Oregon Daily Emerald
Tuesday, November 29, 2005
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■ In my opinion
Numb in the face of genocide
Acts of genocide are routinely de
scribed as “incomprehensible.” This
descriptor may be more accurate then
we know.
In the last several years, hundreds of
thousands of innocent civilians have
been murdered in the Darfur region of
Sudan. It has been underreported in the
American media and underrepresented
on the American foreign policy agenda.
The rest of the world has been just as
reluctant to take action. Now, a Univer
sity psychology professor seems to
have found an answer: Our brains just
can’t understand genocide.
Professor Paul Slovic recently deliv
ered a paper in which he claims the
emotional side of the human brain
numbs in response to mass murder,
according to an article in Monday’s
Register-Guard.
Slovic says this is a “fundamental de
ficiency in our humanity,” because the
numbing effect prevents a person from
feeling empathy and taking action. This
could help explain why people across
America and the world have yet to
formulate a substantial response to
the genocide in Darfur.
“The only reason to know how
many have died is to have a number
to report when we memorialize an
other genocide 10 years after the
fact,” said Slovic in the article.
What does this say about our hu
manity? Do we, as Slovic says, have
a fundamental deficiency? I believe
the answer is yes. Moving away from
the physiological and psychological
science of the issue and into the
realm of philosophy, the fact that we
are virtually unable to respond to
acts of genocide is a serious problem.
Certainly the fact that humans
have organized for the purpose of ex
terminating one another since the
dawn of recorded history suggests
that there is something fundamental
ly corrupt, or at least corruptible, in
our nature. However, a small minori
ty of the world’s population actually
plan and participate in genocide. For
GABE BRADLEY
THE WRITING ON THE WALL
every country in the world where geno
cide is taking place, there are hundreds
where there is currently no genocide.
So it’s easy for us to ignore genocide,
especially when it’s on the other side of
the world, because the refugees rarely
end up here. But in this era of informa
tion technology, there’s nothing keep
ing us in the dark except for our own
unwillingness to care.
I say the American media have un
derreported the Darfur genocide. The
media, though, are only giving the peo
ple what they want. If average Ameri
can viewers gave even a slight inkling
that they cared about the situation in
Darfur, we would be bombarded with
•information about Darfur 24/7.
Can you imagine the ratings on
genocide coverage? There’s no need to
sensationalize that story. The problem
is, people across the country and the
world are so totally apathetic that the
media have no incentive to provide
substantial coverage.
Both the media and our government
are affected by the same forces that
shape our markets: supply and de
mand. Until there is significant demand
for information and action with regard
to genocide throughout the world, the
powers that be will have no incentive
to supply any solutions; right now,
there just isn’t the demand.
For those of us who believe that be
ing complacent in the face of genocide
is a breach of our obligations to one an
other as humans, this is a problem.
Slovic’s finding that we are para
lyzed to the point of inaction by geno
cide is interesting because it presents
us with a situation wherein the right
thing to do is to struggle against our
natural inclinations — to do the right
thing despite how we’re wired.
Most people would agree that we’re
not perfect the way we are. That’s why
so many of us seek to change, learn
and grow. For many of us, this means
living the beautiful life, the good life,
the excellent life.
So perhaps it’s not breaking news
that in our struggle to live life in the
best way we can, our biggest obstacles
come not from our circumstances or
from others, but from ourselves. This
fact has been so well-documented in
the realm of exercise and sport that it
has become a cliche. However, in the
realm of moral philosophy, this point is
very much in dispute.
* Irish philosopher Edmund Burke is
often quoted as having said, “The only
thing necessary for the triumph of evil
is for good men to do nothing.” We
now know that it’s incredibly easy for
good people to do nothing.
I don’t particularly care for the
movie “Schindler’s List.” However,
the final scene is one of the most emo
tionally powerful scenes I have ever
watched in any movie. Though Liam
Neeson’s character has risked his life
and livelihood to save Jews from the
death camps and sabotage the Nazi
war effort, he still breaks down in
tears, bemoaning the fact that he
could have done more. The implica
tion here is not merely that he could
have done more but that he should
have done more.
Now we are faced with yet another
genocide. Most of us could do more.
Most of us should do more.
Slovic will be one of the speakers at
a forum tomorrow night on how local
residents can help stop the Darfur
genocide. The forum, sponsored by
the Jewish Community Relations
Council, will take place at 7 p.m. at
Temple Beth Israel.
gbradley@ dailyemerald, com
■ Editorial
We need to
wake up
to global
warming
Scientists around the world are coming to the
same conclusion: Global warming is real, it is at
one of its highest points ever and it is increasing.
Geophysicists from Oregon and Utah re
cently published study results indicating that
temperatures in the Northern Hemisphere, es
pecially North America, have increased nearly
2 degrees Fahrenheit since the industrial revo
lution began about 150 years ago. It only
stands to reason that greenhouse gases such
as carbon dioxide, produced heavily since
then, are indeed contributing to depletion of
the ozone layer.
The National Center for Atmospheric Re
search recently reported that rising global tem
peratures may lead to bigger, more frequent
storms within the next century, and a separate
Purdue study supported those findings.
According to a European study that ana
lyzed Antarctic ice, the amount of carbon
dioxide — a greenhouse gas — in the atmos
phere is at a 650,000 year high.
Yet Americans still don’t seem to buy into
the idea that global warming exists.
On Monday, delegates from the United
States and other U.N. nations began a 10-day
conference in Canada to discuss global cli
mate change. Harlan L. Watson, senior cli
mate negotiator for the State Department, de
fended the Bush administration’s decisions
not to join the Kyoto Protocol — an interna
tional treaty signed by 156 countries that aims
to reduce heat-trapping gases by 7 percent be
low 1990 levels. But representatives of other
nations blasted the United States for not join
ing, according to The Associated Press.
This international criticism is merited. The
United States is resisting current and future
Kyoto regulations. Chief environmental advi
sor to the president, James Connaughton has
expressed his reluctance to agree to any sort
of binding treaty, stating U.S. economic devel
opment as the main factor behind his reason
ing. This line of reasoning is confusing and
disheartening. We acknowledge the severe
economic repercussions of reducing U.S.
emissions, especially as our nation strives to
compete with growing powers that lack tough
environmental restrictions, such as China. But
shouldn’t the president receive environmen
tal advice from someone concerned more
about economic factors than global warming?
The Bush administration has shown gener
al disregard for the environment, and conse
quently, human health after scientific re
search has indicated dangers. For example,
this administration relaxed regulations involv
ing the use of methyl bromide, a chemical
pesticide which has been shown to damage
the ozone layer. And like other pesticides,
methyl bromide can be responsible for serious
neurological damage. Although the nation is
part of a treaty designed to decrease the use
of methyl bromide, the U.S. administration
has demanded treaty exemptions to prevent
“market disruption.”
When the United States refuses to join glob
al environmental coalitions or requires provi
sions to prevent any economic harm, our
country sets an irresponsible example for the
rest of the world. We need to demonstrate en
vironmental sensibility while we remain the
most powerful economic nation on the planet.
The United States needs to show solidarity
with the fight against global warming. Work
ing with the U.N. to reach a compromise on
anti-climate change regulations, and ending
the use of dangerous pesticides, would be
great ways to get started.