The future of violence

"From drone warfare in the Middle East to the NSA digital spying, the U.S. government has harnessed the power of cutting-edge technology to terrible effect. But what happens when ordinary people have the same tools at their fingertips? Benjamin Wittes and Gabriella Blum reveal that this new world is nearly upon us. Soon, our neighbors will be building armed drones capable of firing a million rounds a minute and cooking powerful viruses based on recipes found online. These new technologies will threaten not only our lives but the very foundation of the modern nation state. Wittes and Blum counterintuitively argue that only by increasing surveillance and security efforts will national governments be able to protect their citizens. The Future of Violence is at once an account of these terrifying new threats and an authoritative blueprint for how we must adapt to survive. "-- "The ability to inflict pain and suffering on large groups of people is no longer limited to the nation-state. New technologies are putting enormous power into the hands of individuals across the world--a shift that, for all its sunny possibilities, entails enormous risk for all of us, and may even challenge the p