Saturday, January 28, 2006
Rise of a Superpower
China is widely touted as the next superpower with its explosive economy growing at a rate of 10% per year and a large yet skilled population. CBC had a documentary titled China: Rise of a Superpower than ran last Sunday which I happen to miss.
I wondered how the Chinse must feel in line to be the top dog. Being Muslim, I'm more used to watching documentaries on us revolving around terror, violence, spread of 'fundamental' Islam (whatever that means), and other such lovely topics; some rightly so while others are a direct attempt at spreading hate and fear mongering.
It is certainly to China's credit and an example to the world that capitalism, no matter how much Adam Smith would have you believe, is not the only way of achieving economic prosperity for nations. If the entire world were to copy the American way of living, fueled by a concept of individual greed, only Allah (swt) knows how many 'earths' would be necessary to maintain such lifestyles. As the massive Chinese and Indian populations begin to move out of poverty, there is already fierce competition over oil, the lifeline of today's economy.
So while the Muslims were busy trying on different dresses without bothering to notice how ridiculous they look, the Chinese made their attire fashionable. While originality had taken us to the apex of human society, our change in taste has led to the current state of failure.
The French revolution, today celebrated as the Batille Day, marks the occasion when a large mob discontent with the monarchist system stormed the fortress of Bastille to form a new nation in 1792. The Russian revolution was a direct result of the dissatisfaction of the serfs with the rule of the czar and provided an opporunity for Lenin to take control.
The underlying theme if anyone noticed is that change only occurs when ordinary people demand so. Unless the masses are willing to accept the framework that is setup, be it the Islamic system or socialism or communism or whatever -ism you can come up with, it will sooner or later be rejected.
Sorry to burst any bubbles, but the revival of the ummah is not going to happen overnight. Until its 1.2 billion adherents move out of the inferiority complex masquerading around as 'westernization,' imposition of Sharia'h or establishing the Caliphate is useless. Instead of working top to bottom as is generally the norm, the best solution is bringing change at the grassroots level which undeniably will affect the whole system.
It certainly can be quite depressing to think that we might not see the rise of the ummah as a global power that spreads justice and equality in our lifetimes but that doesn't mean we can't play the most crucial role.
Upon the victory of Mecca by the Muslims, the tribes that had not taken side regretted not joining the Muslim ranks much earlier for their reward would be far less than those who struggled in Allah's (swt) path while the whole of Arabia was against them.
The wheels are already in motion with victories of Muslim parties that want to strive for the deen and the dunya in a just manner; the race is on, it's just a matter of whether we're willing participants or mere spectators.
I wondered how the Chinse must feel in line to be the top dog. Being Muslim, I'm more used to watching documentaries on us revolving around terror, violence, spread of 'fundamental' Islam (whatever that means), and other such lovely topics; some rightly so while others are a direct attempt at spreading hate and fear mongering.
It is certainly to China's credit and an example to the world that capitalism, no matter how much Adam Smith would have you believe, is not the only way of achieving economic prosperity for nations. If the entire world were to copy the American way of living, fueled by a concept of individual greed, only Allah (swt) knows how many 'earths' would be necessary to maintain such lifestyles. As the massive Chinese and Indian populations begin to move out of poverty, there is already fierce competition over oil, the lifeline of today's economy.
So while the Muslims were busy trying on different dresses without bothering to notice how ridiculous they look, the Chinese made their attire fashionable. While originality had taken us to the apex of human society, our change in taste has led to the current state of failure.
The French revolution, today celebrated as the Batille Day, marks the occasion when a large mob discontent with the monarchist system stormed the fortress of Bastille to form a new nation in 1792. The Russian revolution was a direct result of the dissatisfaction of the serfs with the rule of the czar and provided an opporunity for Lenin to take control.
The underlying theme if anyone noticed is that change only occurs when ordinary people demand so. Unless the masses are willing to accept the framework that is setup, be it the Islamic system or socialism or communism or whatever -ism you can come up with, it will sooner or later be rejected.
Sorry to burst any bubbles, but the revival of the ummah is not going to happen overnight. Until its 1.2 billion adherents move out of the inferiority complex masquerading around as 'westernization,' imposition of Sharia'h or establishing the Caliphate is useless. Instead of working top to bottom as is generally the norm, the best solution is bringing change at the grassroots level which undeniably will affect the whole system.
It certainly can be quite depressing to think that we might not see the rise of the ummah as a global power that spreads justice and equality in our lifetimes but that doesn't mean we can't play the most crucial role.
Upon the victory of Mecca by the Muslims, the tribes that had not taken side regretted not joining the Muslim ranks much earlier for their reward would be far less than those who struggled in Allah's (swt) path while the whole of Arabia was against them.
The wheels are already in motion with victories of Muslim parties that want to strive for the deen and the dunya in a just manner; the race is on, it's just a matter of whether we're willing participants or mere spectators.
Faraz Ahmed 5:55 p.m.
1 Comments:
wow- you are calling hamas a party. thats a farce
