John Howard is in America, Donald Rumsfeld was in Europe, and it’s the final countdown to war. Meanwhile in the American homeland, the President and the Department of Homeland Security have adjusted the terror alert status to HIGH, indicating a terror attack within US territory is imminent. The increased risk is “specific and credible” based on intelligence from “multiple sources”. Meanwhile over at the Pentagon, the current level of Threatcon is constantly assessed. It’s February 2003. We are anxious and afraid. The 21st century is well underway.
Back in that golden era of the 1990s Francis Fukuyma wrote The End of History and the Last Man. He argued:
A remarkable consensus concerning the legitimacy of liberal democracy as a system of government had emerged throughout the world over the past few years, as it conquered rival ideologies like hereditary monarchy, fascism, and most recently communism. More than that, however, I argued that liberal democracy may constitute the “end point of mankind’s ideological evolution” and the “final form of human government,” and as such constituted the “end of history.”
That is, while earlier forms of government were characterised by grave defects and irrationalities that led to their eventual collapse, liberal democracy was arguably free from such fundamental internal contradictions. This was not to say that today’s stable democracies, like the United States, France, or Switzerland, were not without injustice or serious social problems. But these problems were ones of incomplete implementation of the twin principles of liberty and equality on which modern democracy is founded, rather than of flaws in the principles themselves. While some present-day countries might fail to achieve stable liberal democracy, and others might lapse back into other, more primitive forms of rule like theocracy or military dictatorship, the ideal of liberal democracy could not be improved on. (marxists)
Optimists like me were drawn to such books. I loved the idea that the end of history had arrived. I knew what he meant. I didn’t take it literally. The acceptance that liberal democracy had triumphed seemed so promising. It was now just an evolutionary matter and in the end the whole world would gravitate toward this kind of progress.
At the close of the decade, I snapped up author signed copies of The Lexus and the Olive Tree. I gave a mate a copy of this book and he loved it, as did I. We chatted about it at golf! In this book, New York Times columnist, Thomas Friedman sought to explain globalisation as a system and argued that it had replaced the Cold War system. Friedman is no lightweight, having spent years travelling the globe and spending many years in the Middle East. His view of the direction in which we were heading was compelling. The unusual title of the book was based on the following: “One day in 1992, Thomas Friedman toured a Lexus factory in Japan and marvelled at the robots that put the luxury cars together. That evening, as he ate sushi on a Japanese bullet train, he read a story about yet another Middle East squabble between Palestinians and Israelis. And it hit him: Half the world was lusting after those Lexuses, or at least the brilliant technology that made them possible, and the other half was fighting over who owned which olive tree.”
On September 11, 2001, the olive tree arrived in the land of the Lexus lusters and rather than history ending, it was starting all over again. Of course the declaration of the end of history and the triumph of the Lexus principle proved to be wildly optimistic and premature. That said, I don’t think they were speaking nonsense. When you look at the context of the era in which these books were written, it’s not so hard to understand the optimism.
A lot of what they say may still end up being right. Right now though, it’s hard to see. These days we are more likely to be figuring out the difference between homeland terror alert status and threatcon as we put our terror magnet on the fridge. I can’t remember which threatcon it is when you have to take your shoes off for shoebomb inspection at the airport. It just gets harder all the time. Now they even insist you take your laptop out of its bag. The cockpit doors are now steel reinforced and armed air marshalls may now be on board. There is something deeply ironic about announcements associated with flying “friendly skies”.
I have no doubt America will be attacked, and soon. I travel to America a lot and love the place. The American people are resilient. No matter what happens, they will carry on their lives. Life goes on in this strange jittery new world of increased “terror chatter” and “imminent threat of terror spectacular”.
I think it is correct to disarm Saddam Hussein by force. If we do not do this now we will truly regret it in years to come. On the other hand I do not kid myself that this will be any great victory. All the other threats remain and I am sadly convinced the worst is yet to come.
It’s the final countdown. We’re going on a trip. All of us together.
I have a great Swedish friend who I love to mock over Swedish pop music. It has been enormously popular over the years and there is far more to it than Abba. I was in a cafe today with a friend here and the song by the Swedish group “Europe” of “The Final Countdown” came on. I instantly grinned and then couldn’t stop smiling. Understandably, my friend asked me what was so funny. I said that song was so ridiculous and always made me laugh because it reminded me of some very happy times.
Later in the day I heard a news report where Iraq was mentioned and it was said there is a “final countdown to war”. The phrase had instant resonance. Perhaps I will never smile so broadly at hearing this song again.
The lighthearted, invariably upbeat and fun nature of Swedish pop music seems so at odds with the times.
We live in very strange times. It’s hard not to be strange these days. Threatcon, terror fridge magnets, worrying levels of “terror chatter”, terror spectacular. This is not how I imagined the 21st century would be.
We are definitely going on some kind of trip and have no clue how all this will end.
Europe
The Final Countdown
We’re leaving together,
But still it’s farewell
And maybe we’ll come back,
To earth, who can tell?
I guess there is no one to blame
We’re leaving ground
Will things ever be the same again?
*
It’s the final countdown…
*
We’re heading for Venus and still we stand tall
Cause maybe they’ve seen us and welcome us all
With so many light years to go and things to be found
I’m sure that we’ll all miss her so.
*
The most popular song in Switzerland last year was Crying at the Discoteque by Swedish group Alcazar. Especially now, people still want to have fun and escape……
Alcazar – Crying At The Discoteque
Downtown’s been caught by the hysteria
People scream and shout
A generation’s on the move
When disco spreads like a bacteria
These lonely days are right
Welcome the passion of the groove
*
The golden years
The silver tears
You wore a tie like Richard Gere
I wanna get down
You spin me around
I stand on the borderline
*
Crying at the discoteque
Crying at the discoteque
*
I saw you crying
I saw you crying at the discoteque
I saw you crying
I saw you crying at the discoteque
*
Tonight’s the night at the danceteria
The joining of the tribe
The speakers blasting clear and loud
The way you dance is our criteria
The DJ takes you high
Let tears of joy baptize the crowd
*
The golden years
The silver tears
You wore a tie like Richard Gere
I wanna get down
You spin me around
I stand on the borderline
*
Crying at the discoteque
Crying at the discoteque
*
I saw you crying
I saw you crying at the discoteque
I saw you crying
I saw you crying at the discoteque
*
The passion of the groove
Generation on the move
Joining of the disco tribe
Let the music take you high
*
The golden years
The silver tears
You wore a tie like Richard Gere
I wanna get down
You spin me around
I stand on the borderline
*
Crying at the discoteque
Crying at the discoteque
*
I saw you crying
I saw you crying at the discoteque
I saw you crying
I saw you crying at the discoteque