In this innovative manual for the professional and interested layman alike, Sheppard has taken aim squarely at a problem that has shackled the West’s “War on Terror” for nearly two decades now: how to delegitimize radical ideology without appearing to attack Islam itself. Politicians seldom come closer than broad platitudes about the benign nature of Islam that fail to ring true with jihadis, their supporters, and their audiences in the Muslim world. Sheppard’s insight is that the extremist message, while rooted in religious imagery and theology, is at heart a war-fighting doctrine, an ideology forged to advance political and military purposes. As such, it is susceptible to sabotage and confusion. The trick is to find the right tools. Sheppard proposes a wide range of tactics and techniques, such as selecting the right messengers and making clever use of the Internet-based multimedia outlets use by the radicals themselves, with which to cross-wire militant ideology from within. Countering Heedless Jihad is an insightful and comprehensive guide to a neglected but vital battlefield.