Genocide Dilemma

Published on Dec 5, 2024, filed under politics. (Share this post, e.g., on Mastodon.)

Imagine group A to commit genocide against group B ^*, and to be stopped before it killed everyone from that group.

Later, group B commits genocide against group C.

Group A’s continued genocide on group B could have therefore prevented group B’s genocide on group C.

What does this tell us about genocides?

I believe this tells us only one thing: Neither group A nor group B is particularly advanced. As a matter of fact, they are primitive.

Group A has not yet learned that what hurts others, hurts everyone, including themselves. Out of fear, which violent acts are based on, it commits unspeakable crimes.

Group B is even worse. It also hasn’t yet learned what group A hasn’t learned, even though it was affected by it. Furthermore, while justifying its own crimes by arguing for some sort of exception (why their genocide was acceptable, but not group A’s), it ends up untangling and undermining the reasons why anyone came to its help against group A.

On our planet, we are arguably the most dominant yet least developed species. We have the power and we use our power to dominate the planet, but we do so recklessly and irresponsibly, killing other species as well as members of our own, all the while destroying our own habitat.

That we still commit and accept genocides is one major sign for our lack of development.

But the real dilemma, or tragedy, is not one of one genocide preventing the next:

It’s that we all know this to be destructive and hurting us all—and don’t act, change, or decide to be different, as a species.

We could—but we don’t.

^* What a horrible topic, absolutely. How great would it be if genocides weren’t still a sad reality.

About Me

I’m Jens (long: Jens Oliver Meiert), and I’m an engineering lead, guerrilla philosopher, and indie publisher. I’ve worked as a technical lead and engineering manager at various companies (e.g., Google); I’m an active web and tool developer (code optimization, digital defense), a contributor to web standards (like HTML, CSS, WCAG), and a book author (O’Reilly, Frontend Dogma).

I love trying things—in web development and engineering management, but also in politics and philosophy, where I hold to one idea in particular: that we can only be well if we take good care of everyone. Here on meiert.com I talk about some of my perspectives and experiences. (Interpret charitably but be critical—and share feedback and advice that makes my work better.)