Western Imperialism to Blame or....
 

been reading a lot of niall ferguson lately, gotta say a couple of things

1)he's a dead man walking, nobody nowadays can be this close to the truth and not be a target
2)he's spot on most of the time, his series on the ascent of money and book was superb and his new stuff on civilization and the west is cracking but it is going to earn him a fatwah.

worth loking out for his stuff for a read/watch if you have time

Re: Western Imperialism to Blame or....
 

full episode, thx youtube

Re: Western Imperialism to Blame or....
 

Add in the fact that he is dating/living with Ayaan Hirsi Ali and he has to be a target. She's had a fatwa on her for years.

Re: Western Imperialism to Blame or....
 

agreed, shes one very brave/stupid woman.

Re: Western Imperialism to Blame or....
 

Quite. I can never decide which it is.

Re: Western Imperialism to Blame or....
 

Brave.

Like Ferguson.

Re: Western Imperialism to Blame or....
 

He's interesting but not saying anything new to me...we can expect the usual accusations of Islamaphobia, racism and whatever else they are calling the uncomfortable truth these days.

N.

Re: Western Imperialism to Blame or....
 

I don't quite understand why they are doing it...in the end, they are the losers.Why don't they WANT things to get better? All very odd...have given up trying to figure it out. Can't be arsed anymore.

Re: Western Imperialism to Blame or....
 

@dean, been thinking and i agree, it is bravery. a stupid, bold non self preservational bravery.

@norm agreed on most of it there are details i dont know which is always nice and its also very nice to see a high profile figure saying these things who isnt a member of some fanatical right wing protest group but a respected scholar

Re: Western Imperialism to Blame or....
 

This is actually the problem with most western countries today - the middle classes are silent. Anything that threatens to rock the boat is brushed under the carpet and their heads are put back in the sand even as their cities burn around them (Paris riots, no-go areas, Malmo in Sweden, recent riots in Lampedusa, etc etc). What's worse is how they will even shoot down their own for speaking out - even if they speak in an academic and/or reasonable context.

So the working classes, seeing no one taking up their legitimate concerns form groups like the EDL, which no matter how well meaning become magnets for extremists and hooligans. And parties like the BNP can lap up support while all this is going on because no one has the balls in the West to differentiate national/culture pride and preservation with actual racism and bigotry.

Couple this with the false doctrine of cultural relativity we are taught from birth these days and it's a recipe for trouble.

N.

Re: Western Imperialism to Blame or....
 

Have you been on the metaphor juice, Norm?

Re: Western Imperialism to Blame or....
 

It was a deliberate choice of words...the only juice I've been on is fermented however ;)

N.

Re: Western Imperialism to Blame or....
 

Good videos Shiva.

Using religion to clutch power can only be a short term strategy. As long as the middle east continues to dabble in real advancement (both political and scientific/technology) rather than actually dealing with these problems the oil clock is ticking down.

The great thing about human ingenuity is that it's the well that never runs dry.

Re: Western Imperialism to Blame or....
 

Interesting stuff. I wonder what people think about the future they talked about. If the West is indeed in sharp decline, who is going to fill the void? Also begs the question, who would we prefer to fill it?

Re: Western Imperialism to Blame or....
 

I'd rather see it's decline than it filled with the sheer ignorance I've seen around the world in my travels...China, Japan & Korea excluded I just don't think there are any comparable civillisations in the world - then again I'm not a cultural relativist or a multi-culturalist so I'm going to say that :)

N.

Re: Western Imperialism to Blame or....
 

Hmm. When you watch that Dream School with Jamie Oliver or stuff like The X Factor, Big Brother and Whatever That Plastic Bitch Did Next, you do have to wonder if we are at the pinnacle of civilisation/culture. ;)

Re: Western Imperialism to Blame or....
 

I haven't seen any of those shows and feel pity on people who think that is all their culture has to offer.

I was thinking more in terms of inventions with the widest benefits, peer reviewed scientific papers written, variety of books written and/or translated, literature, academic freedom and art. And when you look at that way only the West as a whole and Far East really contribute significantly to the betterment of humanity...still if Big Brother is more famous than Norman Borlaug, Wei Boyang, Donald Davies, Isembard Kingdom-Brunel, Mozart, Confucius, Brunel, Frank Whittle, Voltaire, Shen Nong, Kant, John Tyndall and Socrates then that's a more a sign of plebian culture having a wider audience than anything else...and that's generally always been the case. The masses are slow to know the work of people who have changed their lives for the better and quick to know who the best sportsman or entertainer is.

N.