The Coming Dark Age

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Friday, November 24, 2006

Dying ex-spy accused Putin "Alexander Litvinenko blamed a "barbaric and ruthless" Russian President Vladimir Putin for the attack. Putin called the death a tragedy, but accused his opponents of "political provocation."" International discohesion Get ready for a bumpy ride in the 21st century. See also Cold war shadow disrupts Russia talks.
posted on 24.11.06

CNN.com - OUT OF CONTROL
- Mosques, worshippers attacked
- Six Sunni men grabbed, burned to death leaving a mosque
- Gunmen attack three Sunni mosques in Baghdad
- U.S., Iraqi forces sweep into Shiite stronghold, Sadr City, al-Sadr's group says
- White House calls Sadr City attacks "senseless"
The unusually forceful headline says it all: "out of control" = "international disintegration".
posted on 24.11.06

Sikhs head for the barber and turn their backs on tradition: "A growing number of young Sikh men are now unfurling their turbans, shaving their beards and trimming their locks into crew cuts, mullets, spikes and other more exotic coiffures. Nor is the trend confined to the prosperous Sikh community overseas; it is happening here in the heartland of Punjab, and even in Amritsar, home to the Golden Temple, the holiest Sikh site." Internal discohesion leading to international cohesion? Breaking down religious and cultural barriers. But see below for the opposite trend.
posted on 24.11.06

BA uniform review after cross row To put on a pessimistic, dark-age hat, this could be described as internally discohesive. What we are seeing is not really reassertion of Britain's traditional, civic religion but rather an expression of selfishness and individualism. BA's policy is of long-standing. Uniformed staff were expected to conform to the dress code, not displaying individual jewellery and certainly not putting out messages about private religious beliefs. This lady, though, wishes to do her own thing, and not fit in with the wider spirit of the company to which she belongs. It is all about her right to express herself, not about her duty to get along with others. BA's concern is no doubt where it will all end. Now other women, perhaps claiming that they are pagans, may demand the right to wear all sorts of other jewellery and apparel, supposedly in order to honour their often made-up religious beliefs.
posted on 24.11.06

Stormont attack devices defused "The Northern Ireland police chief said "their potential for death, destruction and injury is being assessed" but added they were "fairly amateurish"." Internal discohesion? The coming dark age manuscript suggests that Northern Ireland will lead Europe into a dark age - a prediction that often seems wide of the mark.
posted on 24.11.06

Rio turns to Colombia for help in curbing violence "Faced with levels of urban violence often comparable to war zones, South American security chiefs are looking to Colombia as an unlikely saviour...Rio de Janeiro's newly elected governor, Sergio Cabral, recently announced plans to use Colombian security techniques in an attempt to pull the Brazilian city out of a cycle of violence that claims about 6,000 lives each year." Internal disintegration It is not clear whether South America is emerging from a dark age during which its ancient civilisations were annihilated towards some more stable configuration or whether the continend is headed for a large-scale breakdown of social order. At any rate, it does not appear that South America will form a bastion against the west's decline but rather might be carried away in this process.
posted on 24.11.06

Fresh claims of Afghan shortages "Sgt Stephen Brown of the Royal Marines has complained his men do not have enough ammunition and equipment, and have to use inappropriate vehicles." International disintegration? Imperial overstretch?
posted on 24.11.06

Sri Lanka jets bomb 'rebel camp' "The Sri Lankan military has said it has carried out an air raid on a Tamil Tiger rebel training camp in the north." Internal disintegration
posted on 24.11.06

Thursday, November 23, 2006

PM declares Quebec nation 'within Canada': "Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper's stunning motion recognizing Quebec as a nation within Canada has reignited a debate over the divisive issue, with some supporters cautiously viewing it as a bold political step while critics described it as a recipe for tearing apart the country." Internal discohesion While the motion is supposed to keep Canada together, the fact that it is needed shows the discohesion that already exists.
posted on 23.11.06

EU alcohol ruling cheers traders "Retailers have expressed relief at a European court ruling against allowing consumers to buy drinks and cigarettes online at lower duties from abroad." International disorganisation The EU, in direct contradiction of its avowed purpose, continues to oppose the free flow of goods and money, entrenching vested interests and supporting big government.
posted on 23.11.06

Archbishop and Pope admit strains: "'Our long journey together makes it necessary to acknowledge publicly the challenge represented by new developments which, besides being divisive for Anglicans, present serious obstacles to our ecumenical progress.'" International discohesion? Or is it perhaps cohesive to recognise your differences and own up to them. Either way, this pope continues to show that he is nobody's fool.
posted on 23.11.06

Baghdad bombings leave 150 dead International disintegration We take no pleasure in this news. On the whole, we do not document every car bomb in Iraq, for it is the long-term, big picture that concerns us. Nevertheless, it is difficult to ignore the evidence of continuing disaster and hegemonic failure.
posted on 23.11.06

Afghan drug crop to flood Europe "European cities risk higher numbers of heroin overdoses as Afghanistan's record opium poppy crop floods cities with the drug, the UN has warned." International disintegration Shortly after the invasion of Afghanistan, British taxpayers' money was given to Afghan poppy growers, to persuade them not to cultivate the crop. They took the money, and grew poppies anyway. Hegemony by bribery will never work.
posted on 23.11.06

Bishops warn students over Christian society bans "The move followed decisions by student guilds and associations at three universities, Exeter, Birmingham and Edinburgh, to suspend Christian groups from membership or use of premises on the grounds that their constitutions or meetings are exclusionary and discriminate against non-Christians and particularly gay people." Internal discohesion? In his essay "the Protestant Sects and the Spirit of Capitalism", the German sociologist Max Weber described the relationship between people's affiliation to protestant denominations and the notion of creditworthiness in the USA. While opinions may be divided with regards to Weber's reflections on the protestant origins of modern capitalism, there is little doubt that any society needs a set of ides or guidelines which introduces some measure of calculability into social interactions. Of course, these values change over time and people's actual behaviour has to be seen as an appproximation. In today's culture of "multi-optionalism", there are many examples which suggests that the further relaxation of moral norms, which undeniably had its benefits, is beginning to incur certain costs, which might threaten the stability of the system.
posted on 23.11.06

Gunmen raid Iraq health ministry "Deputy Minister Hakim Zamili told reporters by telephone that that gunmen were in positions outside the health ministry building in the Bab al-Muadham area and were opening fire." Internal disintegration
posted on 23.11.06

UK is 'European cocaine capital' "Almost 5% of young people in England and Wales have tried the drug in the last year, while use among all adults has almost tripled in the past decade. Use is up more than four-fold for 15 to 24-year-olds in the last 12 years." Internal discohesion Widespread drug use was reported in Ancient China during the time of the Opium Wars and during the collapse of the Inca Empire.
posted on 23.11.06

"The world is one great city, and the substance out of which it is formed is single, and there must necessarily be a cycle of change, in which one thing gives way to another, and some things are destroyed and others come into being, and some things remain where they were and others are moved."

Epictetus 1st century AD Stoic philosopher

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