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Greenway Enterprises, Inc

Text Box: My Sunday school teacher told me when I was ten years old that “man was created in God’s image,” and that “man is basically good.” I am still searching for verification of her teachings. This article began as a continuation of that search. It began by analyzing genocide and the governments that have engaged in genocide. It began as an attempt to uncover the reasons why governments commit genocide. I was hesitant to feature this subject in the newsletter of a company that preaches positive thinking and serves to praise others for their excellence. However, only after going through the Holocaust Museum and repeatedly seeing reports on the genocide, first in Rwanda and now in Darfur, did I feel a need to present this investigation of mass murder. And, as I was researching my topic, I discovered a refreshing and positive hypothesis: How to put an end to wars and mass murders. The ideas, writings and statistics presented in this article are, for the most part, those of others (see “References” at the end of this article). I have served only as a conduit of their research and as such make no claim of originality of thought or authorship. It is reported that Joseph Stalin said: “The death of one man is a tragedy; the death of millions is a statistic.” Nearly 170 million people have been murdered by governments in the last 100 years. This is more than four times the number of those killed in combat in all wars during the same period.1 Genocide and ethnic cleansing start by the ruling regime setting themselves apart from the persecuted group. Genocide begins with the ruling entity’s prejudices being propagandized in subtle, insidious, measures. It begins by righteous self-aggrandizement and the perceptions of threats to the regime. It ends with the elimination of the persecuted perceived threat. This article will explore who commits genocide, mass murder and who starts wars. The article will also discuss what hope there is for the elimination of genocide, mass murder and wars. Hitler’s Holocaust first comes to mind when we think of ethnic cleansing/genocide, but that is not the only case, nor is it even the worst. According to R.J. Rummel, in a qualitative analyses of all the world governments, 141 of them committed “democide” in the 20th century and 73 did not.2 Rummel describes “Democide” as the intentional systematic killing of a people by a government. This can be by mass murder, genocide, politicide or starvation. A conclusion of Rummel and other historians’ extensive research into genocide, war and mass murder, is that the best way for predicting democide is the degree to which a regime is totalitarian. Conversely, the best way of preventing democide is the degree to which a regime has a tradition of the democratic process: competitive political parties, free elections and free speech. A precept that has consistently held true in analyzing all cases of democide is that “power kills, absolute power kills absolutely.”3 What do the regimes that have committed these atrocities have in common? They were all totalitarian or authoritarian societies. “Totalitarian” means governments that have total power over all aspects of their population. Everyone, and every organization, has to answer to the regime. An authoritarian regime refers to any regime that comprehensively controls its population through the authority of the government and the many different institutions and organizations, (i.e. churches, civic organizations, etc). That is, a government that allows other authoritarian groups to help in controlling the populace. All cases of democide have been studied to determine if there is a single case of a democracy engaged in democide. The slate is clear: there are none.4

Spring 2008

“Democracy is the worst form of government except for all others.” Winston Churchill

TABLE OF CONTENTS

There Is Hope ………………..1

Project Reports …………........5

Gray Bull Opines ……….....…9

La Vida es Sueno………...….10

Another Viewpoint……….....10

Absolution………………......10

Thoughts to Ponder …….…...11

Just the Facts ……………......11

Lessons I’ve Learned …….....11

If I Were King ………….…...13

They Said It …………….…...13

Albert Said It ……………......14

Employee Complaint……..….14

Excellent………………….….15

Best things in life ……….…...15

Man’s Best Friend ………......15

That’s Politics …………..…...16

Taxes………………………....17

Social Security………….........17

Things I’d Like to Know …....18

Leadership ……………….….18

Population Growth…….….…19

On the Lighter Side……….....19

From the Desk of Ed Sauter. ..20

Code of Ethics…………….....20

Quien es…………….……......21

Perspective………….…….….21

Treasure County…….….........22

Supererogaters………..……...23

Operation Esperanza…….…..24

New Faces ……………..…....25

Arturo Padilla……………......25

Thank You……………….….26

Leadership Meeting………....26

Other……………….………..27

Pictures……………….……..28

Contact Us……….………….30

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