The two coeditors of this volume were blessed with a nearly perfect working relationship. As social theorists and intellectuals, we share a number of theoretical interests, including postmodernism, critical theory, and an eclectic approach to theory. As friends, we shared our disbelief and outrage at the rationalizations, excuses, and obfuscations about the genocide that is still occurring in the Balkans. This blend of theoretical interests and reaction to current events led to our collaboration on this volume. It is our hope that the volume will provide an impetus for further exploration of Western indifference to genocide, not only in Bosnia, but in other parts of the world.
Each of us comes from otherwise different backgrounds, and acknowledges the assistance, inspiration, and encouragement of different individuals, but also of individuals common to both. Both editors thank the authors for working under pressure to meet deadlines. We are both grateful to the editors at New York University Press for their enthusiastic support of this project. Meštrović is especially grateful to David Riesman for his ongoing correspondence concerning the current Balkan War and for his encouragement in putting together this project. Cushman would like to thank Daniel Kofman, Michael Barnett, Sheri Fink, and Carol Hartigan for comments and advice on various stages of this project. Special thanks are due to James Petterson of the Wellesley College Department of French for providing superb translations of Jean Baudrillard’s essays. The Wellesley College Committee on Faculty Awards provided generous financial assistance for all stages of this project. Finally, we are thankful to our wives and daughters for letting us spend too much time away from them working on this project.