Thanks a lot.
Very enlightening and inspiring.
At 11:39 AM 4/15/03 +0700, you wrote:
>The Nation
>
>Not anti-Western, rather post-Western
>
>Published on Apr 15, 2003
>
>
>Having introduced a number of new concepts to Thai society, including
>"Strong Civil Society", "Good Governance" and lastly the notion of "Post
>Western Society", I have decided to make it a lifelong mission to build on
>these ideas. The task is more demanding than it first seemed since it
>might take the time and effort of so many minds in the country to
>collectively deconstruct the age-old Western ideas so deeply entrenched in
>the lives and minds of most Thais.
>
>It should be made clear from the start that my proposed concept is neither
>anti-Western nor non-Western but post-Western. It is my conviction the
>present century would not be another American century as many American
>writers have hoped for and neither an Asian century as predicted by some
>scholars but rather a multi-polar, multi-cultural post-Western century.
>
>Despite a swift victory over Iraq, the self isolating and brute force war
>reflects a declining US political and military influence in the world.
>
>The US economy, which has been on a downward spiral for the past two
>years, is likely to be repeatedly in the doldrums. Culturally speaking, a
>visible change is transpiring, be it in areas of film, music, high arts,
>sports, travel and leisure, food, fashion and beyond. China, Japan, Korea,
>India, Latin America, Africa as well as Southeast Asia have revealed their
>presence and are acquiring more cultural space. In a few decade's time, we
>shall witness greater balance among various cultures.
>
>In a post-Western world, greater equity will be achieved, in terms of
>pride and right to appreciate one another's national or sub-national
>culture. When a post-Western society is ushered in, there shall be greater
>self-respect for one's culture as well. Will it revolutionise people's
>lifestyle? I should make it clear that my effort is not an anti
>McDonaldisation but it would go deep into the role played by content,
>structure, definition, valuation of knowledge (mostly Western constructed)
>in shaping the lives and minds of the rest of the world.
>
>Firstly, material culture, with science and technology which was under
>Western domination over the past two to three centuries, will give way to
>more equitable contributions from other cultures such as Russian, Chinese,
>Indian, Japanese, Latin American and African. These "coloured people" will
>play a greater role also in the development of physics, electronics and so on.
>
>Secondly, the excessive lifestyle and characteristics of Western
>conspicuous consumption, and the belief in materialism which led to
>ecological destruction and the abandonment of spiritual dimension in life,
>will gradually be tipped into a more balanced one.
>
>Some asked if a post-Western society can eradicate poverty? In the long
>run, it will bring about greater equality among people of different
>cultures since valuation in the present world is severely asymmetrical -
>mutual appreciation should certainly rectify this. However, we must still
>apply the concept of social justice to address the disparity within a
>cultural group.
>
>Then there is the question as to whether a post-Western society is the
>sole salvation to the world's problems? The answer is obviously no. Post
>Westernisation is vitally needed but since the world is complex, fluid and
>diverse, it requires different answers to different questions - be it in
>saving the ecology, community spirit or in creating a public sphere.
>
>Deep colonialism functions through complex technical know-how in which
>formal colonialism thrived for about three centuries. Thus it is not
>plausible to dismantle it in haste. However, the deconstruction process
>could be done quicker than the construction process. This is because
>people around the globe, Westerners included, are joining this effort to
>build more mutual cognition and recognition.
>
>Deep colonialism or Westernisation functions through many important
>channels. It operates through the hegemony of knowledge and meaning, the
>control over governmental policies, and even through the controls of
>history and time dimensions.
>
>It is well known that the West utilised knowledge such as medical science,
>agriculture and engineering as tools to colonise and hegemonise the world.
>This process is ongoing, even at present. The production of knowledge, be
>it science, philosophy, arts and culture, all constitute a pivotal tool of
>the Western world more than that of the role played by technology and
>manufactured goods.
>
>However, Western hegemony dwells deep into the monopoly of meanings of
>life that goes beyond mere knowledge, be it the grand question of what is
>the purpose, the pursuit or the reproduction of one's life. It controls
>the way we think of our careers, our dreams, imagination, taste for
>architecture and design, clothing, our notion of what is beautiful, and
>even our intimate sexual desires.
>
>It's unbelievable that it also controls our view of what constitutes good
>politics and progressive society. Those who do not play by the rules will
>be discredited. This is why the philosophies of the Lord Buddha or Lao Tzu
>are not regarded as philosophy in the Socratic sense of the word but a
>religion or a cult.
>
>This process enlisted the help from universities around the world, which
>generate theses and dissertations that conform to Western notions of
>knowledge. Thinkers and academics are more familiar with Shakespeare than
>Sunthorn Phue, more knowledgeable about Goethe than Tagore, appreciate
>Hermann Hesse better than Kawabata.
>
>Most alarming is the control of what constitutes a human being. The
>crudest attempt at such hegemony is the belief that the ideal physical
>being is that of a well-proportioned athlete seen via Greco-Roman
>sculptures. More subtle is the discourse that to be a worthy person at the
>present time must be entrepreneurial, forward-looking, risk taking, and
>willing to rebound when met with failure, along with other qualities such
>as willingness to be a life-long learner.
>
>These entail the fashionable processes or re-engineering, re-skilling,
>re-learning and so on. In this sense, Americans are the ultimate role
>model, and some Europeans are not even quite qualified, not to mention
>Asians who lead life under crony capitalism.
>
>Thirayuth Boonmi
>
>Thirayuth Boonmi is a social critic and lecturer at Thammasat University.
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