For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places (Ephesians 6:12).
It is impossible to examine the history of Western Civilization without witnessing the tragic story of killing. In order to grasp the full extent of Western destruction, one must understand that the road that has led to Western dominance in finance, business, research, military and philanthropy is littered with the corpses of men, women and children who were victims of its unrelenting expansion. It is no coincidence that in the more than 500 years since the invasion of Christopher Columbus to the Americas, Europeans bearing the culture of Western Civilization have destroyed the Andean Civilization, the Mayan Civilization, Hindu Civilization, Japanese Civilization, Eastern Orthodox Civilization, and it is in the process of destroying Chinese Civilization and Islamic Civilization.[i]
Western expansion and the subsequent decline and fall of once mighty empires were the results of Western Civilization’s ability and willingness to root out established modes of thought and replace them with Western ways of thinking. Consequently, nations which once loathed Western culture are now drinking Coca Cola and eating American cuisine; wearing Levi jeans and Nike sports apparel; mimicking Rap artists and dancing to Pop music; being entertained by Hollywood reruns and syndicated, American sitcoms; and making the demand for a democratic society: economic and political self determination; higher wages and fewer taxes; along with gender, race, and class equality.
The current social unrest that is rippling throughout the Middle East and North Africa is one of history’s great surprises. Thirty years ago, fanatics from these regions were burning effigies of Ronald Reagan and desecrating the American flag. However, in one of the great ironic twists of the last thousand years, these countries have now reversed course and are crying out for Western style democracy. In fact, in an unprecedented act of defiance, the Arab league has endorsed the imposition of a no-fly zone over Libya, giving legitimacy to the fledgling opposition movement that is attempting to topple Dictator Moammar Gaddafi and replace his regime with a democratic government.
The cries for democracy in the Muslim nations have gained the support of the International Community. In a historic decision last week, the United Nations’ Security Council authorized the use of force or any other measure to protect the civilian protesters in Libya, and as of this writing, France, the U.K. and the United States have said that they are taking steps to carry out this resolution. The U.N.’s action demonstrates the traction that Western democracy has acquired since the 1989 protests in Tiananmen Square, when Chinese dissidents were rallying for democracy, and no country came to their aid.
It may be difficult for some to see the significance of what is transpiring in Africa and the Middle East, but the developments are truly remarkable. The unrest in Tunisia, Jordan, Egypt, Libya and other parts of those regions is extremely significant, because in less than a generation, the rebel forces have discovered that dissent, fueled by cries for democracy, is more surgical than a Cruz Missile. To be sure, these countries have a long way to go before a Constitution is designed and a democracy is established, but the birds are definitely migrating West for the winter.
How is it that the landscape of human civilization has shifted so dramatically since the day that Native Americans welcomed Europeans to their shores? Well, according to military historian Victor Hanson, he argues that the West has been successful in transplanting its values to the rest of the world because of its knack for killing.[ii]
Hanson advances the notion that Western Civilization has been successful in its pursuit of cultural dominance because it has mastered the art of warfare. His examination of Western warfare does not place a moral judgement on its motives for waging war. He is only interested in its ability to fight. In fact, according to Hanson, “The Western way of war is so lethal precisely because it is so amoral – shackled rarely by concerns of ritual, tradition, religion, or ethics, by anything other than military necessity.” And he does not pretend that the Western world’s rise to global prominence was the accrued result of luck, geography and natural resources as advanced in the international bestseller Guns, Germs and Steel by Jared Diamond. He simply demonstrates that Western warfare is the result of enterprising killers who apply aspects of its culture – individual initiative, strict discipline, access to an unrivaled manufacturing base, tactical adaptation and flexibility – to the battlefield.
Some would argue: Isn’t this enterprising war machine good for defending Western society and promoting its values? It certainly is, but at whose expense? Any introductory economics’ course demonstrates the fallacy of a free lunch. In other words, there are none: One man’s gain is another man’s loss. This axiom applies also to countries, to regions, and to civilizations. Western expansion has resulted in death to civilizations which had survived for thousands of years and it has triggered attrition in those which remain. According to historian Carroll Quigley, Western Civilization has destroyed or is in the process of destroying 14 of the approximate 20 civilizations that have existed in our earth. However, when we consider the untold numbers of other societies, simpler than civilizations which the West has destroyed; societies such as the Hottentots, the Iroquois, the Tasmanians, the Navahos, the Caribs, and countless others, the full frightening power of Western Civilization becomes obvious.[iii]
The carnage that lies in the wake of Western expansion is on a scale that is truly remarkable and is unprecedented in human history. No other previous world power can boast the magnitude of devastation that is affixed to the Western resume. In the five centuries since King Ferdinand issued the mandate to Christopher Columbus to “[conquer] the islands and continent in the ocean,”[iv] history notes Western Civilization’s theft of two continents; the colonization of one; the genocide of dozens of sovereign, Native American nations; the systematic rape, murder and displacement of hundreds of thousands of African families; and the theft of trillions upon trillions of dollars in world currencies, gold, oil and other natural resources. This is truly astonishing and nearly impossible for the average human to grasp.
Certainly there is no debate about the effect of the Columbus invasion. Some may just refer to it by its more acceptable euphemism, and call it a “discovery.” Nevertheless, the Columbus invasion destroyed dozens of sovereign nations, and nearly purged the Western Hemisphere of all Native Americans; resulting in the loss of their homeland, which today are called North and South America. The devastation of the Atlantic slave trade and the scramble to colonize Africa are irrefutable: Western businessmen descended upon the Dark Continent and captured millions of indigenous people for the treacherous journey across the Atlantic to auction houses littered throughout the “New World,” and they seized control of mineral-rich regions. And the current financial crisis is the result of market manipulation by Western trading houses and ranks as the greatest embezzlement in human history. In the wake of this grand theft, millions of people lost their homes, their businesses, and their livelihoods; yet, not one high-ranking executive has been held accountable for the seizure of the wealth of the working class. Astonishingly, a number of the perpetrators of this fraud are now working in the Obama Administration. (Although a discussion on the financial crisis is beyond the scope of this series, I recommend the lucid, often humorous, examination of this theft by Matt Taibbi in his new book Griftopia.)
Since the Nina, the Pinta and the Santa Maria, the forward motion of human civilization has been carefully choreographed by evil men who furtively plan to confiscate control of human government and establish a global regime that will thrust the world into the venomous embrace of the son of perdition. This fact should come as no surprise to students of biblical prophecy; however, what may come as a shock, even to those students, are the faces behind the administration that has been directing humanity’s steps toward the precipice of oblivion.
…to be continued
[i] Carroll Quigley, Tragedy and Hope, A History of the World in Our Time, (New York: The Macmillan Company, 1966), p 7. (It should be noted that although the citation of these civilizations are from Quigley, other historians disagree on the number, names and current status of human civilization.)
[ii] Victor Davis Hanson, Carnage and Culture, Landmark Battles in the Rise of Western Power, (New York: Doubleday, 2001), Inside flap of hardback cover.
[iii] Quigley, p 7-8.
[iv] See Privileges and Prerogatives Granted by Their Catholic Majesties to Christopher Columbus : 1492 - http://avalon.law.yale.edu/15th_century/colum.asp.
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