This is a blog recording the announcements that are sent out on the CASCA listserv.

Tuesday, May 27, 2008

REMINDER: Deadline for Graduate Student paper Award on the Anthropology of Reproduction

Council on Anthropology and Reproduction
ANNUAL GRADUATE STUDENT PAPER COMPETITION 2008


The Council on Anthropology and Reproduction (CAR), an interest group of
the Society for Medical Anthropology, is pleased to announce its eighth
annual student paper award competition. The award will go to the best
graduate student paper on anthropology and reproduction. Submissions
from all fields of anthropology are encouraged.

Criteria on which the papers will be judged:
• Ethnographic richness based on fieldwork
• Anthropological methodology
• Linkage of work to other work in anthropology and reproduction
• Effective use of theory and data
• Originality/Creativity
• Organization, quality of writing, and coherence of argument

A committee of CAR members will read the papers. The author of the
winning paper will receive a cash award of approximately $250. The
winner will be announced in both the CAR Newsletter and the Anthropology
Newsletter. An abstract of the winning article will be published in the
CAR Newsletter.

Submissions must be postmarked no later than June 1, 2008. Send four
hard copies of the paper. On a separate page, include your name, mailing
address, e-mail address, telephone number, and school affiliation.
Please do not include identifying information on the essay itself.
Papers should be double-spaced, no longer than 9,000 words (including
references), and references should be formatted in American
Anthropologist style. Papers already published or accepted for
publication at the time of submission are not eligible. Questions may be
directed to Maggie MacDonald at maggie@yorku.ca

Address submissions to: Maggie MacDonald
Assistant Professor
Department of Anthropology
York University
Toronto, Ontario CANADA M3J 1P3

CFP - Said's Legacy

COUNTERPOINTS

Edward Said's Legacy

October 31- November 2, 2008

University of Ottawa

Carleton University

Call for papers

This bilingual English/French colloquium celebrates the works of one
of the world's most compelling intellectuals, the Palestinian-American
thinker Edward Said (November 1st 1935- September 23rd 2003), author
of Orientalism, Culture and Imperialism, and Out of Place among other
famous books. The colloquium revolves around the theme of
"Counterpoint," extensively used by Said as the interplay of diverse
ideas and various "discrepant" cultural experiences.
As Said writes in Culture and Imperialism: "As we look back at the
cultural archive, we begin to reread it not univocally but
contrapuntally, with a simultaneous awareness both of the metropolitan
history that is narrated and of those other histories against which
(and together with which) the dominating discourse acts." Following
Said's legacy this colloquium envisions a polyphonic,
interdisciplinary engagement from fields as broad as comparative
literature, sociology, anthropology,
history, postcolonial studies, Diaspora studies, musicology, and
political science with a special focus on Middle Eastern politics.

The organizers seek papers/ panel proposals drawing from or expanding
on the following themes:


st 1935- September 23rd 2003), author of Orientalism, Culture and
Imperialism, and Out of Place among other famous books. The colloquium
revolves around the theme of "Counterpoint," extensively used by Said
as the interplay of diverse ideas and various "discrepant" cultural
experiences.
As Said writes in Culture and Imperialism: "As we look back at the
cultural archive, we begin to reread it not univocally but
contrapuntally, with a simultaneous awareness both of the metropolitan
history that is narrated and of those other histories against which
(and together with which) the dominating discourse acts." Following
Said's legacy this colloquium envisions a polyphonic,
interdisciplinary engagement from fields as broad as comparative
literature, sociology, anthropology,
history, postcolonial studies, Diaspora studies, musicology, and
political science with a special focus on Middle Eastern politics.

The organizers seek papers/ panel proposals drawing from or expanding
on the following themes:

Culture and Imperialism: "As we look back at the cultural archive, we
begin to reread it not univocally but contrapuntally, with a
simultaneous awareness both of the metropolitan history that is
narrated and of those other histories against which (and together with
which) the dominating discourse acts." Following Said's legacy this
colloquium envisions a polyphonic, interdisciplinary engagement from
fields as broad as comparative literature, sociology, anthropology,
history, postcolonial studies, Diaspora studies, musicology, and
political science with a special focus on Middle Eastern politics.

