Speed and Politics, new editionWith this book Paul Virilio inaugurated the new science whose object of study is the "dromocratic" revolution. Speed and Politics (first published in France in 1977) is the matrix of Virilio's entire work. Building on the works of Morand, Marinetti, and McLuhan, Virilio presents a vision more radically political than that of any of his French contemporaries: speed as the engine of destruction. Speed and Politics presents a topological account of the entire history of humanity, honing in on the technological advances made possible through the militarization of society. Paralleling Heidegger's account of technology, Virilio's vision sees speed—not class or wealth—as the primary force shaping civilization. In this "technical vitalism," multiple projectiles—inert fortresses and bunkers, the "metabolic bodies" of soldiers, transport vessels, and now information and computer technology—are launched in a permanent assault on the world and on human nature. Written at a lightning-fast pace, Virilio's landmark book is a split-second, overwhelming look at how humanity's motivity has shaped the way we function today, and what might come of it. |
From inside the book
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... reach free enter- prise , their socialization , but to reach their own vehicular power , their maximum dynamic efficiency . This is the " futility " of wealth that disappeared in the essence of dromological progress . Western man has ...
... reach the speed of light with laser weapons . If , as Lenin claimed , “ strategy means choosing which points we apply force to , " we must admit that these " points , ” today , are no longer geostrategic strongpoints , since from any ...
... reach the strategy of Brownian movements , a kind of chronological and pendular war that revives ancient popular and geographic warfare by a geostrategic homogenization of the globe . This homoge- nization was already announced in the ...
Contents
THE DROMOCRATIC REVOLUTION | 27 |
From Highway Right to State Right | 49 |
Practical War | 73 |
Copyright | |
4 other sections not shown