Sunday, October 20, 2013


Compassion and the Counterinsurgency

            In the wake of gang violence, it is easy to feel anger towards gangs and demand greater power to force the gangsters into submission. The problem with this line of thinking is that anger and violence often breed more anger and violence. In the case of gang violence, calling for more force or retaliation against the offending group can kill the gangsters responsible and decrease gang activity, but it can only keep the peace temporarily. A more permanent solution to the gang problem is to understand where these gangsters come from, who they are, and how we can eliminate the problems that cause gangs to form, or in other words, be compassionate. An prominent example of using compassion over force is the strategy of counterinsurgency. Like gang warfare, an insurgency is composed of a relatively decentralized group of cells who use guerilla tactics against the established authority. The basic idea of counterinsurgency is that insurgents cannot be beaten by force of arms, but by winning the hearts and minds of the people. Humanitarianism and outreach programs are utilized to dissuade possible insurgent recruits from joining, and small unit force is used against only the most violent groups. By using purely force to stop gangs, the remaining gangsters and members of the community view the attacking party as an enemy and will go through great pains to retaliate against the police or other gangs. By having compassion and helping to fix the community, the need for gang protection and membership will fade as people in the community can enjoy relative security and peace can be maintained over the long run.

           

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