The Language Barrier

Language is the basis for our existence. We fundamentally owe it everything, and yet it doesn't get much consideration. This is likely because it is so basic that we take it for granted; using it how we see fit and never having to think too much of it.

Samuel Taylor Coleridge once said "Language is the armory of the human mind, and at once contains the trophies of its past and the weapons of its future conquests."

What I've learned from the past 3 months in lands where English is not the dominate language is that the so called language barrier is a far greater phenomenon than simple linguistics. A barricade of the brain seems to make meaningful dialogue in any language difficult these days, ergo the differences of actual tongues is not so important to me.

A sort of semantic sterility is obvious is English, with its political language having become almost entirely hollow and many of its common expressions being equally meaningless. My experiences with French and Spanish of late have taught me that they have the same problem, even if it less pronounced. They too struggle in the modern social system that turns all things into commodities and all lives into statistics. It almost seems more tragic with them on account of the fact that they are far more organized and aware of the problem, and yet still can't break through to something different.

We are free to say whatever we please, but have yet to find a combination of words that can motivate us out of the postindustrial funk that is killing the environment and making exploitation and its companion, injustice, ever more prevalent. Meanwhile other parts of Humanity, most notably recently, the Arab world, is finding its voice and roaring for the ages. Such things give me hope and make me think that maybe we yet have time to find our way in the darkness.

"There is no mode of action, no form of emotion, that we do not share with the lower animals. It is only by language that we rise above them, or above each other--- by language, which is the parent, and not the child, of thought." -Oscar Wilde

Pech Valley

"Ultimately, the decision to withdraw reflected a stark — and controversial — internal assessment by the military that it would have been better served by not having entered the high valley in the first place."

“What we figured out is that people in the Pech really aren’t anti-U.S. or anti-anything; they just want to be left alone,” said one American military official familiar with the decision. “Our presence is what’s destabilizing this area.” - http://www.nytimes.com/2011/02/25/world/asia/25afghanistan.html?_r=1

This has to be on of the most confusing things to ever be released in the news. Every once in a while one of these tidbits gets out and you have to wonder if anyone is paying attention if they can publish this after 10 years of saying the completely opposite thing.

It really gives me pause to think of how history has evolved over the past hundred years. In 1911 one didn't have to even pretend to justify military action in Asia or Africa, white supremacy was the philosophy of the day and Imperialism was its natural expression. Nowadays the maze of logic that gets extrapolated to explain the Empire employs a mental slight of hand that I am beginning to believe no one on earth is capable of actually defining in comprehensible language.

Perhaps this is the truth of the whole modern mentality- any accurate description is impossible. It is just a pile of people doing and saying things that has long since lost any means of being perceived in rational terms. I guess when you have 7 billion people populating a planet whose social structure is one of cannibalistic capitalism, trying to look for a way in which to write about it that is both understandable and factual is a fool's errand.

High Hegemonic Hilarity

The modern world seems to be a big machine that runs on irony and hypocrisy, and being built by Americans, was not designed for fuel efficiency. One might claim that comedy isn't a major component to this system, but I would contend that it is very much the engine that takes us rip roaring through history lately. Let's take the example of the modern uprisings in South West Asia and Northern Africa as a case in point:

Europe takes these territories over in the late 19th and early 20th Century. They create colonies, administer them through violence and intimidation, all for no better reason than they thought they needed ruling. Then when they decide to leave they sat down like kids with crayons and drew some lines on a piece of paper and then informed the people in the region what countries they now resided in. Naturally these boarders weren't really good so the different 'countries' fought over them, which made it possible for Europe, the USSR and the USA to come in and arm the various governments so they could squabble more seriously over the lines in the sand.

