Biopower and genocide

Cleaning out my inbox, this caught my eye:

On Thu, 8 Apr 1999, Ian Robert Douglas wrote:

> Biopower is more effective than genocide

In the last section of History of Sexuality vol. 1, Foucault identifies
genocide as an element of biopower (tying the rise of genocide to the rise
of biopower). An important point for two reasons: first, it seems to
mark an internal inconsistency--or rather a transition--within HS1; if
genocidal mass murder is part of biopower then Foucauldian power now no
longer ends where killing begins, as it had through D&P and most of HS1.
Second, by linking genocide with biopower Foucault associates himself with
the sociobiological view on the origins of genocide (thus with Robert Jay
Lifton, Stephan Chorover, Richard M. Lerner, etc.) as opposed to a more
Hegelian-phenomenological view (which is familiar to me from the work of
Howard Adelman here at York).

> I think air strikes have been purposely used to block the possibility
> of actually defending the Kosovars by sending in ground troops.
> We'll see if I'm wrong if they do indeed send in ground troops in a
> declared war.

I don't know to what extent it was done on purpose (though undoubtedly
some), but as far as the effects go, six weeks later, you are absolutely
right.

Matthew

---Matthew A. King---Department of Philosophy---York University, Toronto---
"The border is often narrow between a permanent temptation to commit
suicide and the birth of a certain form of political consciousness."
----------------------------(Michel Foucault)------------------------------


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