a puzzleWhat is this phenomenon of suicide bombing? Both the Western and the Eastern thinking seem stumped by it.
To put the record straight, it was started by hindu tamils in Sri Lanka, more by young women recruits to the cause of an independent tamil state in Sri Lanka. It was claimed at that time that this is the pinnacle of women's liberation.These women gave up marriage, sex and children to fight for a Tamil land by committing suicides.They claimed many lives including those of an ex-Prime Minister of India and a Sri Lankan President.Now, of course it is monopolised by muslims.Everyday, and literally everyday, there are scores of deaths due to such bombers esp in Pakistan these days, and so too in Iraq until recently.
Western thought has mostly socio-economic explanations, or attempts at explanations like they come from areas where there is tremendous social repression [Saudi Arabia, muslim countries in general], where there is economic backwardness [like in Pakistan] or something wrong with Islam itself. Assumptions behind this thinking are - there is no social repression in the West, or christianity is the only worthwhile religion.So, the West offers nihilism as the explanation - that the suicide bomber devalues his own life to such an extent that the victims are further devalued and are of no consequence.But this is more a description than an explanation.Also the asumption is human life is sacred.
In the East fatalism prevails. So, suicide bombing is taken quite easily in stride by the societies. People are destined to die anyway, so whether they die of man-made disasters or natural ones or on their own doesn't really matter.I do not know if this means that human life is not sacred.
Either way, it defies given theory.And may be because it defies theorisation it becomes a puzzle.
I think in seeking socio-economic explanations or ascribing it to fatalism we underestimate the inherent violence, sadism and machoism in humans. I have no respect for psychology, so I do not mean it that way. This seems more anthropological than psychological?
Devious Comments
That instinct now acts under the garb of ideology.
Modern psychology can tell you just the social constructs of sexual repression of muslim youth,etc. which seems very inadequate to explain this mass phenomenon and its apparent sudden eruption.So too modern social sciences - their take is already mentioned above.That is why I think we may have to seek explanation in anthropology.
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ckp
discontent always
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I'm not sure of the history of the Hindu Tamils in Sri Lanka, but I'll bet it was somehow justified by either religious or political extremists.
The same was true in Pre-WWII Japan when the Japanese warrior code of Bushido was intentionally misinterpreted by those who wanted to return Japan to its "original glory." Certainly the Japanese military society has always placed great importance on "duty," but when it became clear that they would lose the war, they resorted to the Cherry Blossom Squadrons, or the Kamikaze who would fly explosive-laden airplanes into Allied ships.
The militaries of most countries honor their soldiers for facing insurmountable odds, or for volunteering for "suicide missions" from which there is no hope to return. Still, it takes an extremist philosophy of the worst type to take such actions against innocent people and it's useless to expect men who advocate these actions to see how the carnage only solidifies the resolve of those against them.
There is no glory in killing yourself and no deity is awaiting your arrival, especially after killing innocent people with your selfish actions.
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You ain't so bad your self.
I see a resemblace of H.R. Giger as well as R.S Connett
Peter S Sibrin
I hope our small local library has them. By the way, is Blink also by Gladwell?
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ckp
discontent always
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My Print Account
When the establlishment sanctions it for official martyrdom, it becomes a norm. And there is but a thin line to hijack it from the establishment and use it as a weapon against anybody not agreeing with your world-view.
Thanks for pointing out the japanese kamikaze tradition too. That corrects me in knowing a precedent to tamil suicide-bombers.
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ckp
discontent always
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My Print Account
The Tipping Point basically covers the phenomenon of what moves a society to accept or decline memes and behaviours. The 'Tipping Point' is, of course, the point at which this happens.
Blink is about the split-second decisions we make without being entirely conscious of them.
The human race has to mature to the point that "giving your life" for a cause that kills innocent people is seen as the most cowardly act of all. The notion that there is some reward awaiting those who do so should be dispelled.
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You ain't so bad your self.
I see a resemblace of H.R. Giger as well as R.S Connett
Peter S Sibrin
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