Abolishing War: Dialogue with Peace Scholars Elise Boulding and Randall Forsberg - Softcover

Elise Boulding; Randall Forsberg

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1887917039 ISBN 13: 9781887917032

Publisher: Boston Research Center for the, 1998

Synopsis

This dialogue between peace activists Elise Boulding and Randall Forsberg examines the strategies necessary to effect the end of war. Focusing on cultures and institutions, these innovative thinkers posit two different but complementary approaches. Their dialogues, as well as seminar participant responses and invited commentaries, are useful for students of the peace process both inside and outside of classrooms as a stimulus for discussion and action.

Dr. Forsberg argues persuasively that the only allowable use of military force should be for defensive purposes and that nations -- and peace activists -- should be working toward international agreements which mandate that the only acceptable use of force would be for defense. War, Randall Forsberg posits, should become as unthinkable a mode of behavior to us as cannibalism has become.

Dr. Boulding's approach to the abolition of war is a family-centered, culture-oriented approach that looks to nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) as important catalysts for change. History, she contends, shows that deterrence doesn't work. Further, she argues, war socializes people into more aggressive behavior. What we need, she contends, is to teach people to live with one another and Earth. We must teach people to "deal creatively with their differences and share their resources."

About this title

From the Publisher

Buddhist Peacework: Creating Cultures of Peace is one of the BRC’s most popular books. This collection of essays was edited by David W. Chappell, a scholar of Chinese Buddhism and former graduate chair of the Department of Religion at the University of Hawaii, who currently teaches at Soka University of America. As educator Joan Halifax Roshi states in her preface, Buddhist Peacework "explores the lives and actions, insights and guidelines of some of the world's most beloved Buddhist practitioners, teachers, and social activists who are currently working to end suffering in the life of the world."

This project, according to Virginia Straus, BRC executive director, reflects "our modest effort to support UNESCO's Barcelona Declaration on the Role of Religion in the Promotion of a Culture of Peace." It is a book intended to help "deepen public understanding, and particularly religious understanding, of what peace in its fullest sense actually

Review

When the pantheon of significant figures who contributed to the dismantling of the war system is chronicled by historians in the middle of the twenty-first century, Elise Boulding and Randall Forsberg will undoubtedly be in the first tier. Their commitment, competence, and scholarly and analytic contributions, combined with their involvement in political action, have been extraordinary. Each of them has been innovative and creative in identifying fundamental ways of thinking and acting in this domain. -- Saul Mendlovitz, Dag Hammarskjold Professor, Peace and World Order Studies, Rutgers Law School

Edition details

• Publisher: Boston Research Center for the
• Publication date: 1998
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1887917039
• ISBN 13: 9781887917032
• Binding: Paperback
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 124