Kishore Mahbubani’s The New Asian Hemisphere: A book that every AU student - and every American - should read.

I have just finished reading one of those special books that provides a new lens through which to view the world and crystalizes thoughts previously held, but not crisply structured. It is intended for general readers and refreshingly devoid of international-relations academic jargon. Its author, a long-serving Singapore diplomat is founding Dean of the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy. Regular Dormgrandpop readers will know that my recent international travels included a two week stay in Singapore and that Singapore will be my home for this coming Spring semester of my Sabbatical year.

The New Asian Hemisphere is subtitled, ‘The Irresistible Shift of Global Power to the East.‘ Chapters address the ‘rise’ of Asian nations (especially China, India and many ASEAN members), the relative decline of “Western” dominance and the the degree to which hypocritical, self-serving and ineffectual Western policies have alienated many of the 88 per-cent of the World’s population who do not identify themselves with ‘the West.‘ In a concluding chapter, Mahbubani calls for a new practice of global leadership, based on ‘principles, partnership and pragmatism.’

Perhaps I found The New Asian Hemisphere particularly engaging because the author’s no-punches pulled-critique of ‘The West” and “Western pundits” highlights observations I have reached independently and in some instances written about in my blog and elsewhere. He characterizes the invasion of Iraq as ‘a seismic error, one of the greatest acts of folly of our age.’ He scores the hypocrisy of agricultural subsidy programs, disadvantaging global south producers, that are ten times greater than often ineffectual foreign assistance programs intended to assist them. His critique of US opposition to regulatory regimes intended to mitigate global warming reminds us that when addressing problems arising in the ‘global commons,’ “it is natural to expect the wealthier members of the global community to take greater responsibility. Those of us who pioneered the field of “Global Modeling” have been arguing this position, often to deaf ears, for more than 30 years. He notes that widely documented hostility of many Muslims toward America should not be surprising, since America seems to have a double standard, vis a vis the Muslim world, when it comes to promoting democracy, controlling nuclear proliferation, human rights and the value of life itself.

Yet despite the critical tone of some chapters, I found the New Asia Hemisphere’s message to be empowering and hopeful, not only for people living in Asia but for those living in the West. The future world Mahbubani envisions is rich, diverse, multipolar and resilient. The development trajectory leading to that world is one that should be embraced, not feared by the West. He ‘writes, “The end result of the powerful processes of de-Westernization should, therefore, be the world moving toward a positive destination in which many rich ancient civilizations are reborn, adding to the cultural wealth of the world and unleashing new instincts of cultural tolerance and understanding. The unpeeling of the layers of Western influence from around the globe could well lead us to a happier universe where we will have, for the first time in human history, several different civilizations at the same time, with simultaneous explosions of knowledge and wisdom. All this could lift the human condition to a higher level than experienced in any previous century.”

This is an important book for Americans to read, and especially for students at American University. You should buy it (or take it from the library) read it, discuss it and ponder its message.

'We thought it would disrupt people's commute too much."

This monday evening, shortly before 5:30, A Washington Metropolitan Transit Authority Train crashed into a second train, parked at the station. Nine passengers were killed and many more injured. What caused the crash is still under investigation, but some facts seem clear. The computerized system that was supposed to control the train failed. The driver attempted to stop the train manually using the emergency braking system. That, too, failed. The cars on the train causing the crash were the oldest in the system. In 2006, the National Transportation Safety Board had recommended that they be removed from service. The Board has the authority to recommend, but no enforcement authority. According to news stories, the head of the Washington Area Metropolitan Transit Authority declined to follow the recommendation. There were no funds available to replace the aging cars, he is reported to have said and removing them from service without replacement would be ‘too disruptive.‘ Unplanned disruption has now occurred, of course. For those who have lost their lives their families the ‘disruption’ has been catastrophic.

