The academic observation of Graham Allison in comparing the ancient war of the worlds and the recent world war 1 and 2 and perhaps the future war of the world creates a pattern of theories and observation from the ancient Greek historian Thucydides. Thucydides studied the war of Greece and Athens in ancient time. Thus, the author of the book Graham Allison incorporate all the historical world war that shape the civilization of the world since the Athenian war and the modern-day war in Iraq and Afghanistan. When the rise of Athens and the political fear of Sparta to be over ruled by Athens in occupying the seas and eventually the Mediterranean created a defensive and offensive kind of political and military stance between the two great rivals of civilization during that time in the peninsula of the Mediterranean. On the contrary, the author Graham Allison compared the historical war of Athens and Sparta to the present conflict of China and United States that in a political and philosophical sense China is rising as the new world economy surpassing the dominance of United States since the historical war of England and United States. What interest me the most in the book of Graham Allison is not only the comparison of the many wars of the world bringing the exact historical data to the scientific and philosophical analysis from the many war analyst and professor like “Henry Kissenger” et al. Before the present conflict of China and United States, in between the historical war of Athens and Sparta Graham Allison gave more analysis of the many world wars that changed the shape of the world’s history and civilization. The hybrid war that mankind creates interlocking the advancement of technology, education, & International Business Negotiation. Thus, the art and science of politics and the countries and world leader involved in the world history of war and politics shape the humanities survival. Many classic and modern Philosophers try to reconcile the events of the world specifically in the field of business politics and governance towards the conclusive resolution in ideology and philosophy applied in politics and governance. One famous political scientist who formulated the importance of liberalism and the application in public governance is Professor John Rawls.
In his book political liberalism he emphasized the importance of fair system for cooperation. Though the concept is simple but the actual process and practice in the society is a little complicated that if we consider the concept of liberalism in a long history of politics in different geographical region with different background of political culture we can conceive that the entanglement and political complication in any political negotiation will eventually resolve to a violent international war. Another neo Rawls philosopher is the famous professor Michael Sandel who always refer his theory of society and social justice in the writings of Rawls. As what Rawls is preaching the ideas of political liberalism, Sandel use the theories of Rawls to materialize the political reconciliation of China and Liberal Capitalist America. In one of his argumentative paragraphs Sandel emphasize the real definition of “social harmony”. Harmony in a society follows the history of mankind’s world wars and order that ancient governments and even today I cannot reconcile the real application of the philosophical meaning of social harmony towards the practice of politics and governance in the real world situation. The philosophical concept of domination and harmony which will confuse the human subjects in the civilization involved will always carry out the inequality of governance. Thus, Sandel finds the concept of Plato that “the idea of conflict-free harmony leads to totalitarianism and is contrary to freedom. However, Plato’s conception of the harmony of here parts of the soul and of the three classes of people in society is characterized by one element dominating others.” Indeed, in a national and international setting harmony in politics and governance is so unrealistic given the fact that humans are naturally designed in his natural behavior to dominate. Moreover, the natural behavior of humans is not designed for harmony but instead for war and domination with other human species.
Thus, Richard Dawkins emphasize the natural character of humans to be selfies with its habitat. As such, in a cultural group of China and America represented by their cultural stories that build their nations, one may not be ready to concede politically or militarily but both needs to know that both governments can’t be a good driver for human survival if old tribal governance will prevail. Sometimes in the political arena of the nuclear age it takes every nation to adhere to the benefit of the parties like the American government and China. Gone are the days that Athens and Sparta is more of an entertainment war inside the arena of politics not physically disturbing the very nature of the environment and habitat but with the technology applied in warfare today we can say that war is not an option anymore. War is not an option but rather a gauge of political impasse to the direct human survival. Besides China and America Allison also used the example political and military war and rivalry of Japan and America. The war during World War 2 made America the supreme leader of the seas during the time of war against Germany and Japan. The contra political action of Franklin D. Roosevelt against Germany and Japan made America more like of a conquistador in the Pacific specifically Hawaii, Guam, & Philippines. What Roosevelt is doing politically before the Monroe Doctrine made the serious intentions of America in creating political and business colonies around the pacific. Thus, China knows the Trade War before the Trump administration did the brutal tariffication of Chinese products entering the US market. As what happened with Japan during world war two after the nuclear attack of Hiroshima and Nagasaki America made the country Japan submit to the terms of United States after World War two.
Would you think that what happened to Japan during world war two will also repeat to the tilting economic stability of America against China in the midst of this trade war at the moment? The next question of the many war analyst today if the world and the humanity itself is ready to face another new world war. Just like the world war 1 in Europe and World war 2 in the pacific, humanity suffer the most not the diplomacy and the geopolitical aggression of the main countries involved during the war. The last thoughts of Allison in his book intitled “where do we go from here?” gives me a pondering idea that since world war 1 and 2 humanity is trying to find congruency in geopolitics. Furthermore, he emphasizes that to enter another world war would be an impasse to every nation. On another note, a cold war would be a possible scenario, but it would be costly and longer just the same what happened during the Russian and American cold war. My question is, if they can negotiate before to divert the nuclear war into a cold war type of war conflict why can’t they negotiate for peace? This is the common inferences of many peace activist that in a war historian point of view, war is inevitable. Having said that, since the history of civilization from Egypt to Europe and down to the modern America supremacy in civilization involves always war. And that is the thesis of the writing of Graham Allison “DESTINED FOR WAR”. If we squeeze the economic, military, and political capabilities of the world and the nations involved in the present conflict of our world, Nuclear War is the end game. And this Nuclear War will lead to the eradication of humanity that we can ponder again the writings of Yuval regarding the Barbaric behavior of human nature and the theories of Pinker regarding our human nature to kill. Finally, the studies and theories of Henry Kissinger regarding “World Order” is still an unfulfilled social experiment since world war 2 and the cold war. What is the end game of our world, by war or by unity?
Trojan
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