responsibility

fragmentation of the human act

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Submitted by antarchi on May 25, 2007 - 21:52.
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there is a fragmentation of the total human act; no one is confronted with the consequences of his decision to carry out the evil act. The person who assumes responsibility has evaporated. Perhaps this is the most common characteristic of socially organised evil in modern society.

we could not see torn bodies

antarchi's picture
Submitted by antarchi on February 21, 2008 - 15:04.
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We might think that at least those individuals in the U.S. Air Force who dropped bombs on civilian populations were aware of what terror they were inflicting, but as one of those I can testify that this is not so. Bombing from five miles high, I and my fellow crew members could not see what was happening on the ground. We could not hear screams or see blood, could not see torn bodies, crushed limbs. Is it any wonder we see fliers going out on mission after mission, apparently unmoved by thoughts of what they have wrought.

— Howard Zinn

, here

violence in iraq

antarchi's picture
Submitted by antarchi on January 12, 2008 - 02:19.
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The only two systematic studies of trends in Iraqi mortality rates over time were conducted by researchers from Johns Hopkins University, and were published in October 2004 and October 2006 in the medical journal The Lancet. The first study estimated “about 100,000 excess [Iraqi] deaths”—meaning 98,000 more Iraqis died than would have had the invasion/occupation not occurred; the October 2006 estimated 655,000 excess Iraqi deaths.

— Kevin Young

, in The Effects of the US Occupation

The effects of the US occupation

an eyes-closed attitude

antarchi's picture
Submitted by antarchi on November 11, 2007 - 00:09.
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The temptation is to think that it will be enough to show people the crimes and terrible injustices that are being done around the world, and they will be so appalled that they will try to act to put a stop to them. The temptation is to think that they will be particularly keen to act, particularly active even, when the crimes are being carried out with their support - conscious or unconscious, active or passive.

But it is not enough. Most people (in the comfy west) don't want their comfy lives disrupting. Most people don't have time or space to have their lives disrupted, particularly not for people who are miles away, a different colour, and whom they will never need to see. Disruption is particularly unappealing if it needs to happen from the roots and if it takes away the comforts we have become accustomed to, the comforts that make our lives tolerable, and the comforts that we have won at the expense of those whose lives are now intolerable.

So - rather than be troubled night and day by thoughts that we contribute to the misery of other people round the world, we close our eyes. We have to close our eyes, because the troubled thoughts would overpower us otherwise, would make our comfy lives intolerable. So the choice becomes a comfy life which is intolerable; a less comfy life - which we would find it hard to tolerate; or else an eyes-closed attitude.

But if you have your eyes closed, you have to close your eyes to the fact that they are closed, or else the troubled thoughts come back to view. An eyes-closed attitude needs to be undertaken with an eyes closed attitude. We mustn't know that we are only managing to continue living comfy lives by shutting out the troubled thoughts that might destroy them.

does this road lead to the cathedral?

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Submitted by antarchi on September 7, 2007 - 23:16.
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"Does this road lead to the cathedral?"
"No, this is Varlam Street, it doesn't lead to the Cathedral"
"Well what's the point of a road, if it doesn't lead to the Cathedral?"

From Tengiz Abuladze's 'Repentance' Pokoyanie)

That exchange comes right at the end of the film. I was reminded by it of a quote from Thomas Nagel, that philosophers are after the truth, even though they know that's not what they're going to get (or words to that effect).

There is simply indifference

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Submitted by antarchi on June 4, 2007 - 23:56.
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the Nazis’ actively and intentionally killing people is morally very much worse than not doing enough to reduce poverty today, because there is no intention among rich-country politicians or citizens to kill a large number of people in poor countries. There is simply indifference. However... if we think that it was morally urgent then to do something to reduce the problem of the Nazi killings, we should for very similar reasons conclude that it’s very urgent now to do something about the world poverty problem.

— Thomas Pogge

Interview with philosopher Thomas Pogge on the fight against poverty

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