Pinochet was finally charged yesterday for murder as part of Operation Condor (although of course he is appealing). This has got me thinking. Chile is easily the most developed country in South America, but a lot of the progress occured during Pinochet's reign after he (along with the help of the CIA) toppled a democratically elected government. Not only did he instigate a coup and rule as a dictator for over 15 years, but during his rule many political dissidents "went missing" and were horribly tortured. Though it's also true that Chile wasn't in a great shape (economically at least) when he took over. So my question is: do the means justify the ends?
As a political liberal and idealist I would say no, but what do ordinary Chileans think. Should one follow a purely utilitarian philosophy where one must try to do what benefits the greatest number of people, whilst doing the least harm to the smallest number of people (a simple equatyion really: Benefits x Number > Harm x Number). But then again what is the value of human life? how many people need to be able to go on holiday abroad and buy Levi's to outweigh a political assassination? I really ought to try and ask some local Chileños.
Enough of my political ramblings. This part of Chile is also an astronomers' mecca due to the clear night skies (although the mornings on the coast are more reminiscent of Britain: grey fog every day until midday), and so there are many observatories dotted around the countryside, such as the imaginatively named VLT (Very Large Telescope). So last night we went to an observatory to have a closer look at the stars, where we had the good fortune to come on one of the most astronomically interesting days of the year because it was the day of the Geminid meteor shower and so we saw lots of shooting stars. It also rekindled my childhood interest of astronomy, especially when the guide showed us one of the computer programmes for identifying the stars at night (it would make a lovely and original Christmas present if anybody's stuck for an idea (and if you're as tight as I am you might also be able to find freeware versions on filesharing networks)).
As a political liberal and idealist I would say no, but what do ordinary Chileans think. Should one follow a purely utilitarian philosophy where one must try to do what benefits the greatest number of people, whilst doing the least harm to the smallest number of people (a simple equatyion really: Benefits x Number > Harm x Number). But then again what is the value of human life? how many people need to be able to go on holiday abroad and buy Levi's to outweigh a political assassination? I really ought to try and ask some local Chileños.
Enough of my political ramblings. This part of Chile is also an astronomers' mecca due to the clear night skies (although the mornings on the coast are more reminiscent of Britain: grey fog every day until midday), and so there are many observatories dotted around the countryside, such as the imaginatively named VLT (Very Large Telescope). So last night we went to an observatory to have a closer look at the stars, where we had the good fortune to come on one of the most astronomically interesting days of the year because it was the day of the Geminid meteor shower and so we saw lots of shooting stars. It also rekindled my childhood interest of astronomy, especially when the guide showed us one of the computer programmes for identifying the stars at night (it would make a lovely and original Christmas present if anybody's stuck for an idea (and if you're as tight as I am you might also be able to find freeware versions on filesharing networks)).
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