J.D.Robinson wrote:
> As
> I understand it, this list draws together people with a broadly common
> (although not undifferentiated) political and intellectual agenda
> why are some people treating others on the list as the enemy?
Because they often are the enemy: and prepared to kill. I suggest you read the
controversial article "Humanitarian Hawks", at Mother Jones, for an idea of
the violence and agression of their common post-left agenda. It is among the
former "academic left" that the advocates of democratic conquest and
humanitarian re-colonisation are found - not among the traditional security establishment.
Humanitarian Hawks
http://bsd.mojones.com/mother_jones/JA99/saletan.html
And think about Clare Short. When the NATO bombed the Belgrade TV studios
(becasue they refused to re-broadcast BBC and CNN) I saw her defend that on
TV. She said in absolute, calm that it was a legitimate target. I saw it again
on the news here, and looked at her face and eyes: no trace of stress, let
alone remorse. This is the new generation of ruthless power, and it is
composed of your friends and colleagues.
I posted to this list, about the re-colonisation of Timor - not because I
think people agree, but becasue of all the 2500 mailbase lists this is the
most likely to have the interventionists as subscribers. (I looked through the
Mailbase index for alternatives, only the small bisa-globalisation and
int-boundaries are possibilities).
This is certainly not a phenomneon unique to British geography or to Britain ,
think of the Greens in Germany, the party that sent German troops back to
Kosovo (the Wehrmacht ran an ethnic Albanian militia there in 1943-44). Or
think of the new media scene in Europe, which campaigned for neo-liberal radio
and tv stations in Serbia.
It is the "broadly common intellectual agenda" which is wrong, and in urgent
need of re-assessment. Many of the values which underlie new forms of
oppression and inequality originate in what was formerly considered the
"academic left" (think of Blairs guru Anthony Giddens, or the advocates of
global elite power such as Richard Falk, or the many intervenionists in the
Third-World movements). The tyrannical UN governor of Kosovo, Bernard
Kouchner, once founded Medecins sans Frontieres.
For people like Giddens, who bears a great share of the guilt for the extreme
inequalities and class discrimination of Blair's Britain, a historically
appropriate response would be, that he faces a European tribunal. The crimes
of some of the members of the intellectual community that you describe, are
very great. You should realise that, in suggesting standards of politeness.
---
Paul Treanor
http://web.inter.nl.net/users/Paul.Treanor/timorwar.html
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