The organizers seek papers/ panel proposals drawing from or expanding
on the following themes:

• Colonialism and Imperialism: A Middle Eastern Context
Colonialism and Imperialism: A Middle Eastern Context
• Transnationalism and Reflections on Exile
Transnationalism and Reflections on Exile
• Overlapping Territories and Imaginative Geographies
Overlapping Territories and Imaginative Geographies
• Language, History and the Production of Knowledge
Language, History and the Production of Knowledge
• The Arab World: States, Territories and Refugees.
The Arab World: States, Territories and Refugees.
• Gender, Class and Orientalism
Gender, Class and Orientalism
• Criticism and French Philosophy
Criticism and French Philosophy
• Otherness in the Arts
Otherness in the Arts
• Representations of the Secular
Representations of the Secular
• Power, Politics and Truth


Please send a 200 word abstract of paper/panel proposals to

Power, Politics and Truth


Please send a 200 word abstract of paper/panel proposals to

counterpoints.conference@gmail.com

Deadline for paper/panel submission: July 15th, 2008
July 15th, 2008
For more information please contact: may.telmissany@uottawa.ca Or
may.telmissany@uottawa.ca Or
nahla_abdo@carleton.ca

Organizing committee:

Dr. May Telmissany. Assistant Professor, Arabic Studies
Department of Modern Languages and Literatures, University of Ottawa

Dr. Nahla Abdo. Professor, Department of Sociology and Anthropology,
Carleton University.

. Assistant Professor, Arabic Studies
Department of Modern Languages and Literatures, University of Ottawa

Dr. Nahla Abdo. Professor, Department of Sociology and Anthropology,
Carleton University.
Nahla Abdo. Professor, Department of Sociology and Anthropology,
Carleton University.
Stephanie Tara Schwartz

Department of Religious Studies, University of Ottawa

Darryl Leroux

Department of Sociology, Carleton University

Erica See

Department of Law, University of Ottawa

Building Sudan Conference Website

Building Capacity and Partnerships for the Future of
Sudan (BCFPS) Conference — Website for paper submission now active:
http://www.ucalgary.ca/sudanconf/
UNIVERSITY OF CALGARY. Calgary, Alberta, Canada. JULY 3-5, 2008.

Keynote address will be delivered by Salva Kiir Mayardit, Vice-
President of Sudan.

Other attendees include:

Professor Sabrino Farajolla, Vice-chancellor, University of Juba,
Southern Sudan

Dr. Lual Chany Chol, Vice Chancellor, University of Upper Nile,
Southern Sudan

Professor Telar, Vice-Chancellor, University of Bhar-al-Ghazal,
Southern Sudan

Please send all abstracts and inquiries to Doyle Hatt, Chair,
Department of Anthropology, University of Calgary: dhatt@ucalgary.ca

Wednesday, May 21, 2008

Fully funded postgraduate scholarships available at the Institute for Social Research, Swinburne University, Melbourne - applications close on Friday 30 May 2008

Subject: fully funded postgraduate scholarships available at the
Institute for Social Research, Swinburne University, Melbourne -
applications close on Friday 30 May 2008

A number of fully funded postgraduate scholarships have become
available at the Institute for Social Research, Swinburne University,
Melbourne, for commencement in July 2008.

The Institute for Social Research is a leading interdisciplinary
centre with a reputation for creative, critical and challenging
research on matters of compelling public interest.  Due to its recent
success in securing Australian Research Council and other externally
funded projects, and in conjunction with a special supplementary
scholarship application round in celebration of Swinburne University's
centenary, scholarships that include tuition and an annual non-taxable
stipend of approximately $20,000 are now available across a range of
fields.  These fields include:
* Creative industries and innovation
* Digital media
* Technology, economy and society
* Community politics and networked government
* Reforming democratic systems
* Immigration and citizenship
* Sustainable cities and sustainable consumption
* Affordable housing
* Homelessness and social inclusion

Prospective students can find out more at the Institute's website
(WWW.SISR.NET) or may contact me directly at dmeredyth@swin.edu.au or
by phone on 613 9214 5738.

