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Liberty 4 All (11)
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Journal of Liberty 4 All (11)
Sunday March 19, 06
A little understanding
11:41 PM
I've spent the last several years - before September 11th even - pursuing a question: "How did the Middle East, once the height of culture and technological progress, become one of the most backward places on earth?" I don't mean that in a bigoted sense, but in historical awe at how a once (and still) proud culture has been eclipsed. I had always wondered, how did it happen. How, when the Europeans were in the Dark Ages and so backwards, culturally speaking, did Middle Eastern culture stagnate? Why did the industrial revolution not take hold? Why, with all of the oil wealth has infrastructure, cultural, and political progress failed to develop? What happened? Or didn't happen?
I have read a lot of things trying to figure those questions out. I doubt that I will have the answer completely. That is fine. It is a big question. It should be thought about for a long time - and thought about carefully. There is one writer that has contributed most to my understanding - New York Times columnist, Thomas Friedman. He seems to understand a lot about the history, people, culture, and politics - and there is a lot to understand. He has a way of pulling things together in interesting ways that only someone with a deep understanding of the region would be able to do.
The latest example is his column appearing March 17, 2006 in the New York Times (see link below). While Mr. Friedman was not a proponent of the war in Iraq, he believes that the key to a successful Bush administration policy in Iran, YES IRAN, is success in Iraq. He is right. He also argues that the worst thing for the mullahs in Iran is for us to pull out of IRAQ. He also explains why Saddam was not willing, even with the US's eminent attack, to admit that he had no chemical or biological weapons. That one completely caught me off guard - I have been scratching my head about it for the last three years.
http://www.nytimes.com/top/opinion/editorialsandop ed/oped/columnists/thomaslfriedman/
If Mr. Friedman is right, and the United States can pull out success in Iraq, the Iraqi example could lead to the Mullahs and other clerics (I'm expanding his argument to outside of Iran here) getting out politics in Iran and potentially throughout the Islamic world. That would certainly be a positive sign from the Western point of view.
Hopefully, it would be a positive sign from the population's view as well. It appears from what I have read that in the beginning the Islamic world was more liberal than the Christian world and allowed science to flourish more readily. That is how technology and culture thrived. In fact, Islamic cultures borrowed from many cultures, but Christians were considered so backward that they were not seen as having anything of value to share with the Islamic world.
At some point, the Christians did have technology worthy of "borrowing" but the Islamic world were unwilling to adopt inventions of the Christians, often believing it against the Koran. Around this time religious influences began halting the adoption of new technologies and practices in the Islamic world. As religion became more conservative, the Islamic world was less willing to accept modernity and borrow from other, especially Western Industrial countries. Ironically, religious influences caused the rise of Middle Eastern culture and its decline.
What worries me is that I see these same forces going on in our own country. I see an increasingly religiously conservative class exercising, what I believe, is undo power in the government. I see this as having negative effects on the public education system, on the economy, and on our government.
K-12 Science standards are being perverted to pander to the religious right. Kansas changed the "definition of science" in order to teach intelligent design. The government is spending more time worrying about citizen morality instead of jobs, education, and law and order which is in effect causing a stagnant economy (can you say 10 years of virtually no growth economy in Ohio - but marriage is safe!) So, I wonder, is the same thing happening to America? Are we going down the same path to cultural and economic stagnation and eventual darkness?
I am not an Athiest. I am a Christian. But, I do not feel Christianity or any other part of religion is the role of government. I feel that my religion is safer when the government stays away from what should be the realm of the Church. I do not want ANY laws on gays, abortion, gambling, liquor, stem cell research, etc. That is for people to pray about.
I have read a lot of things trying to figure those questions out. I doubt that I will have the answer completely. That is fine. It is a big question. It should be thought about for a long time - and thought about carefully. There is one writer that has contributed most to my understanding - New York Times columnist, Thomas Friedman. He seems to understand a lot about the history, people, culture, and politics - and there is a lot to understand. He has a way of pulling things together in interesting ways that only someone with a deep understanding of the region would be able to do.
The latest example is his column appearing March 17, 2006 in the New York Times (see link below). While Mr. Friedman was not a proponent of the war in Iraq, he believes that the key to a successful Bush administration policy in Iran, YES IRAN, is success in Iraq. He is right. He also argues that the worst thing for the mullahs in Iran is for us to pull out of IRAQ. He also explains why Saddam was not willing, even with the US's eminent attack, to admit that he had no chemical or biological weapons. That one completely caught me off guard - I have been scratching my head about it for the last three years.
http://www.nytimes.com/top/opinion/editorialsando
If Mr. Friedman is right, and the United States can pull out success in Iraq, the Iraqi example could lead to the Mullahs and other clerics (I'm expanding his argument to outside of Iran here) getting out politics in Iran and potentially throughout the Islamic world. That would certainly be a positive sign from the Western point of view.
Hopefully, it would be a positive sign from the population's view as well. It appears from what I have read that in the beginning the Islamic world was more liberal than the Christian world and allowed science to flourish more readily. That is how technology and culture thrived. In fact, Islamic cultures borrowed from many cultures, but Christians were considered so backward that they were not seen as having anything of value to share with the Islamic world.
At some point, the Christians did have technology worthy of "borrowing" but the Islamic world were unwilling to adopt inventions of the Christians, often believing it against the Koran. Around this time religious influences began halting the adoption of new technologies and practices in the Islamic world. As religion became more conservative, the Islamic world was less willing to accept modernity and borrow from other, especially Western Industrial countries. Ironically, religious influences caused the rise of Middle Eastern culture and its decline.
What worries me is that I see these same forces going on in our own country. I see an increasingly religiously conservative class exercising, what I believe, is undo power in the government. I see this as having negative effects on the public education system, on the economy, and on our government.
K-12 Science standards are being perverted to pander to the religious right. Kansas changed the "definition of science" in order to teach intelligent design. The government is spending more time worrying about citizen morality instead of jobs, education, and law and order which is in effect causing a stagnant economy (can you say 10 years of virtually no growth economy in Ohio - but marriage is safe!) So, I wonder, is the same thing happening to America? Are we going down the same path to cultural and economic stagnation and eventual darkness?
I am not an Athiest. I am a Christian. But, I do not feel Christianity or any other part of religion is the role of government. I feel that my religion is safer when the government stays away from what should be the realm of the Church. I do not want ANY laws on gays, abortion, gambling, liquor, stem cell research, etc. That is for people to pray about.
Saturday January 07, 06
Blog Virgin
11:27 PM
This is my first outing in the blogosphere. I've just finished several healthy exchanges, two which were with Voice of Liberty. I'm guessing The Voice and I will have many more. I look forward to it. I've enjoyed the discussions. They were intelligent, and respectful. It was what the First Amendment was written for.
I like how this site is organized. It isn't just one or two people blathering on and on. It actually has form, structure, and purpose to it. Additionally, the people posting appear to have intelligent, insightful things to say about society. We can even disagree in civil ways. I believe it is forums like this that is capable of making a difference as a new media form. That is one reason why I have choosen to participate here.
I like how this site is organized. It isn't just one or two people blathering on and on. It actually has form, structure, and purpose to it. Additionally, the people posting appear to have intelligent, insightful things to say about society. We can even disagree in civil ways. I believe it is forums like this that is capable of making a difference as a new media form. That is one reason why I have choosen to participate here.