For a variety of reasons it was realized that Dictatorships were the most efficient way to make allies in this volatile region and so that's how that worked out, autocracy for everyone! Now this was fine when it was NATO Vs. International Communism, but once that farce was played out it pretty much became NATO playing chess by itself, which isn't a game for anyone sane. Iran and Saudi Arabia like to think they can play, but they end up just being pieces on the board. Then one day as Neoliberalism was disemboweling the area, as it has done everywhere else in this brave new market world, some Arabs got really pissed off about the shit show that was their fate. And so it was that they started hitting the streets to partake in the time honored tradition of gambling their lives in the hope their governments would fold. Sadly even if they do fold one hand, the powerful still hold all the cards and so the game goes on unchanged.

In another vein of the same joke, Sarkozy and Cameron, current leaders of the Imperial instigators France and Britain, told their people that multiculturalism has failed and that they are going to revert to old cultural values. This is funny for a lot of reasons. The funniest of them is that they robbed the world to create wealthy societies at which point people from their 'former' colonies arrived to work and live so as not to be totally buggered for all of history. At this point they tell these same people that they are polluting their culture by their presence. When considering how the West operated and operates in these peoples place of origin it is a joke in very bad taste.

But wait, the US is never to be outdone in this department. In conjunction with a mindboggling foreign policy in the Arab world (crazed solo chess with made up countries for pieces) they are also the harbinger of neoliberalism, which the US has exported to every corner of the earth. This is an impressive feat considering their was originally no demand for it. Ergo it is a powerful joke when a country like Egypt rises up against both Dictatorship and Neoliberalism only to hear the US support the Egyptian people in their desire for freedom and democracy. The joke goes even further when the same people are accused of supporting religious extremism for the very same action... Sadly I think the humor is lost on most people, but since it is one of those really long complicated jokes without a discernible punchline and lots of people suffer/die/cry in it, I understand why many fail to grasp the humor. For me however the union of comedy and tragedy is the only way to live in this world without falling for the falsehoods of idealism or nihilism. My advice is to take it for what it is folks, and try to laugh at the jokes.

Some quotes on our subject:

"Forgive, oh Lord, my little jokes on Thee, and I'll forgive Thy great big joke on me." -Robert Frost

"Not living in fear is a great gift, because certainly these days we do it so much. And do you know what I like about comedy? You can’t laugh and be afraid at the same time—of anything. If you’re laughing, I defy you to be afraid." -Stephen Colbert

"Well, the telling of jokes is an art of its own, and it always rises from some emotional threat. The best jokes are dangerous, and dangerous because they are in some way truthful." -Kurt Vonnegut

Winds of Change

In the West it seems misconceptions about Arabs and Islam are so deeply engrained that the reality of the region is beyond any semblance of comprehension. During his life Mohammed took radical stands that challenged the traditions of his people at every level. He also asserted he was a just a man and that his message was one of justice and peace, constantly advancing a position that all are equal before Allah. Tolerance of Jews and Christians was also a fundamental part of his message. During his last major sermon he looked out over his followers and wondered if any of them truly understood what he had taught.

Since that time the Ummah has been debating the meaning of this man and thus Islam is nothing static, but an ever changing concept in the minds and hearts of the people who practice it. These days this debate has once again reached a pivotal moment where the long suppressed masses are standing up and stating in unequivocal terms their desire to reform the world in which they live, which is the very core of their religion. Mohammed always explained that Islam wasn’t a ritual or set of beliefs, but a manner in which one should constantly exist.

This week people in Libya, Algeria, Jordan, Yemen, Egypt, Tunisia and Bahrain have seized the collective desire for the removal of governments that have strayed very far from the meaning of their faith into autocracy, brutality and injustice. After centuries upon centuries of various leaders telling these people how and what they can do a primordial pressure has finally erupted into the streets and onto headlines around the world. Where it goes from here is a question that no one can answer. One thing is sure, God willing, they will change their fate.

Inshallah

Just as humans have dammed the great rivers of the world, so too have we constructed governments for the worlds great populations. And just as dams only function for a specific time and then are washed away, so too with the institutions. Today their are some people in Egypt, Tunisa, Jordan and Yemen that are trying to break the dam and let the flood of change wash over the land.

