Kingdoms
Rise and Fall
The
Ottoman Empire ended with WWI. Before that it had been styled “the
sick man of Europe”. Before before that again the Roman Empire
based in Constantinople had at one time been a flourishing and
powerful civilisation, But by the time of the Muslim invaders had
lost its inner vitality and fell.
Then
in the Middle Ages, the centres of learning, of science, mathematics
and philosophy were all in the Muslim East. But then they declined
and the West advanced and with the Industrial Revolution completely
dominated.
In
England one can visit ruins of centrally heated Roman villas and
baths that indicate a level of comfort at least that was not regained
until the nineteenth century.
Perhaps
in centuries to come history will say the same things about our time.
Perhaps they will talk of the Anglo-American era, or use some other
name for what will seem to them a tiny blip of “democracy”,
middle class wealth, prosperity, health and scientific achievement.
It may be millennia before what we enjoy now is regained – if ever.
Think
for a moment what we take for granted.
Rule
of law: this is fundamental to universal prosperity. It is in
itself a superlative “good”. It is part and parcel of a free
society. Historically it has not been common, let alone the norm.
Even in our time, few third world countries enjoy it (that one reason
for their poverty in places that abound in natural resources or rich
soil). China as I write is sweeping away the last vestiges of rule of
law as Xi Ping tightens his grip on power. Even Western nations are
dallying with progressive socialist notions that “the end justifies
the means” to discredit it.
Freedom
from poverty: True “the poor are always with us”, but it is
relative poverty, not the absolute poverty of the third world! We
live in a time of wealth, not for the few but for the masses.
Good
housing, clothes enough to keep us warm, food – not just for
survival but in vast choice and quantity such that obesity is a
common health risk! Natural energy for heating, cooling, lighting,
labour saving machines and transport. We forget just how well off we
are.
Science
and technology. I can't even begin to catalogue the technologies
that would have astounded our forebears even two hundred years ago!
In the field of health alone we understand so much about disease that
we can take effective preventative measures. (sewerage systems are
possibly the biggest lifesavers ever). We have diagnostic tools that
for most people are beyond our comprehension – bringing the danger
that we simply equate them with the “voodoo” of folk medicine. We
have surgery that improves and prolongs lives. We have antibiotics –
but we risk loosing the race against microbes becoming immune to
them. We have mass vaccination – but risk loosing communal immunity
by pseudo-science convincing people immunisation is bad. And the
politicisation of science we are currently seeing in the West risks
destroying the core integrity essential to it and in turn destroying
our ability for scientific achievement.
Freedom
of speech, and religion. We have recently had a plebiscite on
“same Sex Marriage” in Australia. 80% of voters responded. Of
them 61.6 were in favour and 38.4 against. The only electorates where
there was an overwhelming “No” vote were the predominantly Muslim
enclaves. Firstly we have here illustrated why Muslims see us as
decadent and irredeemably immoral, giving us some insight into why
Islamist terrorists can recruit among home-born Muslims, and
portending ill for the future. Secondly it shows that Judeo-Christian
values have been rejected by the majority. Thirdly it is becoming
apparent that this was not an end in itself but largely desired as a
device to suppress freedom of speech and the suppression of
Christianity. Time will tell how this plays out.
Education.
Never has information been so readily available. The printing press
was revolutionary in this regard. The internet is orders of magnitude
more so. But information alone is not education. Training in the
tools of “reading, writing, and arithmetic” is a big part.
Learning a framework – whether of history, science,
literature and so forth so that one has something to “hang”
pieces of information on” and analytical tools to sift truth
from error – or downright falsehood are essential to “education”.
Discipline – then internalised as self-discipline, the
duties we owe as well as the rights we should enjoy are all part of
the socialisation that rounds out the education process. True we have
universal schooling, we have a high rate of literacy (not universal –
I found it Common in a farming community that wedding applicants
would have the girl fill in the form because the boy only literate.)
But
…. Asian countries are leaving us behind in the levels of training
they are achieving. Not a good sign for our future. Worse, we are
failing to teach the basic tools – in physics for instance not
teaching the basic laws and how to apply then to new problems. In
discipline … we have failed utterly and this is already coming back
to bit us! Worst of all, Marxists, who have been infiltrating our
education systems and training colleges for the past century have
triumphed! Kids are being indoctrinated not educated. Socialist dogma
is fed to them all the way through their school (and university)
time. We are turning out young people convinced of the truth of
socialist politics but ignorant of the devastating effect it has had
on the lives of people and the wealth of nations wherever it has been
implemented.
But
wait there's more: Marxists are now using current tide in favour of
homosexuality to introduce destructive teachings that even Marxist
countries would stamp out – though of course their introduction
into free societies to facilitate social destruction and revolution
are part of their play-book. Homosexuality is being pushed to the
extent that normal kids are being made feel they must be homosexuals.
Gender fluidity is being pushed. (My wife yesterday had lunch with an
old school friend who told her that one of her daughter's friends had
just had a baby and the couple have announced that they will let the
baby choose its own gender!) Boys and girls are being
made to doubt that they really are male or female – and even have
sex change operations at young ages when they cannot comprehend what
they are doing and have not yet experienced the normal hormone rush
of puberty. This is so terrible I do not have words to express my
feelings! But it is happening in our schools!
My
conclusion is that we have been living in a golden age – but also
in a fools paradise. We are neglecting to do the hard things
necessary to retain let alone improve what we have enjoyed.
As
olden day civilisations succumbed so shall ours unless there is
awakening.
