Raihan Ahmed
In On Western Terrorism from Hiroshima to Drone Warfare Noam Chomsky, one of the most celebrated authors, linguistic scholars and philosophers of the current world focuses on the manipulation of power and propaganda by the western states. Andre Vltchek, an eminent American journalist born in Russia and the co-author of the book adds a broad spectrum of historic allusions to make the text a substantial one. The knowledge and experiences of both these writers expose a lot of things about global politics that often remain concealed to most of the people worldwide.
The authors expand their vision to behold the chameleonic forms of neoimperial authoritarianism exercised by a handful of countries in the world and the instruments the western powers utilize to propagate and materialize their principles. The book On Western Terrorism from Hiroshima to Drone Warfare offers a space to the readers to think independently and to reformulate the way they envision global affairs. It introduces us to the cobwebs of strategic ploys woven by the ruling hierarchy of the world to make things hard for others to figure out and to keep the ball in their court in all the games. Andre Vltchek found it highly exciting to work with Noam Chomsky while this book was being written by both of them. He broadly appreciates Noam Chomsky’s endless thirst for knowledge and his compassion towards the sufferings of common humans plagued by war, famine and other manmade disasters.
Both the authors made frequent references to the colonial era while the European settlers migrated to the New World and built up present day America. These references to the colonial period seem highly relevant when the authors of the book recall the blood-spilling incursions carried out by the Europeans on the indigenous tribes of America, usually cited as “Red Indians”, during 17th and 18th centuries. Lurid descriptions of such clashes between the European immigrants and the Red Indians are found in some literary masterpieces like The Last of the Mohicans and The Leatherstocking Tales by James Fenimore Cooper, an American novelist of 19th century. The torment the westerners inflicted on the aboriginal clans as well as on the native dwellers in different parts of the globe during colonial days still goes on in a more sophisticated and camouflaged style even in this postcolonial age. The inhuman massacres executed by the British colonial forces in the Indian subcontinent, by the Spaniards in Latin America and by the French troops in some African countries during the previous centuries are virtually, though not literally, similar to the neoimperial visage of the western governments of today. The idea of human rights speaks of a vague illusion in a lot of occupied territories like Palestine and Chechnya. The recent heart-breaking carnage of Palestinian children in Gaza by the Israeli military forces serves as a glaring example of the pitiable plight of human rights in the present world.
Two Japanese cities Hiroshima and Nagasaki were destroyed by American atomic bombs during World War II. It’s difficult to forget that traumatic tragedy because the nuclear race between two neighbouring countries in South Asia is still going on ominously. The deafening sounds of guns and missiles have been silencing the screams of innocent Palestinians, Afghan villagers and Iraqi civilians for last many years while the rest of the world is playing the role of mere onlookers.US drones, over last several years, have penetrated the airspace of Pakistan, Yemen and Somalia on countless occasions and dropped bombs on sleeping men, women and children. This is an absolutely wrong approach to the task of eliminating terrorism. Rather this kind of atrocities by the western forces further stimulates the rise of terrorism in the concerned states. Justice cannot be established with the tools of injustice. Similarly, war is not an instrument for bringing peace to destabilized regions. Benjamin Franklin wrote in his book Poor Richard’s Almanac, “There never was a good war, or a bad peace.” Having strong military arsenals doesn’t approve the idea of invading weaker states on the basis of concocted pretexts. The western states whose forces have been killing ordinary citizens of other countries and thus committing violation of human rights, don’t qualify to dictate the rest of the world to uphold humanism. Both Noam Chomsky and Andre Vltchek vehemently deplore the involvement of the civilized west in wars and bloodshed around the world. They urge the western authorities to act with a benign attitude towards the global masses who love peace, not war. They look forward to a world free of war, free of forced occupation of territories and free of malfeasance.
Raihan Ahmed is a Sub
Editor at The Asian Age.
Latest News