Civilization and Its Enemies: The Next Stage of History.Lee Harris
New York, Middle Atlantic state of the United States. It is bordered by Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and the Atlantic Ocean (E), New Jersey and Pennsylvania (S), Lakes Erie and Ontario and the Canadian province of : Free Press, 2004. This book is about the fight between the civilized world and ruthless international terrorists who want to destroy it. The latter group, unlike more traditional enemies who desire economic gain, fights for the sake of ego aggrandizement ag·gran·dize tr.v. ag·gran·dized, ag·gran·diz·ing, ag·gran·diz·es 1. To increase the scope of; extend. 2. To make greater in power, influence, stature, or reputation. 3. and the "glory of God." (The terrorists who flew into the World Trade Center had not planned on bringing down the Twin Towers--they figured on doing a great deal of structural damage. The collapse of the Towers proved to Al Qaeda that God was on their side.) To gain greater perspective on the terrorists, Lee Harris, the author of this book, offers historical analysis from ancient Greece The term ancient Greece refers to the periods of Greek history in Classical Antiquity, lasting ca. 750 BC[1] (the archaic period) to 146 BC (the Roman conquest). It is generally considered to be the seminal culture which provided the foundation of Western Civilization. to the present. He contends that from Sparta to the French Revolution, civilization depends upon brute force (programming) brute force - A primitive programming style in which the programmer relies on the computer's processing power instead of using his own intelligence to simplify the problem, often ignoring problems of scale and applying naive methods suited to small problems directly , properly wielded by a sovereign. Harris argues that only America can play the role of sovereign on the world stage, by the use of force when necessary. Can the international community keep the world safe and secure? Harris maintains that, for the most part, the UN cannot succeed in this mission. He buttresses his case by showing how the League of Nations, started after World War I, also failed in that task--the idea that nations will submerge sub·merge v. sub·merged, sub·merg·ing, sub·merg·es v.tr. 1. To place under water. 2. To cover with water; inundate. 3. To hide from view; obscure. v.intr. their national interests in favor of international ones seems to be a pious hope. Harris succinctly describes Arab-Western financial relationships. The Arab nations sit on oil, a resource the West develops and pays for. Given this scenario, one would think that Arab states would hope for Western prosperity, since this would add to Arab affluence. However, many Arabs do not share this longing. They resent being dependent on Western technology and Western commerce and this resentment fuels an anger that is directed against the West. Whether you agree or disagree with Verb 1. disagree with - not be very easily digestible; "Spicy food disagrees with some people" hurt - give trouble or pain to; "This exercise will hurt your back" the arguments and conclusions in Civilization and Its Enemies, I think you will find it contains lots of information to consider and reflect on. ALL REVIEWS BY MARTIN H. LEVINSON, PH.D. |
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