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Posted on 11/14/2011 8:50:17 PM PST by Noumenon
Wow... best essay I’ve read here in a long time.
That was perhaps the most useful analysis in the whole of Tragedy and Hope. An even more interesting book by Quigley is The Evolution of Civilizations which paints a coherent picture of the chaos which we see as history. It describes the processes through which civilizations have arisen, flourished and collapsed. There are about two dozens true civilizations in world history. And they go through the same processes.
bfl -
“The Pakistani-Peruvian Axis
The problem of finding constructive patterns for Latin America is much more difficult than the problem of finding constructive priorities. One reason for this is that the unconstructive patterns that now prevail in Latin America are deeply entrenched as a result of centuries, even millennia of persistent background. In fact, the Latin American patterns that must be changed because today they are leading to social and cultural disruption are not really Latin American in origin, or even Iberian for that matter, but are Near Eastern and go back, for some of their aspects for two thousand or more years. As a general statement, we might say that the Latin American cultural pattern (including personality patterns and general outlook) is Arabic, while its social pattern is that of Asiatic despotism. The pattern is so prevalent today (1960s era - WD) not only in in Latin America, but in Spain, Sicily, southern Italy (Fukuyama’s ‘low trust’ societies - WD) the Near East, and in various other areas of the Mediterranean world (such as Egypt), that we might call it the “Pakistani-Peruvian axis.” For convenience of analysis, we shall divide it into “Asiatic despotism” and the “Arabic outlook.”
That said, I don't share Quigley's elitist views and his contempt for the common man. At the end of the day, Quigley felt that humankind would be better off under the guidance of a ruling class elite. I think we've had quite enough of that.
Quigley was a brilliant historian. His application of scientific method and anthropological science to history remains unparalleled today. Most historians relate facts and events. Quigley looked for the underlying patterns, the drivers of human behavior and culture.
This, of course was quite at odds with modern prevailing historical wisdom, most of which is infected with the Marxist outlook - the denial of culture or individual conscience in the role of human affairs.
That was an excellent essay. I would like to seriously recommend a brand new book that covers similar topics, by David P. Goldman (Spengler of Asia Times):
http://www.amazon.com/How-Civilizations-Die-Islam-Dying/dp/159698273X
Take a look at the reviews posted under Amazon.
It is somewhat like reading Victor Davis Hanson or Mark Steyn (without the humor).
Replying to myself here. Here’s a link to a recent interview with Goldman which summarizes his book:
http://www.aina.org/news/20111114102512.htm
Yes, I’m familiar with Spengler’s (Goldman’s) work. The man has a remarkable and incisive mind. His latest book is on my ‘must read’ list.
Question: Was this Arabic outlook that passed to Latin America the result of the vestiges of the Islamic Invasion of the Iberian Penninsula? In other words, would Quigley say that this outlook has been bread into the Latin American Gene Pool from the many centuries of Islamic Domination of the Iberian Penninsula?
Carroll Quigley postulated that Western civilizations proceed through the following stages:
1. Mixture - different societies come into contact and produce a society with an outlook different from any of the combined parts.
2. Gestation - the period of time between the mixing of the different societies and the expansion of the civilization.
3. Expansion - the surplus generated by the society is invested in activities that benefit the civilization. This can include an increase in knowledge, increase in physical area, technological advancements that increase efficiency, etc. Civilizations make use of different instruments of expansion. Quigley calls a social organization or unit an instrument if it meets social needs.
4. Age of Conflict - The rate of increase resulting from the use of one or more social instruments slows down which results in "interesting times". The instrument can be reformed or a new instrument consistent with the civilization's outlook can circumvent the old instrument. If reform is achieved, a new age of expansion begins. If the vested interests of the previous instrument of expansion increasingly consume resources while serving no social needs, Quigley says that the instrument has then become an institution. Expansion can continue, but it is at the expense of neighbors, which leads to imperialist wars. When the vested interests have crushed all internal opposition, the next stage appears.
5. Universal Empire - typically a state or political unit on the periphery of the civilization gains power over the whole civilization. The illusion of a golden age appears. The social organization remains stagnant.
6. Decay - lack of belief in the civilization's outlook or inability to meet needs of the people leads to people opting out of the system. An age of cynicism, low cunning and despair.
7. Invasion - external forces disrupt the civilization's social organization and it is unable or unwilling to defend itself. That spells the end of the civilization.
Quigley stated that modern Western civilization as embodied by America has succeeded in arriving at the brink of the Age of Conflict stage no fewer than four times, but has always managed to reinvigorate itself by launching into a new Age of Expansion. Recall that expansion in Quigley's terms doesn't necessarily apply to the acquisition of new territory. If he’s correct, we’re now out of options, and that we’ve progressed rapidly through to stage 6. As many of you know, I have my own ideas about what’s going on with respect to the role that the will to power has played in modern times.
An excellent reference work on civilizational collapse appears here: The Catastrophe” What the End of Bronze-Age Civilization Means for Modern Times
Yes, that's exactly what Quigley claims. We sometimes forget that the Iberian Peninsula was invaded by Muslims in the early 700s, and that the last vestiges of Islamic domination were not expelled from Spain until the late 1400s. 700 years of cultural domination will leave a lasting impression on the conquered culture. When and if a subject culture ever re-emerges, it will not be the same; it will have taken on some aspects of the subjugating culture.
Thank you very much!
You might find this interesting...
Thank you my friend.
Most likely ... now all I need to “find” is time to read it. ;-P
I remember someone here within the last week-or-so telling of having spent some time working in Saudi Arabia.
His work crew of locals, as a result of generations of inbreeding, all had some combination of one or more of bad eyes, bad ears, or bad kidneys.
Many most-likely feeble-minded, too.
Every strip mall had a hearing-aid store, an eyeglass store, and a kidney-dialysis center.
If demography is indeed destiny, then the West is in danger of succumbing to a horde of pathologically cruel and inhumane genetic defectives.
Oh, my. Was I just politically incorrect?
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