Ever since nomadic primitives, tired of roaming, decided to take residence in caves, territorial rights throughout history has been violated. This was not necessarily a bad thing except for marauding means by which the site was brutally obtained. Ancient people tended to seek out desirable land in order to settle and develop a social contract. Greek and Roman violations brought complex social and physical infrastructures to give birth to relatively enlightened culture and civilization.
Here, the Manifest Destiny in its invasive course secondarily attempted to develop modernization to the nomadic natives but they resisted — their destiny deeply imbedded in culture was counterproductive. Nevertheless, the harsh means did justify the end of bringing the greater good to the greater number. The Civil War, owing to diplomatic failures in eradicating two hundred years of incompatible culture, and , however horrendous the means, did rectify constitutional deprivation to a large section of the population, though pockets of deprivation in practice still exists. An important difference between the two is that the blacks desired assimilation whereas the natives perceived invasive means as a violation of natural right.
Had Lenin lived or Trotsky succeeded him, rather than the thuggish Stalin, the course of 20th Century events might have been quite different. Lenin and Trotsky were essentially “western.” Stalin was mired in Eastern European antiquity. Still, the Russian Revolution in principle at least was no less justified than that of the French or American’s except for the tremendous challenge of indoctrinating serfdom to western culture. Under Stalin, however, western Europe became paranoid over the threat of communism and overlooked, until it was too late, the greater threat in Hitler.
All these invasive actions have a common thread of change in spite of the conquered’s culture and inmost feelings. The new millennium and ever more complex and dangerous should take a different tack. With so many more nations spiting themselves, in resisting change to their tribal cultures, it would be far better to embark on the shock and awe of invasive diplomacy. Lest we forget, one primary presidential candidate had urged that there be a viable Peace Department.
Copyright © 2005 Richard R. Kennedy All rights reserved. Revised: January 15, 2005.
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