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Date Posted: 15:28:53 12/13/10 Mon
Author: En Pointe
Subject: Re: ignorance
In reply to: stewart 's message, "Re: ignorance" on 11:29:44 12/13/10 Mon

Stewart:

I actually agree with you about seeing our differences and moving beyond them... I just disagree about nationalism being the root cause for human conflict. There are so many other causative factors which are equally, and in some cases, much more implicit in human conflict than nationalism. For example, you mentioned religion in an earlier post... Aside from religion, there is ethnicity, perceived biological differences arising from the belief in 'racial' distinctions among humans, etc.

With regards to my post on Pol Pot, it was NOT to imply that he was a great person... quite the opposite. Merely that non-Western nations such as Cambodia, Thailand, Japan, Vietnam, etc. have been construed by the West as diplomatically and humanly inferior to those countries whose governments are derived from a Western European democratic tradition. Ironically, the foreign policies of many Western nations influenced many of these non-Western nations to implement antagonistic policies towards the United States, for example (i.e. Japan's involvement in WWII, Pol Pot's turn towards mass-genocide after an initial enamor of democracy, etc.). One of my professor's at uni here was a 'friend' of Pol Pot, and he described Pol Pot as 'misunderstood' and that his policies were an 'experiment' gone awry. I intensely debated these issues with this particular professor... mainly on the point that experiments are not conducted on a population at large and that he could have ended his policies of mass relocation, forced enslavement and genocide when realizing the errors of this 'experiment.' Although I was the only one in class to question this professor's fondness for Pol Pot, I for one do not share in his romanticism of Cambodia in the 1970s and 1980s, nor for his romanticism of Pol Pot's days in Paris during the 1950s.

I'm a military brat, and certainly appreciate the sacrifices made my servicemen and servicewomen overseas... I certainly respect the sacrifices made by your friend.

Take care y'all! (It's super cold and super snowy here in Michigan)

Joanna -- GO BLUE!!

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