Transcript Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc., Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458.
Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc., Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458. All rights reserved.
Chapter 20: War and Terrorism
Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc., Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458. All rights reserved.
The Nature of Power and War
War • A violent conflict between groups organized for such conflict Sociologist G. William Domhoff • Proposed an elite group of white men hold majority of power in the country • Identifies two distinct groups A corporate coalition and a labor coalition Both play major role in determining who runs for office and which positions those people will hold Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc., Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458. All rights reserved.
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Sociologist G. William Domhoff (Continued) • Suggests it is interaction between two coalitions that determines direction in which the country will move Democratic societies believe power should not be concentrated in hands of a few President Dwight D. Eisenhower was one of first to recognize potential danger of such concentration and warned against influence of what he called the “military-industrial complex” Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc., Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458. All rights reserved.
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Military-Industrial Complex • Combination of the armed forces and defense industries that provide weapons and other materials to a country and has great influence over the country’s policies President Dwight D. Eisenhower • General during World War II • Knew that when an industry benefited from sale of weapons, it also benefited from war • Recognized that prominent members of the military and weapons industry could be highly influential in setting country’s agenda Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc., Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458. All rights reserved.
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President Eisenhower’s 1961 farewell address • “In the councils of government, we must guard against
the acquisition of unwarranted influence, whether sought or unsought, by the military-industrial complex. The potential for the disastrous rise of misplaced power exists and will persist. We must never let the weight of this combination endanger our liberties or democratic processes. We should take nothing for granted. Only an alert and knowledgeable citizenry can compel the proper meshing of the huge industrial and military machinery of defense with our peaceful methods and goals, so that security and liberty may prosper together.”
Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc., Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458. All rights reserved.
Causes of War
Several factors that can increase likelihood of war • Easy Victory When conquest is seen as being easy for one side, war more likely to take place • Optimism Plays a role, states are more likely to engage in war when they are overly confident about outcome of potential conflict Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc., Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458. All rights reserved.
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Factor of First Strike • Increases the chance of war considerably Nation’s leaders determine making the initial move will give them an advantage – Iraq war When power structure of a state is in flux, likelihood of war increases • One nation sees another as a threat, or impending danger Where there is potential for financial gain, there is potential for war • Profit can be a strong motivation for war Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc., Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458. All rights reserved.
The Military and the Use of Force
Military is important part of protecting safety and interests of any nation • Between 1798 and 1993 United States used military force total of 234 times for incidents that led to combat or had the potential to Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc., Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458. All rights reserved.
Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc., Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458. All rights reserved.
Military Spending
United States spends more than any other country on military • $607 billion of total $1.4 trillion military spending in the world Amount of spending attributed to rise of military-industrial complex Studies show link between increase in military spending and decrease in spending for other publicly funded services Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc., Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458. All rights reserved.
Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc., Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458. All rights reserved.
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Other research found when a government increases spending in one area, entire economy benefits • World War II, increased government spending on military created more jobs and helped pull US out of the Great Depression University of Florida professor Errol Anthony Henderson • Peacetime military spending increases poverty by increasing inequality and unemployment • Wartime spending has reverse effect Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc., Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458. All rights reserved.
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Concern over increase in price of machinery and materials used by military All agree ensuring safety and security of a nation and its defenders is worth some expense Strain of military spending on peacetime economy, decrease in funding for public services, increasing price of military products • Bring into question necessity of excessive military spending Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc., Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458. All rights reserved.
Weapons
Use of small arms and light weapons (SALW) result in greatest number of deaths during any type of conflict • SALW also target civilians, aiding in acts of violence such as rape or forced displacement Weapons of mass destruction (WMD) is major danger due to capacity to cause harm on a large scale Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc., Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458. All rights reserved.
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Nuclear weapon • Device that employs atomic energy to create a large scale explosion Nine countries known to be holding more than 8,000 nuclear warheads Biological weapons • Employ organic agents, such as viruses, to cause harm • Bacillus anthracis Bacterium that produces anthrax, is one of most deadly Chemical weapons • Synthetically created materials - Napalm Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc., Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458. All rights reserved.
Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc., Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458. All rights reserved.
What is Terrorism?
Sociologist Austin Turk • Terrorism is a social construction • Events defined as acts of terror after they have occurred, and are classified based on how people view them CIA’s definition • Terrorism Premeditated, politically-motivated violence perpetrated against noncombatant targets by sub national groups or clandestine agents Like war, terrorism involves desire to exert power over others Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc., Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458. All rights reserved.
