The (non) event of state terror
Drones and divine violence
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 12919306 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Sean Rupka (0000-0001-5765-5890, The Graduate Center, CUNY, corresponding author), Bianca Baggiarini (York University) |
| Year | 2018 |
| Volume | 11 |
| Issue | 2 |
| Pages | 342-356 |
| Publication date | 2018-03-29 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | No |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Critical Studies on Terrorism (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 1753-9161 • E-ISSN: 1753-9153 |
| Publisher | Taylor & Francis (PUBLISHER • GB) |
| DOI | 10.1080/17539153.2018.1456735 |
| OpenAlex | W2794860069 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 6 |
| References cited | 8 |
In this article, we interrogate how the logic of the drone reconfigures state terrorism through the politics of (in)visibility. We argue that the everyday life of the drone can be both dull and disastrous, and thus demonstrates how state and non-state terror operate around different logics of visibility and witnessing. Enhanced sight and interpretation of data wrought by drones are distinct from the politicised act of witnessing. State terrorism, however, benefits from the privatisation and depoliticisation of the witnessing of the event through a minimisation of those who appear “visible”. Further, through the language of technology and security, drones help to classify the witnessing of the event. The event produces terror without witness, and without premonition, invoking the omnipresent power of god and thus blending divine retribution with profane catastrophe. We claim that state terror seeks to: (1) limit the exposure of the state to the act of witnessing and remembrance; and (2) through the ethos of privatisation, legalistically control the narrative of violence. In our conclusion, we discuss the implications of warfare in relation to (in)visibility, memory and drones
Drone · Ethos · Law and economics · Narrative · Political economy · Political science · Politics · Sociology · State (computer science · Terrorism · Witness · Computer Science · Law · Memory, Trauma, and Commemoration · Philosophy · Political Theology and Sovereignty · Terrorism, Counterterrorism, and Political Violence
| Unique citing works | 6 |
|---|---|
| Citations per year | 0,86 |
| Citation span | 2019 - 2026 (8) |
| Citation velocity | current |
| Highly cited | No |
| Citation types | Neutral: 6 |