ABSTRACT
This chapter reintroduces the person as a central factor in understanding a phenomenon such as genocide. The society became dedicated to making that distinction; for once made, genocide became easy, even normative. Intense nationalism, in contrast to cosmopolitanism, is itself an essential characteristic of the genocidal society. The democratic societies of the United States, Great Britain, Italy, France, Japan, and so on have as many differences as similarities. The most important psychological dilemma in the study of genocide is that it may lead one to exaggerate the grim prospects for the human race. Nations that have systematically practiced genocide are not only sponsors of United Nations resolutions against genocide but have also often urged the strengthening of such resolutions. In short, genocide is a fundamental mechanism for the unification of the national state. That is why it is so widely practiced in "advanced" and "civilized" areas, and why it is so incredibly difficult to eradicate.
