POLS 3320 Lecture Notes - Lecture 3: 2004 Indian Ocean Earthquake And Tsunami, Emergency Medicine, Civilizing Mission
3 Dec 2017
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Document Summary
Forces of humanitarianism: forces of destruction. A vehicle for interstate power: forces of production. Humanitarianism as part of the superstructure that facilitates the production and expansion of capitalism. As a response to the ruptures created by the product and expansion of capitalism: forces of compassion. Ethical awakenings that raise our awareness about the suffering of others, responsibility to act. A principle of impartiality - that all individuals are deserving of compassion and respect. The idea that humans are capable of doing such a thing: feeling of recognition - we did this, we are capable of this. The role of technology: transportation, media, emergency medicine, delivery systems, logistics. Two observable trends: a discourse of humanity that extends more protections to more populations that were once neglected or reviled, a growing governance of humanitarianism, rendering humanitarianism increasingly public, hierarchal and institutionalized. The world before the west: subsistence societies, pre-capitalist empires. The first wave 15,16,17 century: mercantilism, military conquest, resource extraction, religious conversion.