Characteristics of Terrorist Groups
Organizations labeled “terrorist” by US government tend to be ones that oppose nation’s policies Common characteristics of terrorist acts and organizations: • Terrorist activity involves premeditation, calculation, and planning • Terrorism involves both governments and civilians Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc., Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458. All rights reserved.
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• Terrorists use psychological intimidation and fear • Terrorists focus on a specific target • The element of threat is a key element of terrorism • Terrorist groups have an agenda that they wish to further Certain goals often associated with acts of terrorism • Generally believe they are acting on behalf of a moral or just cause Feel so strongly that they will die for their beliefs Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc., Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458. All rights reserved.
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Terrorism can provide sense of power to those who feel they have very little By identifying with larger movement, given a sense of importance and purpose • Power and purpose provides sense of strength and group solidarity to people who otherwise feel powerless or insignificant Terrorist groups often small and have fewer than 100 members Members of terrorist groups usually share same ethnic and political backgrounds Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc., Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458. All rights reserved.
Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc., Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458. All rights reserved.
Who Are American Terrorists?
Domestic terrorism also a social issue Terrorists from abroad grab the headlines • Homegrown terrorists continue to develop and thrive In the US, most terrorist organizations develop from right-wing, conservative groups Size of domestic terrorist groups diminished, number of incidents of domestic terrorism increased • American terrorism became fractured, leaderless resistance Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc., Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458. All rights reserved.
Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc., Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458. All rights reserved.
Functionalism
Functionalists view societies as being bound by solidarity War serves a necessary purpose – defending the nation while helping it maintain sense of unity • Can be seen as functional War actually serves a function that is necessary and beneficial to society Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc., Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458. All rights reserved.
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Functionalists see war as a way for societies to maintain solidarity • Coming together to combat common enemy • Societies able to remain unified and intact War one way people discover they need each other and decide it’s in their best interests to stick together War can benefit a nation by inserting government money into economy and creating jobs that would not exist during times of peace • Because war generates need for weapons, supplies, and other technologies, new segments of market are opened or expanded Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc., Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458. All rights reserved.
Symbolic Interactionism
Symbolic interactionists look at underlying meaning of war Society must believe in reasons for going to war in order for war to occur A nation’s leaders must ensure favorable public opinion before engaging in conflict If public not supportive • War likely to be unsuccessful and will have negative consequences that can impact future of nation and its leaders Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc., Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458. All rights reserved.
Conflict Theory
Conflict theorists believe war simply one way a nation preserves or establishes dominance over other nations All wars stem from a quest for dominance Because war benefits certain companies • Likely to try to influence policies in ways that make war more likely outcome • End result is increase in size, strength, and influence of military-industrial complex • Increase in amount of influence of military-industrial complex increases likelihood of future conflicts President Eisenhower Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc., Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458. All rights reserved.
Nuclear Arms Control
Nuclear weapons seen as threat to humanity and the world United States alone has estimated 5,400 nuclear warheads 1968 Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons • Effort to prevent creation and spread of more nuclear weapons • Ultimate goal of treaty was complete elimination of warheads Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc., Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458. All rights reserved.
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Countries that signed treaty fell into two categories • Countries with nuclear weapons and countries without nuclear weapons • Countries with developed nuclear weapons Agreed not to distribute weapons to other countries and to diminish arsenals over time until they had no more • Countries with no nuclear weapons agreed not to pursue development of such devices Every member state of United Nations has signed • Excluding India, Pakistan, and Israel Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc., Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458. All rights reserved.
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Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty • Prohibits all nuclear explosions for any purpose • Signed by 167 of 197 countries Mutually Assured Destruction • Use of nuclear weapons from one side will trigger use of nuclear weapons from opposing side, culminating in the ultimate decimation of both sides Deterrence Strategy • Aims to limit spread and use of nuclear weapons and keep planet safe from horrors of another Hiroshima Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc., Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458. All rights reserved.
Combating International Terrorism
To combat terrorism • World organizations resolved to address underlying issues that can lead to terrorism: Discrimination Human rights violations Exclusion Marginalization of a particular group Absence of the rule of law • Promote peaceful solutions and implement programs focused on negotiation, mediation, and conflict resolution Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc., Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458. All rights reserved.
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Eliminating issues that commonly lead to acts of terrorism • People less likely to resort to violence when have their needs addressed United Nations • Takes measures to prevent terrorist activities • Ensure terrorists have no access to materials needed to carry out violent acts • Focuses on joining with other states in war on terror and apprehension and prosecution of terrorist groups Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc., Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458. All rights reserved.