Dangers in Cold War absence
In my previous column, I wrote about the strange changes going on in our Arab societies with the result that all forms of enlightenment and civil life have given way to pedantic behavior, extremism and religious fundamentalism in all Arab cities to the extent that they have started looking more like Afghanistan’s capital under the rule of the Taleban. Eventually, the Arab ‘Hell’ uprisings came to reveal how deep our societies had deteriorated into a state that made us the ‘enemy’ the West is looking for to replace its traditional enemy, Communism.
Many indicators show that Western minds tend to search for an enemy to avoid having internal ones
After World War II, the Soviet Union and US controlled the world and their antagonism was hidden in the name of the ‘Cold War’, which only subsided by the fall of the Soviet ‘enemy’ after that war had already served the West and US through enhancing their unity and solidarity. Therefore, the absence of the Communist enemy brought back fears of divisions and infighting. “We have won the Cold War and that is fine. But the enemy now is not them.. .it is us,” said American thinker Erving Kristol.
Many indicators show that Western minds tend to search for an enemy to avoid having internal ones. Other indicators show that the enemy readily available is Islamism, that turned faith into semi-Marxism or other ideologies that sought controlling the structure of human communities. However, antagonizing Arab ‘Muslim’ allies, incriminating them and promoting Islamophobia is not convincing enough in a free, diverse and democratic Western world. Thus, it became a must to ‘demonize’ Islam and promote its hatred amongst people making such hatred rightful.
So, if the West is shooting at us because of the ideological vacancy it is suffering from, do we insist on playing goalkeepers?! Why not take advantage of such fears and use them to put our societies back on the normal social and cultural paths? If opportunities are created during crises, as Winston Churchill said, why not start modernizing our societies? Why not open the windows of Arab cities that have been suffocating with darkness and oppression and bring back light and enlightenment? We are we controlled by gloominess, while we know that the Cold War ended the major power of Communism.