![]() |
|
February 02, 2004
Tarek Heggy: The Future of the Moslem Mind (1/6)
Winds of Change.NET's Cairo correspondent Tarek Heggy (see his article archive, and read his book "Culture, Civilization and Humanity") is back with a new series. I have some issues with his analysis, especially when it comes to his take on American culture. Nevertheless, his articles are always thought provoking and so we're always happy to present them here. The Future of the Moslem Mind, Part 1: A comparison between Islamic and Arab societies today and those of a century ago reveals how much more widespread the ‘mentality of violence’ has become in today’s societies. But the real danger lies less in the mentality of violence that has come to permeate many, if not all, sectors of Islamic and Arab societies than in the spread of the culture that is conducive to its growth and development. This culture is what spawns militants who promote the mentality of violence and the general climate that allows it to take hold. I believe five factors are responsible for the phenomenon: Posted By Winds of Change.NET at February 2, 2004 01:01 PM | TrackBackComments
I'll have to see the installment with Mr. Heggy's observations on American society. This is the first time I have seen his views and regarding this installment I must say he has it spot on. The one term he seems to seek, but cannot put his finger on is "meritocracy". Twentieth Century American letters wrestle with this concept from Teddy Roosevelt, to Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., to Tom Wolfe, to David Halberstam, to H.L. Mencken. You may decide the American glass is half full, or half empty. Mr. Heggy observes Arab Muslim society knows much of the half empty glass that is cynicism, and little of the American experience of the half full glass that is optimism. Posted by: West El Willy at February 2, 2004 06:58 PM Post a comment
Thanks for signing in, . Now you can comment. (Click here should you choose to sign out.) As you post your comment, please mind our simple comment policy: we welcome all perspectives, but require that comments be both civil and respectful. We also ask that you avoid the extensive use of profanity, racist terms (neither of which we consider civil or respectful), and other boorish language.We reserve the right to delete any comment, and to prohibit you from commenting on this site, if we feel you have broached this policy. As a courtesy, we will first send you an email noting a violation so you understand the boundaries. This will occur only once, however, and should we ban you from our comment forums we expect that ban to be permanent. We also will frown upon those who suggest that we ban other individuals for voicing unpopular opinions, should those opinions be voiced in a civil and respectful manner. The point of our comment threads is to provide a forum for spirited though civil and respectful discourse … it is not to provide a forum in which everyone will agree with your point of view. If you can live by these rules, welcome aboard. If not, then we’re sorry it didn’t work out, and thanks for visiting The Command Post. |