From Jason Schulman, quoting Bogdan Denitch, after the 1st paragraph. I should cut the last sentence but, hey, Bogdan is a New Yorker! Us, Northern Californians (fuck L.A. I voted to split the state in three on a non-binding ballot proposition a few elections ago) have other insults at hand. Usually uttered with rolled up copy of Utne Reader ready to hit miscreants head. The subject line is referring to a squiblet on Lasch from an autodidact. http://www.home.thirdage.com/education/ralphdavid/sitemap.html (Stuff on everything from C.L.R. James to the New Left film collective, California Newsreel and lotsa other stuff leftish) http://vest.gu.se/vest_mail/vestbourd/0592.html (Bourdieu & Lukacs,hmm)
Michael Pugliese ............................................................................ ...........................................................................
-----Original Message----- From: Jason Schulman <jschulman at world.oberlin.edu> To: Michael Pugliese <debsian at pacbell.net> Date: Monday, January 29, 2001 3:48 PM Subject: Re: The Minimal Self
I look regularly at the LBO-Talk archives. I noticed someone asking "why aren't the pro-intervention-in-Kosovo leftists making a big stink about terror against Serbs by Kosovars?" You ought to forward the following words by Bogdan (from DSANet):
"My own position shifted after the first two days to be for ground troops so that a 'de-nazfication' could take place. I denounced the US policy of mass bombing from 15,000ft as cowardly and bound to create unjustifiable civilian losses. It was still a policy based on the idea that ONE professional US soldier's life is worth more than any number of civilians; there cannot be 'pin-point bombing' from that height. The use of depleted uranium is and was a crime -- worse, a stupid crime.
"All that said the military intervention was justified. Otherwise we would have 'new Palestinians', a million unwanted desperate Kosovo Albanian refugees. I believe the bombing, with all of its faults, did help topple Milosevic which is a minimal step towards some kind of Balkan peace.
"To anticipate a question: I think the Albanian revenge in Kosovo, based as it is on the idea of collective guilt of Serbs, is criminal, and the failure of NATO and Russian troops to do something effective to stop it makes them accomplices. So the world is cruel and unjust. My group ToD (Transition to Democracy) is working in Kosovo, Serbia, Bosnia and Croatia to try to build a tolerant, decent movement and culture. On Tuesday I am going to Montenegro, Kosovo and Croatia to help a bit. What are the bullshit artists and blowhards who opposed NATO intervention doing?"
(Though you should make it clear that Bogdan doesn't think all who opposed intervention were bullshit artists and blowhards.)
- Jason