tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10166090.post7902353405221369141..comments2024-02-17T07:59:18.705-08:00Comments on Grad Student Madness: Don't wanna stay alive when you're 25Rufushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17762279210783841414noreply@blogger.comBlogger6125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10166090.post-22017110499383445662007-12-12T11:46:00.000-08:002007-12-12T11:46:00.000-08:00I do think there's a difference between using sabo...I do think there's a difference between using sabotage or terrorism against enemy troops vs. using them against civilians. But, you're right that nationalism conflates the two. Nationalists don't see anyone as a civilian, not even themselves.<BR/><BR/>It's such a difficult subject. I just watched a documentary entitled "Suicide Killers" that interviewed failed suicide bombers in jail as well as future suicide bombers in training. It was a frustrating documentary because the first half of it was dedicated to making the case that suicide bombers are a terrifying phenomenon, which seems really obvious. Then they had French psychologists trying to figure out why they do it. French psychoanalysis is still very Freudian, so there was a lot of nonsense about the bomb = the phallus. Even after the interviews with the bombers, you couldn't make any sense of it. They all kept saying, "Well, God wants me to do it, and I don't like life, and I'm going to go to Paradise after I've done it, and it's as simple as that." I have no idea how you could talk them out of that, aside from some sort of "deprogramming". It was like watching cult members talking. Not a good case for religion or nationalism.Rufushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17762279210783841414noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10166090.post-49263018149080515362007-12-12T10:34:00.000-08:002007-12-12T10:34:00.000-08:00There isn't widespread support for people who shoo...There isn't widespread support for people who shoot up schools, but then they aren't shooting an enemy from a national point of view. I'm just rapidly thinking aloud as usual, but there seems to be a couple of subthreads here -- 1) Terrorism. It can be aruged that Americans have historically supported terrorism; after all, the American revolutionaries were terrorists. 2) Suicide in time of war. We consider soldiers who throw themselves on grenades to save their comrades to be heroes. Perhaps suicide bombers think they're in a wartime situation and are saving their comrades by blowing up various targets. I guess I'm saying that while I don't condone their actions, I don't think they're total inexplicable whackjobs.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10166090.post-80946367042719190912007-12-12T09:43:00.000-08:002007-12-12T09:43:00.000-08:00That's probably true. I think the cultural compone...That's probably true. I think the cultural component really is important here. I mean, the biggest difference is that there is almost no cultural support for American kids who shoot up the school. I suppose we could argue that violence is celebrated in pop culture. But, there aren't martyr posters of these kids on street corners here, and their families aren't praised. And I have no idea how you change that aspect of the larger cultures that do support suicide bombing.Rufushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17762279210783841414noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10166090.post-15923896133938028692007-12-11T23:42:00.000-08:002007-12-11T23:42:00.000-08:00Dunno, if you watch the news closely enough, you'l...Dunno, if you watch the news closely enough, you'll occasionally see articles about foiled suicide bombers who admit that they were forced into it by family or other associations, and that they'd really rather not die that way, and they generally ask for asylum.<BR/><BR/>A cynical person will claim that's just part of the game, of course.Hollyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10593117152792976823noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10166090.post-58242353384459487172007-12-11T21:29:00.000-08:002007-12-11T21:29:00.000-08:00I get the feeling that the heaven part cancels out...I get the feeling that the heaven part cancels out the rational part. I imagine you couldn't pay most suicide bombers enough not to do it. Actually, that would solve a lot of problems if we could.Rufushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17762279210783841414noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10166090.post-4289893637915190912007-12-11T20:43:00.000-08:002007-12-11T20:43:00.000-08:00Don't the families of suicide bombers receive mone...Don't the families of suicide bombers receive money? So in a way, the decision to become one has a rational economic element to it. Plus, you get to go to heaven and shit.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com