Scholarship application and eligibility information is available at:

http://www.research.swinburne.edu.au/higher-degrees/scholarships/

It is important to note that applications close on Friday 30 May 2008. 

With kind regards,

Professor Denise Meredyth
Deputy Director
Institute for Social Research
Level 1, EW Building
Swinburne University of Technology
Hawthorn, Victoria, 3122

Anthropology Position, Sydney

Lecturer in Anthropology, Level B., Macquarie University, Sydney.
The Department is seeking to appoint an anthropologist to a teaching
and research position in the Department where exciting new synergies
are developing after a series of appointments. The appointee will
teach at both undergraduate and graduate levels, and will supervise
PhD theses and Masters degrees in Applied Anthropology and in
Development Studies and Cultural Change. The appointee will also
contribute to a large first year course in introductory anthropology.

# Essential Selection Criteria: PhD in Anthropology or related
discipline; experience of and commitment to, ongoing ethnographic field
work; demonstrated commitment to research-inspired, and student-centred
learning and teaching; demonstrated record of research activity and
excellence, relative to opportunity, as evidenced by peer-reviewed
publications; demonstrated capacity to contribute to teaching and
supervision, based on ongoing research, in the anthropology of
religion; the ability to draw expertise on the classic strengths of
anthropology of religion - the interpretation of symbolic and ritual
practices - and to address areas of more recent focus in the field of
religion, in relation to the law, the state and global social processes.

# Desirable Selection Criteria: Specialisation in one or more of the
following fields; Visual Anthropology with special reference to film
and media, and expertise in training students in ethnographic film
making; Anthropology of Law; experience in innovative teaching.

# The position is available on a full-time (continuing) basis from
2009 and may be subject to probationary conditions. Selection criteria
must be addressed in the application.

# Enquiries: Dr Kalpana Ram, Head of Department, on +61-2-9850-8016 or
e-mail kalpana.ram@mq.edu.au

# Package: From $81,682 pa, including base salary (Level B) $69,022 to
$81,847 pa, annual leave loading and 17% employer's superannuation.

# Information about the Department of Anthropology is available from

www.anth.mq.edu.au

# Closing Date: 31 July 2008

# Please note that only those applications submitted via the Macquarie
University Online Recruitment System will be accepted.
http://macquarieuniversity.nga.net.au

Dr. Christopher Houston

Department of Anthropology
Macquarie University,
NSW, 2109, Australia

Job vacancies at ISS, The Hague

Job opportunties at the following:

Institute of Social Studies (ISS)
The Hague

Three Vacancies for (Senior) Lecturers in the following areas:

A) Rural Livelihoods and Global Change
B) Environment and Sustainable Development
C) Population and Social Policy


These positions fall under the Staff Group Rural Development, Environment
and Population Studies which is engaged in teaching, research and advisor=
y
work on rural and human development, with a focus on poverty,
sustainability, socio-economic security, social provisioning, population
studies, and child and youth studies. Teaching and research by staff
members is marked by a commitment to the central role of equitable,
broad-based and sustainable development. This is combined with an explici=
t
engagement with the analysis of power relations and processes of global
change that reinforce poverty and socio-economic insecurity. The group is
also actively engaged in methodology teaching at both the MA and PhD
levels.

Tasks and responsibilities involve the following:

* Contribution to research-driven teaching in the Staff Group and more
generally within the ISS
* Production of research publications of international standard
* Supervision of MA and PhD students
* Collaboration in the preparation and implementation of externally funded
research project and public service activities, including developing
externally fundable project activities, research grants and contributions
to project work abroad
* Contribution to academic management both within the Staff Group and the
institute

Requirements:

* a completed PhD in the social sciences (in exceptional cases a
near-completed PhD)
* evidence of publication capacity, including both a strong publications
track record and clear research and publications plans
* teaching experience
* ability to work in an inter-disciplinary team

We would like to achieve in the three appointments a combination of
competences so that at least one of the appointees will have proven
expertise in

- field-based research methods,
- gender dimensions in (rural) development, environment and social policy

While open to all regional specializations, we hope that the three
appointments will include at least one regional specialization in
Sub-Saharan Africa and another in Latin America & Caribbean.

