Dennis Sandole

Institute of Conflict Analysis and Resolution, George Mason University

Interviewed by Julian Portilla, 2003

This rough transcript provides a text alternative to audio. We apologize for occasional errors and unintelligible sections (which are marked with ???).

Ron Fisher, Laureli Kieshley contingency approach to conflict intervention which suggests that intervention is really strategic, over time, multi-levels, multi-sectored, multi actors, and it involves different tasks. Hopefully the tasks are coordinated but that might also involve a little bit of force earlier on to prevent genocide. I have kind of gotten to that point in recent years, and I mention that because quite a few people in our field wouldn't countenance the use of force. They view using force as what the enemy does. In contrast to that, I am a great believer of having warm positive relations with the military, with police because both of those dimensions might be involved in different parts, different sequences and the overarching peace keeping strategy and mission. That is kind of where I am now within that two pronged view of the field. What causes violent conflicts of all levels, including between husbands and wives and between individuals? We must not forget that the US is the most violent nation in the industrialized world. I am not sure that has been adequately dealt with by our field. We don't really address that it seems to me, certainly not here at ICAR. The occasional student may figure out why a Columbine occurs when it occurs but basically there is no PhD dissertation, no MA thesis looking at violence in the United States.