Nothing is inevitable

Given all the turmoil at the national and world level, and present terror war at the world level, one might think all these events are preordained. One might guess that the rising nations like China are full of vim and vigor and entrepreneurs because our history was more like that 100 years ago; but now we are more settled, more Old World like, more historically and environmentally conscious, and that makes all the difference. It is as if it is preordained, that we are going down some normal path of human and cultural evolution that will probably make us subservient to some other future more hungry nation of human beings. The futurists might even suggest nation states are a thing of the past, and some other amalgamation of peoples will control we in the USA. They may be right.

And then they may be wrong. The New World is just that. The old meaning was: those in the Western Hemisphere. The new meaning is: those who have values more Judeo-Christian, more Western for women and the rule of law, more evolutionary in balancing human impacts with human responses: some government, but most are natural human responses.

The idea of the New World is exciting. Many young people are responding in their own ways; some I like, some I don’t. But the main thing is “the New World”. While change is normal, and generations and history do change over time, there is something going on in the New World that is not inevitable. We are not being dragged down by our Old World past, and our ancestor's problems and policies that they used in their lifetime. Of course not being dragged down is no guarantee of wisdom in the future, but it does throw off the shackles of our Old World past.

One can apply this academic pie-in-the-sky talk in practical ways here in the USA, today. First is recognize that we have moral, cultural, and constitutional values that are New World, and worth both fighting for, and defending. Second is to descend into day-to-day politics in applying all this for the national good. This is where most of us debate, argue, get frustrated, and even curse those with other points of view, often silly and naïve and sometimes vicious it seems. When one compares all the friction and frustration to the Chinese government deporting 20,000 “others” from their capital (guess what might happen to them?) then our New World ideas seem pretty tame. Another practical application comes to mind. I think our President has done a poor job in Iraq until recently. But his judgment, and poor performance in winning the peace in Iraq, does not change the basic equation about our National Interests, and the ideas of New World vs. Old World. I call it “not throwing out the baby with the dirty bathwater”.

All the preceding discussion has three purposes for voters to think about.

The New World is a special idea in human history, and should be amplified.

The Old World is going by the wayside of history, but it will take a long time.

Crass opportunistic power seeker humans will muddy the waters. Some may not see the tide passing them by. Some more astute will both see the tide, and attempt to manipulate it. But for sure, what is happening is not inevitable.