[lit-ideas] Re: Helm's World
- From: "Simon Ward" <sedward@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- To: <lit-ideas@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Sun, 7 May 2006 18:12:14 +0100
Take away the Pax Americana and what would you have? Much more
international piracy. Dozens of nuked-up little despotisms. Tiny wars,
some of them nuclear, and a possible quick slide into barbarism and
despair.
If we could replace Pax Americana with something else, it could be better
(e.g., well-maintained spheres of regional influence) or worse (e.g., a
world run by China). But the point is that whatever entity imposes world
order does so in part by military force.
I find the assumption of Empire illuminating. Pax Americana, just like its
classical stablemate is founded on war and profit and there is no perceived
alternative. That's the problem. It's not the case that Bush's vision is in
any way peaceful or altruistic, his vision is for hegomony founded on
military domination. The alternative, and there is an alternative, is a
vision of mutual security through economic union, sharing resources, sharing
markets, rather than a dominating emprire.
Remember that this is a post cold war world, a world where the threat of
extinction is supposedly gone. Yes, I would concede that we survived the
Cold War because of the balance of force provided by the US, but now the
world is different. In its stead we might expect to see different solutions,
but what we are seeing is a US President who sees military might as an
opportunity to create Empire.
Bush is spending billions on this vision, but what else could be done with
all that money. How much would it cost to create the conditions for
civilisation in the third world? If the impoverished could see hope rather
than a continuation of economic struggle, wouldn't they also hold different
attitudes towards their own doomsayers.
But no. That's not going to happen is it. Bush and those like him see empire
rather than altruism, profit rather than afforded development.
The cold war seemed warm compared to this.
Simon
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