Colonial commissions functioned as technologies of delay and distraction

Evidence

Dutch anthropologist Frans Husken notes of colonial commissions in Java, “when nothing else works and no decision can be reached, ‘appoint a commission’ was a favorite response of colonial authorities.” Commissions could reactivate knowledge but also stop it in its tracks. As technologies of delay, they could effectively mobilize interest and satisfy it, as well as arrest decision. They were primed to distract. — Ann Laura Stoler, Along the Archival Grain_ Epistemic…, 182

Categorization

• QUESTION: How did commissions’ delay function differ from modern regulatory hearings or public consultation as techniques of manufactured inaction? Worth chasing the parallel.
• corroborated: 2 independent passages support this claim — Ann Laura Stoler, Along the Archival Grain_ Epistemic…, 182
• XREF: connects to: Colonial commissions relied on hearsay and common knowledge rather than investigation; Once space filled, time became the new colonial frontier — James W. Carey, Communication as Culture- Essays on…, 860; Colonial knowledge production was driven by uncertainty, not clarity (+1 more)

Broader Connections

• Colonial commissions relied on hearsay and common knowledge rather than investigation #corroborates (0.65)
• Secrecy requirements prevented colonial commissions from actually investigating the poor they studied #exemplifies (0.60)
• Colonial knowledge production was driven by uncertainty, not clarity #corroborates (0.55)
• Once space filled, time became the new colonial frontier #complicates (0.40) — James W. Carey, Communication as Culture- Essays on…, 860