Clash of Civilizations

[TB]

Do you believe in Samuel Huntingdon's theory about clash of civilizations? Is the current development of international relations leading us that way?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clash_of_Civilizations

[JohnFKennedy]

If anyone wants to read the original Foreign Affairs article by Huntington then pm me as I have a copy of it lying about somewhere on my computer.

[Beet]

Huntington is a former serious academic who sold out to become a pop pundit. That in itself ought to make you wary of him. Kind of like Liz Phair going from what she was in the 90s to what she is today, if you know what I mean. On top of that (though this is just my personal opinion) he's a proto-fascist and a dangerous one. We already had a thread about his (normatively) stupid idea, which you may or may not find interesting, from December 2004, though I can't guarantee I still stand by everything I typed back then.

[afleitch]

In some regards he was right, but to claim credit for such an idea is pushing at bit. His theory can be applied retrospectively throughout history, which in my opinion makes it neither new or unique.

[Filuwaúrdjan]

Two words?

"Dishonest Trash"

I can go into more detail (and some stronger words can be used), but I shouldn't really need to. Despite that, it (like most grand theories) is very attractive to people who are ignorant and/or scared of people who are different, or who seem different, to them. O/c maybe a few little details of certain examples might be accurate, but that's not the point. The theory is tripe.