The NYPD, certainly no stranger to the impact of terrorism, has a new report coming out about the serious danger posed by the "radicalization" of potential homegrown terrorists. Demonstrating how mosques, bookstores, and certain cafes can lead an otherwise "unremarkable" individual to commit a terror act, the report documents some 10 incidents in which Americans were thwarted in terrorist plots they had conceived with minimal or no support from al Qaeda, perhaps showing the power of extremist ideas whether or not they are directly tied to a pre-exiting terrorist organization. Al Qaeda instead sometimes simply serves as an "idealogical reference point."

The report, furthermore, wishes to create a tool for law enforcement which focuses on a relatively new "cluster" model; it highlights some two dozen or so clusters believed to be in various stages of the radicalization process. Because many of these "actors" blend in so well, the report emphasizes intelligence gathering is crucial to identify and defeat terror plots in their budding stages. Kareem Shora, director of the American Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee, has called the report "unfortunate stereotyping" and "completely un-American."