Last night while driving I listened to a program on Espace 2 about de-colonisation in Cameroun (Histoire vivante). It was very stormy outside, half snow half rain, and tons of snow blowing down from trees and I began to feel sick - then I realized it was the stories and voices of Western colonial masters and the excruciating disregard to human rights and dignity that made me feel sick. At the same time it was enlightening to hear about differences in legacies of colonialism. Recently I was reading Jean Ziegler's "La haine de l'occident". The demands for reparation is a real but relatively minor issue when you consider the wrongs done by Western arrogance to people all over the world. The West's favored vilains are Stalin, Hitler and Pol Pot. Yet it seems that it may be brought to realize that its own modern and post-modern ways has created as many victims in as cruel ways as those by well known dictators. Sure it's different, but one of the key elements of the distain found in non-Western cultures are the Western double-standards. The financial crisis may very well be a contribution in enlightening the world on how real progress is being hindered by greed, arrogance, and double-standards. Violence in short, not necessarily physical, but by neglect, deprivation and pressure or threats.
I do believe that real progress is possible when people both in the North, West, South and East realize they depend on each other and develop real regard and respect for each other, putting that before national or corporate interests.
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