Spinoza once commented that "Emotion, which is suffering, ceases to be suffering as soon as we form a precise picture of it". Indeed the Arab world suffered a great deal and now seems to be seeing things clearly. Their centuries of suffering and subjugation have finally come to this cathartic moment where for some dying is preferable to living under the current circumstances. I feel for those people who are prepared to take that plunge, especially when one considers how very common extreme violence is in Arab culture.

The thing that saddens me about this situation is that the Egyptians are living in a cell which is just one of many in a massive prison that is the modern world. Already the instability is leading to bread shortages, looting and capital flight. Even if they manage to oust Mubarak, they can't really do what they want because they are dependent on the global economy to feed them. That system is itself reliant on the Suez Canal. They are caught in the straight jacket of modern interdependency, and so sadly their revolution is in the long run just an exercise in futility. Just as the great dam at Aswan can't be destroyed without destroying most Egyptians, the same goes for the modern Capitalist system. I believe though that these things must at least be attempted because 'those who do not move do not notice their chains'. It is also important in my mind that we keep trying and failing if only to add another footnote in the long saga that is mankind's struggle to live with itself. We have so very much to learn so we desperately need lessons such as these to teach us.

Here is a quote from Sayyid Qutb that I feel speaks to the current situation- " Indeed our words will remain lifeless, barren, devoid of any passion, until we die as a result of these words, whereupon our words will suddenly spring to life and live amongst the hearts that are dead, bringing them to life as well."

Versailles

If I were to define history at all I'd say it is like God was described by Voltaire, a comedian playing to an audience too scarred to laugh. Wandering the epicenter of Monarchical decadence at Versailles the burlesque of modern history gave me much to consider. The thought train left the station headed in this direction, and as usual it's last stop was quoteville-

While staring out over the mammoth geometric gardens that emanate from the palace I of course was thinking of revolutionaries swarming over the grounds like angry ants on October 6th 1789. What drove the Parisian mob was a desire for affordable food, not any abstract ideology. This is clearly seen by the way in which after a few years of the Jacobin party they embraced Napoleon as an Emperor because he delivered the goods. During the Belle Époque (1871-1914) the lives of many commoners improved greatly and is generally seen as a Golden Age for Western Europe. And indeed bourgeois rule was an improvement in the sense that it provided a broader section of the population access to nice things such as sanitation, transportation and food. Happy days for Europe, even if it came at the price of the most reckless and ruthless round of Imperialism seen yet, but hey, you can't make an omelette without breaking some eggs; and they thought the eggs were inherently inferior and somehow being helped anyway so that logic worked out nicely.

These thoughts gave me some chuckles, but they led me to that dark and less amusing place that most historical musings take me, the present. So after the great wars in which Europe almost killed each other entirely because of their sadistic love of organized violence a new era emerged in which the entire purpose of the state was to deliver material wealth to the citizenry. There was some debate as to how best achieve this (see Cold War) but in the end the triumph of Consumer Capitalism and Globalization has come through with another era of glorious advancement for the cause of people attaining their own individual Versailles. It's not pretty how we reach such dizzying heights of Civilization, but it seems in our rationale the ends justify the means. After these thoughts had finished traversing my neurons I sat looking at the crowds of well off tourists who were meandering all about me taking in the vastness of the palatial gardens all looking rather pleased with themselves. It was then that the thought dawned on me that this age will also draw to an abrupt and bloody end. Us who have inherited this phenomenal system that funnels the worlds consumables to our insatiable markets are just like the Monarchs of old. And just as those castles made of sand slipped into the sea of history so shall ours. As always with mankind's chronicle, the joke is on those who are living in its raucous reality.

