Road Blogger

Like the Transcontinental Railroad or the Brooklyn Bridge or the American Automobile, Industry, Electricity, Hoover and Grand Coulee dams among other water delivery systems etc… these infrastructures among many infrastructures feed, clothe and shelter us. I am sure there are projects out there but I cannot think of many that have been built without graft, corruption and greed. We can’t live without these infrastructures because they sustain us. Also, we in our cultural rigidity won’t or are unwilling to surrender our current lifestyles brought about by these wonders.

We also believe that the world shall live as we do or perish. In today’s world we’ve made feeble attempts because we are unable and also incapable of being efficient consumers of ours and others resources for now. That said, as a country and compared to the world, we are still the most efficient consumers who at the same time have been desensitized to the suffering in the world. Just look at the third world existence of the Middle East, Africa and rural Asia. We live comfortable lives while minimizing or ignoring their suffering.

This a paraphrase from Wikipedia-Economic Imperialism in other words entities who believe that imperialism implies exploitation and is responsible for the underdevelopment and economic stagnation of the poor nations, and those who argue that although the rich nations benefit from imperialism, the poor nations also benefit, at least in the long run.

And this is another paraphrase from Encarta-Economic colonialism where colonial rule benefits the colonized by developing the economic and political infrastructure necessary for modernization and democracy.

While this would be the methodology of rulers and systems, my belief is we are institutionalized and aculturated to accept our current status quo. Though there is tremendous conflict and upheaval, we benefit immensely from doing so. That is how we can live with others suffering. Hence, we indirectly take part this continuance of Economic Imperialism and Economic colonialism because it serves our self interest. Until an economic equilibrium is attained by the third world, tragedies like the ones in the Middle East will continue for us and the other people of the world...It is in our history that we will not leave nations with the resources we thirst for-alone. It is another form of manifest destiny we as a nation have so embraced. It is overwhelming and it is amoral like the Tsunami or Katrina. How arrogant is it of us to believe that we have created and live in a system that is without tragedy. How many of us really live conscious lives and live our convictions. There are those few but I maintain this most powerful system we live in silences those voices and continue its gobbling of others in its overwhelming path until it finally uses up its resources and dies or until a newer better system replaces it.

The other nations, with different cultural and religious backgrounds are unwilling to give up their way of life too without a fight. Yet, it is my opinion that in the long run they don’t have the resources or the information technology etc... to fight today’s economic colonialism and imperialism. Right now it is overt but soon as we establish economic infrastructures there, it will be easy to gut these different ways of life. While the battles continue, the death of these ways of life is inevitable.

Yes we live in these overwhelming and turbulent events. Yes we shall stand by our convictions or think that we do and yes we can engage in these realities. And yes at the same time while we live in these systems, we must remember that our life is nothing but the meaning we give it inspite of our hardships and how tragic it may be for us and others.