The Traditional Faith System and the Challenges of the Modern World

The text of a paper delivered to a conference on democratization in Europe that took place in August, 2003.

Abstract

While it seems a reasonable argument to point out to the dialectic nature of the monotheistic traditions in the ME, at least as far as the daily communal aspects are concerned, as offering an opportunity for integration and mutual acceptance between the various existing religious and secular currents, we should not, however, neglect the historical context which allowed for the success of this system of dialectic compromise, a context that was completely shattered with the advent in Modernity. This paper will attempt to shed some lights on the contemporary psychosis that seems to make the reintroduction of the aforementioned system of dialectical compromise well-nigh impossible. Continue reading “The Traditional Faith System and the Challenges of the Modern World” →

Empire and Conspiracy

A Heretic’s Log: A series of philosophical essays written between September 20, 2002 and July 15, 2004.

Does the abundance and proliferation of conspiracy theories preclude the actual existence of conspiracies? Or are conspiracies an established fact of our political subsistence, a fact which we cannot afford to ignore? Continue reading “Empire and Conspiracy” →

The Imperium and Its Discontents: A Few “Metaphysical” Remarks

A Heretic’s Log: A series of philosophical essays written between September 20, 2002 and July 15, 2004.

Usama Bin Laden was a disinherited man. His wealth notwithstanding, his voice was inaudible, his concerns irrelevant, his dreams and aspirations moot. He was not the only one in this position, of course. The world is full of such disinherited and dejected men. But then, not too many of them have had the opportunity to think of themselves as allies to the Powers That Be in this world, joined in a common cause against “Godlessness,” and not too many have had a taste of “victory,” albeit achieved through that old-fashioned, yet not so “honorable,” way that is gorilla warfare. Continue reading “The Imperium and Its Discontents: A Few “Metaphysical” Remarks” →

Clash of Civilizations or Conflict of Interests?

A Heretic’s Log: A series of philosophical essays written between September 20, 2002 and July 15, 2004.

The whole thesis of a clash of civilization could be approached and refuted from a variety of angles. One such important angle is that there are indeed no civilizations, but only one global civilization (western, so far) encompassing many cultures, with each culture witnessing an internal clash of values between modernity and tradition giving birth in the process to various fundamentalisms: Christian, Islamic, Jewish, Hindu, etc. Continue reading “Clash of Civilizations or Conflict of Interests?” →