"Riches have wings, and grandeur is a dream" -William Cowper

"I don't know what's gonna happen, man, but I wanna have my kicks before the whole shithouse goes up in flames." -Jim Morrison (and possibly the motto for all moderns)

"Riches serve a wise man but command a fool." – Old French proverb

المصائب لا تأتي فرادى (disasters don't come one by one)

Being in Paris, news of the overthrow of Ben Ali in Tunisia was the talk of the town. Like most of post-colonial Africa, nepotism, kleptocracy and all other manner of injustice is just standard operating practices. This would seem the primary legacy left by Europeans, and the lesson was learned well by those who came to power after colonialism went out of fashion. The big story however, is that it wasn't a military coup that toppled Ben Ali, it was rioting. This is a big deal in the Arab world because it just doesn't happen. Already demonstrations have taken place in Jordan with the protesters claiming inspiration from Tunisia and Egypt has been becoming more unruly for some time now, so they will surely take heart at this example of defiance. The West doesn't even bother justifying their continued support of these regimes because it is so clear they are both ruthless and irredeemably corrupt. There is a proverb in Arabic that goes- 'A person who does not speak out against the wrong is a mute devil'. Unlike the hypocrite politicians of the developed world, I can't blame those in the Arab world for not speaking out since it is the most repressive and sanguinary of governments they are challenging; all of which are rather open about sending innumerable people to the torture chamber and anonymous graves for just such activity. Still the tide is getting rather tumultuous of late on board the boat which these dictators sail. How long they will last is anyones guess. In all fairness, they could outlast all the rest in the world by sheer tenacity. However, 'He who swings an aggressive sword will die by one' is another proverb of these people that surely factors into their thinking. On another note in the region, it appears there will be no campaign against Iran this year because the US and Israel launched a cyberworm that in conjunction with the assassination of two nuclear physicists has slowed their quest for the bomb enough so that the issue can be put off for a while longer yet. The government of Lebanon, the only Arab democracy, fell when Hezbollah pulled its members out of the coalition. They said they were doing so because the UN was blaming them for the assassination of PM Rafik Hariri; proving yet again that UN stands for unbelievably naive. Despite all this, I still want to go visit them.

The Art of War

Today I explored the musée de l'Armée, a wonderful temple to organized violence and its role in French history. I had never really understood the concept of there being an art of war, but now it is clear that fighting can be raised to a very high level of art indeed. After the fall of Rome to nomadic hordes, the kingdoms that evolved existed solely on their ability in military prowess. The entire era from the 6th to the 18th Centuries was one long drawn out blood bath in which the successful waging of war was the justification for authority and the basis for all borders in Europe. In 1789 things evolved a bit when some people from Paris thought they had had enough of their Aristocracy so they marched on Versailles and toppled the Bourbon kings. As was rather natural, the other Elites of Europe got rather uncomfortable with this challenge to the established order and all descended on France to teach these uppity commoners a lesson. What then happened changed the nature of warfare. The French fought back by eventually ordering a levee en masse of all able bodied men and they were able to not only repel the invading armies but even expand their borders. This has been accepted as the birth of the modern state and nationalism. By getting every young man under arms and having them fight passionately for their country they proved this was vastly superior in its ability to kill lots of foreigners. The Prussians went one further (largely in response to the French) and created a mandatory conscription with a reserve force which greatly increased the number of people who could fight as well as a group of officers whose job it was to sit around and plan out as many possible wars as they could think of to prepare. This led to Europe mobilizing 74 million men for the ultimate art of war show- World War I. Not having had enough of it, they even did a sequel a few decades later. So as I walked around the Musee d'Armee and looked at all the memorabilia of this evolution of the French through war all I could think about was that this is their history. Violence is what has defined them culturally, and Europe and its progeny around the world have embraced killing on a scale that has dumbfounded and terrified the rest of the planet. Every other aspect of their culture is based upon this penchant for violence, and is indeed largely a byproduct of it. It's the only reason I can find why Westerners will over consume even if it means you have to conquer the whole planet to do so. If you disagree with this then imagine a Europe that never developed militarily... It's not that they invented warfare, they just raised it to the level of an art, and became obsessed with the medium. As always, some words from the Ages-

"Cry 'Havoc!' and let slip the dogs of War." -Shakespeare

"We should not ask 'Why does an event like the Great War occur?' But rather, given our nature, 'Why does it not occur more often?' -Jorge Luis Borges

"War is organised murder, and nothing else." -Harry Patch (last surviving soldier to have fought in the trenches in WWI)