds after I posted the OP. I guess they’re too busy. ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2015, 6:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/want-to-be-an-islamic-state-suicide-bomber-get-in-line/720570/11 "2015-05-23T18:41:13Z")
> [@Terr](#): > > I asked a mod to change the title 10 seconds after I posted the OP. I guess they’re too busy. Fixed. ---
**Author:** ![Terr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/839c29/32.png) [@Terr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Terr)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2015, 6:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/want-to-be-an-islamic-state-suicide-bomber-get-in-line/720570/12 "2015-05-23T18:44:55Z")
> [@Colibri](#): > > Fixed. Thanks. Now to the content - as I (and one other poster in this thread) have stated, this better be propaganda. A form of humblebrag, islamic extremist style. Because if it isn’t, that’s just pretty scary. ---
**Author:** ![DinoR](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dinor/32/2821_2.png) [@DinoR](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DinoR)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2015, 9:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/want-to-be-an-islamic-state-suicide-bomber-get-in-line/720570/13 "2015-05-23T21:07:47Z")
_Throws the red challenge flag_ When there were still infidel invaders in large numbers in the area the supply of IEDs would have been more challenging and there was visible martyr recruitment advertising everywhere. More constraint on making the IEDs and presumably easier supply of “operators.” At that point there were still cases that used less completely voluntary bombers. A lot of work went in to recruiting and developing prospects. So now when IEDs should be easier to make in number and recruiting is tougher there’s a glut of bombers. Call my cynical. This seems more likely a combination of a couple of things: - Recruiting - “Everyone’s doing it. You know you want to be like the cool kids but only a few can. How bad do you want it?” - Propaganda / Smack Talk - Both internally and externally focused. The Stir Crazy “That’s right, we bad. Don’t take no shit” press release. - Possibly some internal tensions along the lines of national origin with respect to leadership positions.