Appointments:
ISS offers an initial three year appointment, with possibility of
extension, to commence as soon as possible. While the appointments are
envisaged at (Senior) Lecturer level, one of the appointments might be at
Associate Professor level in the case of a more senior and exceptionally
well-qualified candidate.

Employment conditions:
Employment conditions are comparable to those at the Dutch Universities.
Salaries for (Senior) Lecturers range from =C2=80 3129 - =C2=80 4868 gros=
s per month.


Detailed profiles are found below.

A) Rural Livelihoods and Global Change

We are looking for a candidate who will bring innovative research capacit=
y
on issues relating to rural development in developing and/or transition
countries. The successful candidate will conduct research relating to the
impact of changing global processes on rural livelihoods, paying
particular attention to political and class conflicts. Desirable foci of
research include but are not limited to: Restructuring of rural productio=
n
process; institutional development and change; rural poverty; food
production and trade.

The successful candidate will be expected to have his/her teaching base i=
n
the MA specialisation Rural Livelihoods and Global Change with additional
inputs in Environment and Sustainable Development.


B) Environment and Sustainable Development

We are interested in building on our existing expertise in political
economy of resource use and environmental change. The successful candidat=
e
will also add to our strengths in local environmental politics and
sustainable economic growth. Desirable areas of research specialization
include but are not limited to: Political ecology of energy use and
development, particularly biofuels; participatory management of common
pool resources; climate change and sustainable rural livelihoods; genetic
resources and biotechnology.
The successful candidate will have his/her teaching base in the MA
specialisation Environment and Sustainable Development with additional
inputs in Rural Livelihoods and Global Change.

C) Population and social policy

The staff group wishes to expand and strengthen its competence in teaching
and research on population and social policy. Specifically, the successful
candidate will help us expand our capacity in areas such as social
exclusion, socioeconomic inequality and social security. Further areas of
interest include increased mobility, migration and displacement, in
contexts of both rural and urban development as influenced by global and
local dynamics. The successful candidate=E2=80=99s MA teaching base would=
be the
Population, Poverty and Social Development specialization with additional
inputs in other relevant programs (e.g. Children and Youth Studies and
Poverty Studies and Policy Analysis)


Applications:
Accompanied by a curriculum vitae and the names of three referees, should
reach ISS before 1 June 2008, addressed to the Personnel Office
(personnel@iss.nl<mailto:personnel@iss.nl>), Institute of Social Studies,
Box 29776, 2502 LT The Hague, The Netherlands. Women and candidates who
originate from developing countries are particularly encouraged to apply.
Additional information concerning these vacancies may be obtained from
Professor B. White (white@iss.nl ; +31-(0)70-4260 548).

General information on the ISS may be found on our web site:
www.iss.nl

Call for Papers: Sudan Conference

Call for Papers: Building Capacity and Partnerships for the Future of
Sudan (BCFPS) Conference

UNIVERSITY OF CALGARY. Calgary, Alberta, Canada. JULY 3-5, 2008.

Keynote address will be delivered by Salva Kiir Mayardit, Vice-
President of Sudan.

Other attendees include:

Professor Sabrino Farajolla, Vice-chancellor, University of Juba,
Southern Sudan

Dr. Lual Chany Chol, Vice Chancellor, University of Upper Nile,
Southern Sudan

Professor Telar, Vice-Chancellor, University of Bhar-al-Ghazal,
Southern Sudan

PAPERS SHOULD BROADLY ADDRESS THE FOLLOWING ISSUES:

Grassroots Sudanese and others from throughout the worldwide Sudanese
diaspora will be brought together with scholars, high-level
governmental and non-governmental leaders from Sudan, the Diaspora and
from host societies such as Canada. Stakeholders, security and
policing agencies and other organizations with Sudanese interests will
also be invited in order to address and assess the issues of capacity
building, human rights, economic development, and governance in
southern Sudan, with a particular focus on the role of the diaspora
communities in guiding this development.

