Various Veins
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We are lucky that a few men and women live long enough to experience life's lessons and to reach advance years with their minds sharp enough to share that experience.
One of those writers was Bertrand Russell. He wrote two books about western philosophy. The second one, "Wisdom of the West" is especially important because it's the last that could be filtered through one mind. Philosophy, like so many objects of study has sprouted too many branches for one mind to master. Even Russell knew he couldn't summarize eastern philosophy in his book. Eastern philosophy was rooted in its own cultural experience and grew into a many branched planted that has no cross-pollination with western thought.
Rudyard Kipling recognized this duality when he wrote, "East is east and west is west, and never the twain shall meet." He was right in the sense that they will never understand one another, but they have collided with sickening results.
Last week's slaughter of children and their teachers in Pakistan leaves us asking why!
A new book that parallels Russell's offers some answers. Henry Kissinger, 91 years old, has lived through the flight of Jews from Germany. In his adopted homeland he studied enough to be able to advise presidents through many wars. He confesses that like most youth he thought he could solve the problems of the world. His place among leaders enabled him to talk with leaders in Russia, China and other nations, to learn what shaped their agendas. He knows he can't solve the problems of world order. He can only offer to open the eyes and minds of leaders who must deal with an unknown future. The shortening of attention span is a swamp they will have to face, like Frodo in Lord of the Rings.
Kissinger tells us one source of failure to achieve agreement among tribes and nations. Each group has believed and still believes its sense of identity is the true one. Everyone else is a barbarian.
When Marco Polo visited China he was employed by Khublai Khan as an envoy. Chinese emperors always believed they were gods at the centre of the earth. They didn't try to make others into Chinese, they simple proved it was in their best interest to send tribute to the holy city. When a leader from barbaric lands defeated the emperor he couldn't change the Chinese culture. He became Chinese.
The emperor of Japan was still considered by his people to be divine in the second world war. Two gods living so near one another made for interesting times in Asia.
The massacre of Tutsis by Hutus in Africa is an to answer why the children were gunned down in Pakistan. The Hutus called the Tutsis cockroaches. No problem to crush an insect in any phase.
Kissinger divides the source of wars between different religious beliefs and empire building. He sees a new force in the search for world peace arising from the constitution of the United States. The leaders adopted what they saw as God's plan to bring order and world peace. Freedom, equality, humans rights were to be achieved by spreading democracy.
Making democracy the means of achieving acceptance of principles was a mistake. It doesn't anticipate what happened in Egypt so lately. Any tool can be wielded to suit the hands that hold it.
Kissinger doesn't try to predict the ultimate effects of electronic communication beyond its shortening the view of history to the latest tweet. He sees it as a tool to be used for good or evil.
Marshall McLuhan would drink to that.