The crash occurred at a time when, just a few miles from the crash site, legislation to limit global warming and legislation to reform the America’s dysfunctional health care system are being debated in the halls of Congress. The proposals being offered have their flaws, no doubt, but the objections of opponents sound much like those with which the head of the Metropolitan Transit Authority responded to the NTSB in 2006. Fighting global warming will be ‘too disruptive’ of the economy. Addressing societal and economic problems created by more that 40 million uninsured Americans; by the most costly least effective health care system in the industrialized world disrupt our system of private health care. Not too long ago, the same voices were speaking out against and effectively lobbying against more rigorous regulatory oversight of America’s financial system. No doubt those arguments, too, attempted to stoke fears of ‘disruption.’

‘Crashes’ that are a consequence of global warming and a dysfunctional political culture in Washington lie ahead, and not too far in our future. They will be disruptive.

Hear our prayer, take us there

Today was youth day at Leeds Church, about which I have written previously.  Each year, our very active youth group is given responsibility for the sermon and the ‘Prayers of the People,’ a liturgical staple in the Anglican service.  As the human community begins to grapple seriously with the prospects of global warming, today’s Bible lesson, from the book of Genesis,  provided food for thought:

... Now the earth was corrupt in God’s sight and the earth was filled with violence.  And God saw that the earth was corrupt; for all flesh had corrupted its ways upon the earth.  And God said to Noah.  ‘I have determined to make and end of all flesh, for the earth is filled with violence because of them; now I am going to destroy them along with the earth...”

The prayers of the people, written by our youth-group members, provided a more hopeful supplication, written in youthful vernacular:

Let us pray for those down with Jesus Christ, who walk the walk, talk the talk and know what it’s like for all those who are down with God’s crews.

Lord in your mercy, hear our prayer, take us there.

Let us pray for the mission of the church, bringing the Hope the Faith, the Love of Jesus to all peeps, in every hood, for all time, every day.

Lord in your mercy, hear our prayer, take us there.

Let us pray for this country and our leaders, that we may all live in freedom and peace.  You down with us, and we down with yo, cause you got the back of every and each.

Lord in your mercy, hear our prayer, take us there.

Let us pray for the world.  For good will between nations and blessings and all peeps.  Let us holla the message cause together we can’t be beat.

Lord in your mercy, hear our prayer, take us there.

Let us pray for those in the House, for all those in the Hood, for all who live in the streets, its still all good.  For all who are in prison, for their families and their victims.  For all those who work and hold it down in the justices system.  For the military, victims of violence, and those who are in need.   We are down for you, we got ya back, trust us, best believe.

Lord in your mercy, hear our prayer, take us there.

Let us pray for those who have died.  For all the founders of Hip Hop gone on to heaven.  For the children of your streets no longer here.  For the Prophets and Saints before us give us your blessings

Lord in your mercy, hear our prayer, take us there.

"They have taken us completely by surprise."

Many years ago I worked with an organization whose name said nothing about its mission or what it was, “The Club of Rome.”  Under the Club’s auspices, I and a few others helped to found a new field of study, “Global Modeling,”  (You can read about this in my co-authored book, Groping in the Dark: The First Decade of Global Modeling.)  Global Modeling used computer simulation to study long term interrelationships between population, resources, environment and economics at a global level.

By far the most noteworthy study published under the Club of Rome’s auspices was The Limits to Growth (1972).  Limits to Growth compellingly demonstrated that relationships between the human species and elements of the environmental niche that sustains us (planet Earth) could be viewed as one system.  It showed how ‘business as usual’ policies could, within fifty years or so, could cause sustainability crises manifested as economic turbulence, high pollution levels, resource scarcities, declining economic output and, eventually, declining population.  Those of us who raised these warnings were ridiculed as doomsayers and scaremongers.  Vigorous attempts were made to discredit the Limits to Growth Model, though updates in 1992 and 2002 have shown that its scenarios are on track.

This week’s news and Washington talk shows brought me back to the days of my Club of Rome work. Pundits were describing interrelated crises:  rising energy prices, rising food prices, global warning, conflicts in the world’s poverty stricken areas and financial instability.  When asked if set of interrelated crises could have been foreseen, one commentator observed, “[these interrelated crises] have taken us completely by surprise.”

Those of us who build the first global models, and began sounding warnings about ‘limits to growth’ more than thirty years ago are not surprised.