THREE FOR THREE (profanity alert):

INCELDOM, for a long time, has been viewed as a disease, not a state," says Lauren Callahan, an independent researcher who works with Clark. This idea suggests that members are sick with the same ailment their compatriots have and that, rather than a passing state, it's an illness that can't easily be cured. Like many echo chambers, it keeps participants participating, stuck in an increasingly nihilistic headspace. This perspective dovetails with the idea, from terrorism theorists, that the foundational components of radicalization are needs narratives, and networks. The Three Pillars of Radicalization, a 2019 book on the subject, explains that, when someone has all three--a desire for personal significance, a narrative that guides them in that quest for renown, and a network that offers veneration to the members who validate and implement the collective narrative--they're much more likely to progress into violent extremism. And research is proving that these online communities act as pressure cookers, speeding up the radicalization process.

Callahan has observed an increasingly militarized language style in forums hosted on various websites and on Discord servers, where private chats take place. Similar to other avenues of online radicalization, incels.co offers a posting structure that incentivizes participation and escalation. At zero posts, you're a "recruit." After 500, you're moved up to an "officer" ranking. At 1,500, you're a "captain"; at 5,000, you're an "overlord"; at 25,000, you're "transcendental"; and, once you reach 30,000 posts, you're "enlightened." If the implications weren't so sinister, it would sound cartoonish. Coren and Callahan have also been exploring the forums' coded messages, word usage, and preliminary links that tie excessive first-person pronoun use--talking about yourself more than about others--into the language of radicalization and extremism.

Sanders said, she noticed "Kim staring at me. We made direct eye contact and Kim nodded and appeared to wink at me. I was stunned. I quickly looked down and continued taking notes."

"... All I could think was, 'What just happened? Surely Kim Jong Un did not just mark me!?'"

Later riding in "the Beast," Sanders told Trump and then-White House chief of staff John Kelly about the off-putting encounter.

That's when Trump joked: "Well, Sarah, that settles it. You're going to North Korea and taking one for the team! Your husband and kids will miss you, but you'll be a hero to your country!"

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