Why Not Kill Them All?: The Logic and Prevention of Mass Political MurderPrinceton University Press, 2 sept. 2008 - 288 pagini Genocide, mass murder, massacres. The words themselves are chilling, evoking images of the slaughter of countless innocents. What dark impulses lurk in our minds that even today can justify the eradication of thousands and even millions of unarmed human beings caught in the crossfire of political, cultural, or ethnic hostilities? This question lies at the heart of Why Not Kill Them All? Cowritten by historical sociologist Daniel Chirot and psychologist Clark McCauley, the book goes beyond exploring the motives that have provided the psychological underpinnings for genocidal killings. It offers a historical and comparative context that adds up to a causal taxonomy of genocidal events. Rather than suggesting that such horrors are the product of abnormal or criminal minds, the authors emphasize the normality of these horrors: killing by category has occurred on every continent and in every century. But genocide is much less common than the imbalance of power that makes it possible. Throughout history human societies have developed techniques aimed at limiting intergroup violence. Incorporating ethnographic, historical, and current political evidence, this book examines the mechanisms of constraint that human societies have employed to temper partisan passions and reduce carnage. Might an understanding of these mechanisms lead the world of the twenty-first century away from mass murder? Why Not Kill Them All? makes clear that there are no simple solutions, but that progress is most likely to be made through a combination of international pressures, new institutions and laws, and education. If genocide is to become a grisly relic of the past, we must fully comprehend the complex history of violent conflict and the struggle between hatred and tolerance that is waged in the human heart. |
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... human history would be far more tragic, and today our species would have little prospect of surviving much longer. We can learn from past attempts to control violence, and we can devise new ways of dealing with crises that may lead to ...
... human history yet also offer hope. We have always known how to do better. Understanding why excesses occur is an important step toward understanding some of the dire conflicts that exist in today's world, and it can provide a foundation ...
... human behavior is innate and biologically determined, has written that any simplistic view of our species as either naturally violent or peaceful misses the main point. The prevalence of violence . . . does not mean that our species has ...
... Human beings are not by nature either bloody monsters or peaceful angels; rather it is situations, institutions, and socially agreed-upon interpretations of these that move human action toward peace or violence. Studying what has caused ...
... human beings are all too ready to kill by category. Only a few hundred may be killed if the targeted population is small and localized, or millions if it is large and widespread. Typically, the larger the mass murder, the more likely it ...
Cuprins
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11 | |
The Psychological Foundations of Genocidal Killing | 51 |
Why Is Limited Warfare More Common Than Genocide? | 95 |
Strategies to Decrease the Chances of Mass Political Murder in Our Time | 149 |
Our Question Answered | 211 |
References | 219 |
Index | 249 |
Alte ediții - Afișează-le pe toate
Why Not Kill Them All?: The Logic and Prevention of Mass Political Murder Daniel Chirot,Clark McCauley Previzualizare limitată - 2010 |
Why Not Kill Them All?: The Logic and Prevention of Mass Political Murder Daniel Chirot,Clark McCauley Previzualizare limitată - 2006 |
Why Not Kill Them All?: The Logic and Prevention of Mass Political Murder Daniel Chirot,Clark McCauley Previzualizare limitată - 2008 |