Pundits urge that we know our present enemies while retaining our lifestyle as a basic right. They overlook the truth that we must also understand the differences between those ‘enemies’ and ourselves. Consider these cultural chasms, rooted in lives worldwide, particularly between the industrialized West (especially the U.S.) and its adherents, vs. the rest of the world. Note: the disadvantaged outnumber the advantaged >500:1.
| Us | Them |
| Birth in serenity and safety.
A safe place to sleep. Clean clothing, washed often. Medical care and drugs, even if costly. Hygiene, vs. clean water, plumbing. A loving childhood. Education as a right. Life as opportunity. A long, happy and fulfilling life. Freedom of choice. Regular nourishment, even if marginal. Opportunity, the right to decide. Leisure, ease, relaxation. Job prospects if we work hard. Freedom from fear. Religious freedom. Entertainment on demand. Equality for women. Democratic control to the many. Companions, understood and appreciated. Power flowing from reason. Protection by a trained police force. Sex as available pleasure. Better life through technology. Concern for others, of all origins. Reward and respect. Potential success and luxury. Play, for example through sport. Art and experimentation as emotional growth. Political democracy based on consensus. The rule of law. |
Birth, somehow, somewhere.
Safe? What is the meaning of ‘safe?’ Clothing? Perhaps-but old, used, dirty. Little or no medical care or drugs, ever. Explain ‘hygiene?’ ‘Clean water?’ No perceptible childhood. Education? What education? Life as living death. A short, nasty and brutal life. Choice? Explain what that means. Nourishment? Maybe. Occasionally. Do as you’re told and don’t complain. Boredom, pain. Job prospects? What is a job? Fear/uncertainty are daily companions. Religious dogmatism and repression. What is entertainment? It’s forbidden. Women are chattels, objects. Oligarchic control to the few. ‘Others,’ feared and distrusted. Power based on violence. Self protection as an essential. Sex as rare duty. What is ‘tech-no-lo-gy?’ Fear and loathing for others, if different. Silence and obedience. Likely poverty and early death. Life devoid of play. Emotional control by religious edict. The barrel of a gun. The rule of power. |
How do we resolve these cultural chasms? Have we the right to promulgate our value systems? Where is it written that we must involve ourselves in others’ destinies? Do we care enough, or at all? Should we try to bridge the divide, knowing that we face the lessons and challenges of centuries, perhaps of millennia, in bringing the disadvantaged forward to the status of equality with the advantaged? Can we afford to? What is the essence of humanity and what does that entail? Is anyone a brother’s keeper?
Do we have the will to try? Or will we be buried by ignorance and religious extremism? The choice, inasmuch as we have the power, is in our hands. If not us, who? If not here, where? If not now, when?
