Re: Don't blame the doctor-- (also known as "Don't Shoot the Messenger."

spectors wrote:

> To say that I believe that major war between imperialist powers is a real
> possiblity is not to hope for that war. It is to make us all aware that the
> horrors of capitalism as a stage in world history are far greater than many
> of us in the "industrialized West" can understand. Gang violence in Chicago
> or Los Angeles? Nothing compared to gangs in a war  torn country ravaging
> innocent civilians. Bombs over Belgrade? Nothing compared to bombs over
> Hiroshima.   Discussing the possiblility of major war is not   done to help
> make the wars happen. It is done to try to PREVENT those wars, or at least,
> to minimize the impact, to make them shorter and smaller, if possible.
> 
> The doctor's analysis might be wrong. I might be wrong in my analysis.
> Really. We can debate the "diagnosis", the analysis. But don't blame the
> doctor for the disease.  And don't blame revolutionaries and activists for
> the instability and war that pre-existed their theories about instability
> and war.

Thanks for the explanation, Alan. You seem to be saying here that
capitalism is a disease. And you seem to imply that capitalism was
responsible for the bombing of  Hiroshima and other horrors that are
worse than the Belgrade bombing. The linkages are not obvious to me and
I suspect to other list participants. Perhaps you could define
capitalism and explain how it caused Hiroshima to be bombed.

-- 
Pat Gunning, Sultan Qaboos University, Oman
Web pages on Subjectivism, Democracy, Taiwan, Ludwig von Mises,
Austrian Economics, and my University Classes
http://www2.cybercities.com/g/gunning/welcome.htm
http://www.fortunecity.com/meltingpot/barclay/212/welcome.htm