Furedi claims that the west has become so risk and loss averse that it inadvertently invites acts of terrorism. This book details how, as society has become increasingly apprehensive about the future, it has reached the point where it regards itself as a vulnerable target. This defensive response is influenced by many causes the most important of which is the difficulty society has in endowing conflict and the threat it faces with meaning. The words used to describe the threat of terrorism - unimaginable, incomprehensible, beyond meaning - serve to deflect our understanding of the issues at stake. Furedi argues that the problem is not `them' and does not come from `there'. It is us and comes from within. The good news is that it is not very difficult to diminish the impact of this threat through changing the way we engage with it.