Official: Gas Killed 115 Hostages

Wojtek Sokolowski sokol at jhu.edu
Mon Oct 28 12:11:14 PST 2002


Chris:
> PPS. If you want my humble opinion, I don't think there IS a
> solution in
> Chechnya, military, political or otherwise. That war is going
> to drag on in
> various forms for decades.

Correction - there is no kosher solution. Did not Batiushka Stalin disperse the Chechens? Only after they were allowed to return, they re-created their 'culture of violence."

I know it will not sound politically correct, but I tend to believe that most things individuals do, including crime and violence, poverty or prosperity, are socially and comunally constructed. People may be making rational choices every now and then, but the values on which those choices are made and the available options are defined by social context, which also defines what is "the right thing" to do. So to stop terrorism or violence, you need to dismantle the social/cultural context that breeds them. In practical terms, it means forced relocation to disperse ethnic or cultural enclaves that breed terror and violence. Sad but true.

The problem is, however, that this solution is not kosher in today's political climate. It seems that in an effort to maintain popularity, government do use force in a manner that is not judicious, but most popular or least objectionable.

Wojtek



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