Abstract
States within the system have two choices given systemic change: war or peace. This book began with the supposition that states are psychopaths and inclined to go to war. If states are left to their own devices this may indeed happen. The second option, peace, requires action from the grassroots. States as led by elites have failed to guarantee world peace. This chapter suggests social and economic stability embedded by the promotion of human development over extravagant, psychopathic prestige-seeking activity. Such focus may be able to avoid war. Here, I will explore the cognitive mechanisms, which result in such a decision. It will also explore the concept of forgiveness as a productive part of systemic practice. This will serve as this work’s normative offering, imagining new forms of governance.
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Notes
- 1.
This section was inspired by a conversation with Carter Wilson.
- 2.
Many victims did not get a chance to talk. Critics also saw perpetrators as escaping punishment.
- 3.
Thanks to Samire J. Kassab for his help in this section!
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Kassab, H.S. (2018). Two Choices: War or Peace. In: Grand Strategies of Weak States and Great Powers. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-70404-3_8
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