There is still a hesitation to even discuss the underlying issues concerning
critical / radical geography.
1. No-one seems prepared to abandon the origins of the term 'critical'. As you
should all know by now, 'critical' social theory was a Cold War western-funded
anti-communist ideology. (Herbert Marcuse actually worked for the CIA
predecessor OSS).
2. Several people have used these terms to indicate a geography that is part
of 'civil society', more-or-less its 'research agency'. This kind of geography
is just as corrupt and immoral, as geography in the service of business.
3. Despite the assurances given, there is no indication that the Taegu
conference will be open to any discussion of fundamental values and issues.
This seems to apply to the ICGG as a whole. There is no place within academic
geography (or related disciplines) where these issues can be considered.
4. The reply to my mail by Luiza Bialasiewicz, was the only indication that
ICGG people are even aware that such issues exist. (If you are never
confronted by any ideas which are different from the social consensus around
you, then you will probably reject any consideration of these ideas). The
values of the 'critical' geographers are not very diverse, and are very
similar to mainstream geography.
5. I see almost every day new examples of fundamental value conflicts about
spatial trends, policy and organisation (and a huge range of related issues).
Yet often they are totally ignored by academic geography. In this respect,
there is *no* difference between mainstream and critical geography.
6. As an example, apart from the abusive comment from Luiza Bialasiewicz,
there was no mail response on the morality of market-democratic interventions
- although such interventions dominated world politics twice in 1999 (Kosovo
and Timor). There is no indication that the issue will even be on the agenda
at Taegu. Yet this is one of the most fundamental moral issues for the next
generation. There is a deep, deep unwillingness to abandon the positions that
people have learned (at school, from their parents. from the media).
--
Paul Treanor
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