One Very Bad Guy
Posted by David Shorr
Some very good news, for a change. The Times has just reported the arrest of notorious international arms dealer Victor Bout in Thailand. His activities in supplying some of the world's most vicious conflicts are well know -- as shown in these profiles in the Times Magazine and Foreign Policy. We often forget what a deadly global problem small arms represent. Here is a journal article by Rachel Stohl of Center for Defense Information, a leading analyst on the issue. And here is the web site of the Internatioanl Action Network on Small Arms, the leading global advocacy group.
I don't follow the logic.
Denying arms to both sides of a conflict helps the side which happens to already to be better armed. It doesn't necessarily make the conflict shorter or less lethal.
Posted by: David Tomlin | March 06, 2008 at 12:04 PM
The point isn't to keep weapons out of everyone's hands. The point is to keep them out of the hands of groups who aren't really combatants in any meaningful sense but really just predatory gangs that use them to rape and pillage. So yes, I believe that shutting down people like Bout will contribute toward shrinking shadowy ungoverned spaces and protect ordinary people from being ruled by brute and capricious force. It's one of the ways we have to get away from a Hobbesian world.
Posted by: David Shorr | March 06, 2008 at 12:55 PM
If guys like him are so bad, but it's OK for governments to get rich dealing arms to other governments. Hmm.
Posted by: Diodotus | March 08, 2008 at 10:22 PM
They supply silkroad gold in low price. I usually buy
sro gold from them.
silkroad online goldThey have regualar customer service.
I like silk road gold.
Posted by: cheap silkroad gold | December 25, 2008 at 01:14 AM
I am so happy to get some latale online gold and the latale gold is given by my close friend who tells me that the latale money is the basis to enter into the game. Therefore, I should buy latale online gold with the spare money.
Posted by: buy latale online gold | January 06, 2009 at 08:25 PM
I hope i can get Sho Online Mun in low price,
Yesterday i bought Sho Mun for my friend.
Posted by: dd | March 06, 2009 at 02:07 AM
Playing online games can make much cheap zeny. And you can use the ragnarok online zeny do what you want to do in the online game. Come and join with us. We are waiting for your coming.
Posted by: cheap zeny | March 20, 2009 at 12:58 AM