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Sociologists on campus critique terrorism
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The Sociology Department at Boise State shares in the nation’s shock and disbelief of the terrorist actions, similarly voicing a wide array of discussion regarding why these actions happened, and where the country is to go from here. Opinions vary as to what initially sparked the attack. The department has not held any collaborative meetings for discussion about the event, Patricia Dorman, department chair said, `but I have talked with different faculty members. I don’t know one common theme to come out of the entire department, but that makes it much more diverse and fun,’ she said.
However, individual professors stressed the need to take a deeper look into America’s foreign policy for indications of resentment geared toward America. `The historic events that have taken place point to smoldering resentments,’ Dorman said. `Just read Noam Chomsky,’ Professor Richard Baker said. `Foreign policy has been so harmful to the rest of the world.’ Baker said there are many examples of US foreign policy harming other countries. He cited Vietnam, Colombia and Timor for a few brief examples. `In Timor, the US government had a big responsibility for killing, we know it wasn’t an accident and still we did not intervene,’ Baker said.
Dorman said that the United States sanctioned the Taliban government and bin Laden during the Russian occupation of Afghanistan in response to the `communist scare.’ `Our foreign policy and intervention literally created bin Laden, out of the communist soviet occupation,’ she said. After which, `we turned our back on Afghanistan,’ she said. `We had no martial plan, as we did to re-build both Europe and Japan. After Russia pulled out of Afghanistan, we did not go into help rebuild their country.’
In resolving this issue, Baker said citizens need to inform and educate themselves on foreign policy, and not support government actions that desecrate other countries. Both professors voiced their concern with the potential retaliations stemming from this situation. `We’ll see how the administration handles the event from here,’ Dorman said. `Hopefully we engage in reason and a diplomatic approach and not the role of the Wild West cowboy,’ she said. `This is something so dependent on good reason, judgement and maturity.’ Baker shared similar thoughts saying that firstly, whoever committed the atrocities should be brought to justice. He also said the civilians of Afghanistan should not bear the brunt of American military. Lastly, Baker had concerns regarding the loss of civil and constitutional rights.`I do not want to see this turn into another stint of McCarthyism,’ Baker said. He also said he did not want to see people being ostracized for views, which might be `un-American.’ He explained living in the era of Vietnam, and said, `so many young people were overwhelmed, it was evident America was lying, and imperialistic.”Vietnam is what made me a pacifist,’ he said. `I reject the use of war and violence as a solution.’
Laura Wylde