You mean "Jonestown", yes? The Jonestown people had actually rehearsed the group suicide on a number of occasions. There is some thought that many, if not most of the victims believed it was just another rehearsal.

I think that when you say, "may have been more sheeplike and disoriented than idealistic." you describe the situation of many, if not most of the Kamikaze types--that is that they are forced into the situation by others. You can watch a documentary about surviving Kamikaze pilots hereThe Wings of Defeat. They explain it all...it's worth investing 89 minutes.

[link fixed...mudelf]