See for example Hilary and Steven Rose (eds.), The Political Economy of Science: Ideology of/in the Natural Sciences (London: Macmillan, 1976) and The Radicalisation of Science: Ideology of/in the Natural Sciences (London: Macmillan, 1976); and the journals (all now defunct) Science for the People, Science for People and Radical Science Journal. Unfortunately, the critique of engineering does not boast an extensive literature.
The reasons are harder to pin down, because there are few definite actions or motivations to investigate, as in all cases where the issue is lack of interest and lack of investigation. I think that the reasons mentioned above are plausible, and have some basis in the writings and activities of activists and scholars (though I haven’t gone into this sort of detail). By searching for explanations for neglect, it may be possible to find ways to stimulate greater interest in the topic.
I thank Robert Burrowes in particular for useful comments.
Direct disarmament is the disabling and dismantling of weapons by people without the permission of governments and commanders.
Carl von Clausewitz, Vom Kriege [On War] (Berlin: Ferdinand Dummler, 1832). The following paragraphs on the centre of gravity are taken from Brian Martin, “Social defence strategy: the role of technology,” Journal of Peace Research, Vol. 36, No. 5, 1999, pp. 535-552.
Anders Boserup and Andrew Mack, War Without Weapons: Non-violence in National Defence (London: Frances Pinter, 1974), pp. 148-182, quote at p. 163.
Gene Keyes, “Strategic non-violent defense: the construct of an option,” Journal of Strategic Studies, Vol. 4, 1981, pp. 125-151, at p. 133.
Robert J. Burrowes, The Strategy of Nonviolent Defense: A Gandhian Approach (Albany, NY: State University of New York Press, 1996), p. 209.
One case is the Palestinian intifada, though the resistance is better described as unarmed than nonviolent.
Andreas Speck notes that this same list of values — decentralised, interactive, cooperative — can also be obtained by starting from the values of a just society.
T. E. Finer, The Man on Horseback: The Role of the Military in Politics (London: Pall Mall Press, 1962); D. J. Goodspeed, The Conspirators: A Study in the Coup d’Etat (London: Macmillan, 1962); Edward Luttwak, Coup d’Etat: A Practical Handbook (London: Allen Lane The Penguin Press, 1968), pp. 111-116.
Roland Bleiker, Nonviolent Struggle and the Revolution in East Germany (Cambridge, MA: Albert Einstein Institution, 1993). Andreas Speck points out that there was also a negative side to the role of West German television. Many leading East German activists wanted to turn East German into a democracy, even a genuine people’s democracy (as opposed to a dictatorship calling itself a people’s democracy). However, West German television did not broadcast the ideas of this East German opposition, instead pushing for