Southern Sudan is one of the most poorly developed parts of Africa in
terms of basic infrastructure – roads, electricity, communications,
economic development, education, health services and administration.
The conference will address what appears to be a disconnect in
effective co-ordination of development efforts between elected
government officials, NGOs, civil society and with key donor agencies
who have bilateral and multi-lateral relationships with the Sudan. It
is anticipated that the input from field workers from these agencies,
as well as from the Sudanese diaspora community, will help to keep the
discussions anchored in realities on the ground, both in Sudan and
abroad.

Calgary, Alberta, has one of the largest southern Sudanese diaspora
communities in North America, many of whom are Dinka and Nuer and who
are now involved, ironically, in minimum wage labour in the cattle and
meat-packing industries.

Please send all abstracts and inquiries to Doyle Hatt, Chair,
Department of Anthropology, University of Calgary: dhatt@ucalgary.ca

CFP -New Proposals Volume 3

The Editorial Collective invites submissions for Volume 3 of New Proposals.
We encourage the submission of papers that take a politically engaged
stance. We are interested in full length articles (3,000 to 5,000 words) as
well as shorter commentaries (up to 2,500 words).

Papers should be no more than 3,000 - 5,000 words. References and citations
are to be kept to the minimum required to advance your argument. Articles
can be based in original research, synthetic reviews, or theoretical
engagements. We look forward to -in fact expect- a diversity of perspectives
and approaches that, while they may disagree on the particulars, they will
share with the Editorial Collective a commitment to an engaged scholarship
that prioritizes social justice.

We are also interested in proposals for themed issues. Given our electronic
open access format New Proposals has a faster than typical turnaround time
from submission to editorial decision. We will also work with you to find a
way to fit your concept into our mandate for excellent, peer-reviewed,
progressive scholarship.

New Proposals is a transnational peer-reviewed journal hosted at The
University of British Columbia in collaboration with the UBC Library Journal
Project.

To submit papers go to http://www.newproposals.ca and register as an author.

If you are curious please feel free to sign up as a reader and/or as a
reviewer.

Yours,

Charles Menzies

Phone: 604-822-2240

Friday, May 9, 2008

Geological Society of America, Joint Annual Meeting

The Geological Society of America 2008 Joint Meeting
Celebrating the International Year of Planet Earth
http://www.geosociety.org/meetings/
5-9 October 2008 * Houston, Texas
George R. Brown Convention Center
The 2008 Joint Meeting of The Geological Society of America,
American Society of Agronomy, Crop Science Society of America, Soil
Science Society of America, Gulf Coast Association of Geological
Societies with the Gulf Coast Section of SEPM. Hosted by the
Houston Geological Society

Thursday, May 8, 2008

Call for Papers - Power: Forms, Dynamics and Consequences

*Power: Forms, Dynamics and Consequences
An International conference
Tampere, Finland.
September 22-24, 2008*
Call for papers


What is power and who has power today? Has power escaped from nation-states
to international organizations and the global market? Does power reside in
big institutions or is it rooted in micro level interaction? How does power
hide from view and therefore become most effective? For social scientists
power is in many ways like what St. Augustine said about time: it is central
to our investigations and we think we know what it is, but it is hard to
explain. By bringing together scholars who approach power from different
angles this conference will advance our understanding about power relations
in social reality.
*Keynote speakers will include:*

- Mitchell Dean
- Robert Dingwall
- Mark Haugaard
- Tuula Juvonen
- Randy Lippert
- Lois McNay
- Leslie Pal
- Pekka Sulkunen

