Word: commandeer
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Dates: during 1990-1999
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...that would have saved him had been developed, but the public was not yet ready for it to be imposed. Thus Blessing grasps the nettlesome underlying issue: in a society that says human life is infinitely precious but patently does not mean it, how many deaths are enough to command change in public policy...
This is no regular army, with an orderly command and a habit of obedience. All but one or two of the top officers are professionals from the old Yugoslav People's Army, but the ranks are filled by farmers, laborers and shopkeepers fighting for their homes. Many live no more than a few minutes' walk from the front lines. They will not be persuaded to give up these homes and move again...
There is no unified command: the Serb army is more a loose federation of fighting units, each with its own agenda and objectives. The units often decide tactics on their own and rely on their own stockpiles of food and ammunition. Field officers operate with a great deal of independence from the political leadership and think little of overriding the high command's orders when they are inclined to do so. Many soldiers have the same attitude toward their officers as the officers do toward the politicians. A frontline colonel admitted he commands only as long as the men listen...
Colonel Slavko Lisica heads the Doboj Corps. He claims to have 45,000 men -- a gross exaggeration according to intelligence estimates that put the total Serb troops in Bosnia at no more than 90,000 -- under his command, and controls about 400 sq. mi. of territory substantially "cleansed" of Muslims. The situation map behind his desk shows his lines extending like a pointed finger into Muslim territory. All that would be needed to trap the corps would be for the Muslims to cut through the 10-mile-wide base of the finger with an assault on Doboj...
...Elsa, Poreba sharply vents her anger and frustration with the world with convincing exhaustion, while Helen's quiet, troubled presence spreads gradually around them in slow, careful gestures. While Poreba's strength lies in her moving, often powerful, expression, Sun's lies in her understated charm and ability to command the scene when necessary. Artie Wu, the third and final member of the cast, does a very good job with a much smaller role as the local minister, successfully drawing out the complex depth of Marius' character in its struggle to maintain faith in himself and his old friend...