Dmitry Orlov writes on the ongoing demise of Anglo-imperialism, and what can be expected in the coming years based on past behaviour. There has been a consistent pattern of Britain and America fomenting conflict when exiting a region, so as to ensure that if the West can't enjoy the fruits found there, no one should be able to.
Foreign investment and the establishment of new political entities, irrespective of local considerations, have continually stirred the pot in various troubled parts of the world. Without regard to the interests that draw borders on maps or manufacture arms, the ignorant observer can easily assume that these are ancient and intractable ethnic conflicts. In many cases the history of hate can run deep, but our understanding of the conditions that have stoked those fires is tragically shallow.
Although it's not clear where the crown that passed from Rome to Britain to the United States will next come to rest (if it's not simply melted down and sold) it's fair to assume that the metaphorical king will leave a shit in the sink on his way out. The English-speaking people of the world will be increasingly divided along arbitrary and irrelevant lines, lest we consider our common ground and organise against the powerful minority.
The positive way to look at this is that as the world descends into chaos, some of that chaos is being deliberately engineered out of fear and envy, and all of it is a sign that the deeply dysfunctional status quo has run its course. With the proper resolve, it should be perfectly possible for the vast majority of reasonable people to plot a course for the world that permits plurality. Only a narrative of conflict, helpfully offered by a totalising ideology that has worked for centuries to create conflict, stands between decent folk and some kind of a peaceful place to live.
No comments:
Post a Comment