*Sessions:*

- ANTing the Analytics of Power - powering ANT
- Arbitrary Power
- Care, Agency and Power
- Child Policy Meets Children as Political Agents
- Children and Power
- Ecologies of Power and Resistance in Cognitive Capitalism
- Envisioning Technology: Power and Practice
- Gender, Ethnicity and Everyday Citizenship Practices
- Globalization and New Forms of Control and the Mobilization of
Powerless
- Governmentality and Global Governance
- Images & Power: Visual Communication and the Public Sphere in Late
Modern Societies
- Immigration and Governmentality
- Pension Power and Pension Fund Governance
- Political Power
- Power and Signification
- Power and Space
- Power Asymmetries
- Queer Powers
- Representations of Capitalism and Identity
- Rethinking the State
- Social and Vital Norms – Canguilhem Revisited
- The Power of Male Dominance


If you would like to present a paper, please send an abstract by May 31,
2008. To get more information about the conference and session details,
please visit our web pages at http://www.uta.fi/Power2008/ or contact the
organisers by email: Power2008@uta.fi

Wednesday, May 7, 2008

six-month LTA -- Wilfrid Laurier University

Wilfrid Laurier University - The Department of Anthropology invites
applications for a six-month limited-term appointment in Sociocultural
Anthropology at the rank of Assistant Professor commencing 1 January
2009, subject to budgetary approval. We are seeking an individual with
the appropriate skills to teach two sections of AN210 Introduction to
Linguistic Anthropology, and either AN334 Folklore, Myth and Oral
Narrative or AN450 Contemporary Theory and Ethnography. See the
department's website for course details; please indicate which of
AN334 or AN450 would be preferred, and provide an outline of proposed
course content. Geographical area is open. Applicants must have a PhD
in hand (or be near completion) and provide evidence of teaching
excellence such as evaluations and/or a dossier. Please submit a
letter of application which describes teaching interests and research,
a curriculum vitae, one recent sample publication, and the names and
contact information only for three!
individuals who will provide references. Applications must be
delivered by 4 pm on Friday 23 May 2008 to Dr. Anne Brydon, Chair,
Department of Anthropology, Wilfrid Laurier University, Waterloo
Ontario N2L 3C5. Inquiries may be directed to abrydon@wlu.ca. Wilfrid
Laurier University is committed to equity and values diversity. We
welcome applications from qualified individuals of all genders and
sexual orientations, persons with disabilities, Aboriginal persons,
and persons of a visible minority. All qualified candidates are
encouraged to apply; however, Canadians and permanent residents will
be given priority. Members of the designated groups wishing to be
considered for employment equity must self-identify, in confidence, to
the Dean of the Faculty of Arts, Dr. David Docherty.

Professor Anne Brydon, PhD
Associate Professor and Chair
Department of Anthropology
Wilfrid Laurier University

Sunday, May 4, 2008

Post-doc Ad

Please Note: Dr. Janice Graham & her research group will be at CASCA in
Ottawa in May to answer questions.

*
*

*POSTDOCTORAL FELLOWSHIP (2)*

*DOCTORAL STUDENTSHIP (1)*

*Anthropology, Science & Technology Studies*

The Technoscience and Regulation Research Unit at Dalhousie University
is engaged in multi-sited ethnographic studies which critically examine
the relationship between the biosciences, industry, policy, and
citizens. Our work is located in laboratories (public and private,
developed and developing countries) where molecules begin to become
medicines, biotechnological and pharmaceutical corporate offices, or
government regulatory agencies. Our research team (led by Dr. Janice
Graham, a medical anthropologist and Canada Research Chair) invites
disciplinary diversity including anthropologists and sociologists of
medicine, science and technology, molecular biologists, political
scientists, bioethicists, lawyers and historians of regulation.

Candidates for the two-year postdoctoral positions should have a
completed PhD in a relevant discipline. We expect the project to focus
on actor-network cultures in laboratory, regulatory and other
technoscience settings. Specifics, including date of commencement, are
negotiable as determined by the expertise and interests of the
successful applicant.

As funding is also available for a doctoral studentship, we welcome
prospective doctoral students interested in working in this area of
research to contact us.


Candidates should send: (1) a curriculum vitae; (2) a statement of
short- and long-term career goals that includes identification of
ongoing research interests and suggested projects; (3) name, affiliation
and contact information for 3 referees; (4) writing samples; and (5)
university transcripts, to:

Andrea D'Sylva, Research Coordinator
Technoscience and Regulation Research Unit

Faculty of Medicine, Dalhousie University
5849 University Avenue, Room C315
Halifax, Nova Scotia

Canada B3H 4H7

For further information, contact adsylva@dal.ca.
Applications will be accepted until July 1, 2008.

