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That threat remains. But in the interim it has been joined by a new threat. Not the macro-terrorism of our worst nightmares, carefully staged bits of Grand Guignol involving hijacked planes or dirty bombs or what have you — the kind that require money and planning and the coordinated movements of a number of accomplices over many months — but micro-terrorism: a couple of “lone wolves,” maybe even one, with no similar ambition or sophistication, but also less exposure to detection.

We have just seen how effective it can be.

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Unconfirmed reports have implicated another Canadian-bred Muslim extremist in the deadly assault on the heart of the country’s democratic system Wednesday.

If true, it would amplify difficult questions about how such violent zealots are created — and what can be done to stop them before they strike out.

What’s known about homegrown terrorists is muddy. Evidence suggests they are no more likely to have psychiatric problems than others, but seem to be searching for some kind of personal meaning, or a morbid brand of immortality or, simply, adventure, various experts say.

And the most difficult to comprehend — Canadians who convert first to Islam and then to extremism — are likely targeted by recruiters for groups like ISIS, said Muhammad Robert Heft, a convert himself whose group P4E tries to defuse radicals.

“New Muslims are like sponges, they take in all this information so quickly, so they can get confused really easily,” he said. “And they’re not culturally set in their ways so they’re easier to work on. They’re more susceptible to these recruiters.”