>>One hopes that all people, be they Afghans or Americans, are
>>willing to distinguish acts of states and power elite from those of
>>individuals remote from seats of power, as well as capable of
>>distinguishing terrorists, lawful combatants, and civilians, but it
>>has always been the case that not everyone is willing to do so even
>>in theory, much less in practice, and if you disregard this fact,
>>your life, limb, and property may be in more danger than
>>otherwise...
>>
>>--
>>Yoshie
>
>But that's the dimension in which Fisk's column is strange: his
>assertion of identity with those who beat him up, his claim that if
>he were in their shoes he would not make any such distinctions...
I take it that Fisk was trying to say, a little hyperbolically, that he could identify with those who blindly attacked him, merely because he looked "Western," unable to understand what forces were actually responsible for their oppression, much less how to counteract them effectively; and also that he could imagine what circumstances were likely to breed such murderous rage and make it indiscriminate. That's a way of looking at the world that a certain kind of literary and sociological imagination teaches you. -- Yoshie
* Calendar of Events in Columbus: <http://www.osu.edu/students/sif/calendar.html> * Anti-War Activist Resources: <http://www.osu.edu/students/sif/activist.html> * Student International Forum: <http://www.osu.edu/students/sif/> * Committee for Justice in Palestine: <http://www.osu.edu/students/CJP/>