Friday, May 2, 2008

20th ANNUAL MEETING OF THE ASSOCIATION FOR THE ADVANCEMENT OF PHILOSOPHY & PSYCHIATRY

20th ANNUAL MEETING OF THE ASSOCIATION FOR THE ADVANCEMENT OF PHILOSOPHY &
PSYCHIATRY,
May 3 & 4, 2008, Washington, DC

"Political Extremism and Psychopathology"

LOCATION:
THE FAIRMONT WASHINGTON
Executive Forum, Ballroom Level
2401 M. Street, NW, Washington, DC. Phone: 202-429-2400

THERE IS NO FEE FOR ATTENDANCE.
NO REGISTRATION REQUIRED.

Click Here For Complete Program
<http://www3.utsouthwestern.edu/aapp/Political%20Extremism2008.pdf>

Presentation by Richard Koenigsberg,

"Political Violence and the Concept of Collective Psychopathology"


PSYCHOPATHOLOGY OF MASS-SLAUGHTER IN THE 20TH CENTURY


Because of radical Islam and suicide bombings, people have begun to look at
the relationship between psychopathology and politics. However, the
monumental episodes of mass-slaughter that occurred in the West during the
Twentieth Century dwarf what terrorism has generated. In this presentation,
I examine the psychopathology of collective forms of political destruction
and self-destruction given names like as war, genocide, democide and murder
by government.

Paul Berman writes that it is very odd to think that millions or
tens-of-millions of people might end up joining a pathological political
movement. Individual madmen might step forward, but surely, "Millions of
people are not going to choose death, and the Jonestowns of this world are
not going to take over entire societies."

Looking at the historical record, one is compelled to conclude that indeed
millions of people have chosen death, and on many occasions Jonestowns have
taken over entire societies. Over two-hundred million people died in the
Twentieth Century as a result of political violence initiated by nations and
ideological movements. Where are clinical studies of these enormous cultural
events that brought death and injury to millions of human beings?

For additional information please send an email to
oanderson@ideologiesofwar.com or call 718-393-1081.

_____

THE SACRED REALM OF COMPETING NATIONS AND IDEOLOGIES


Within the sacred political domain, human beings shoot one another, blow
each other up, torture one another, drop bombs on cities and murder
tens-of-thousands of people. We're dealing with something extraordinary,
these recurring episodes of collective violence. But the historical craft
does not allow for a concept of psychopathology.

Wars, revolution, acts of genocide and acts of terror seek to glorify,
promote and propagate nations, ideologies, and religion. Within the domain
of struggles between sacred ideologies, anything and everything is
permitted. Sacred ideologies release human beings from moral structures and
strictures that govern other dimensions of societal existence.

Within this sacred realm--where struggles between competing nations,
ideologies and Gods occur--no space is allowed for the language of
psychopathology. This domain is imagined to be "beyond good and evil."
Because this sphere is imagined to contain something that transcends
ordinary human life, standards used to judge other domains of existence are
not applied.

Read the online publication:
<http://www.ideologiesofwar.com/docs/rk_collective.htm> "Political Violence
and the Concept of Collective Psychopathology"


WE ARE IN THE PATHOLOGY AND THE PATHOLOGY IS WITHIN US


The pathology that infuses the historical process is pathology that we are
unwilling to recognize as pathology. What is happening stares us in the
face--we can't help noticing what is always goes on--but we hesitate to say
that we know. A mechanism of denial is contained within the very concept of
history, which depicts monumental, extreme episodes of destruction and
self-destruction as if normal.

A concept of collective psychopathology emerges at the moment we begin to
disengage from the fantasy or shared nightmare with which we all have become
identified. Once we perceive or recognize that we are living within a
pathological domain--that we are in the pathology and the pathology is
within us--then we begin to separate from it. At the moment of separation,
diagnosis begins.

_____

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