Marx once said Religion is the opiate of the people. He had a tremendously correct point, although ironically his own theories and opinions on society were (and still are) misused to subdue the masses in much the same way. As with all religions, Marxism comes in different guises or sects, Socialism, Communism, Maoism, etc. For the purposes of this article, Communism is used to represent such ideas and systems.

The various forms of Communism may originate from a similar view point and ideal, but have certainly metamorphosed into rather different structures, at different stages of maturation in their respective societies. The Soviet methods were not something that China followed or liked, just as many socialist states would abhor the idea of being labelled as Communist.

Nevertheless, such forms of government and society share one thing in common. That is the threat to individuality, freedom of speech and thought. This oppression is almost always maintained by means of physical might and arms.

This same threat seeped through borders and infected what is commonly called the West. Many individuals believed in the ideals of Communism. They felt that free markets, Capitalism and even Democracy were not the right way forward for humanity. These individuals grew in numbers all around the world and were strongly supported by the pillars of Communism.

The West, the areas of the world striving to maintain their freedom, peace and stability, spent most of the twentieth century guarding itself against the Communist world. The two sides fought each other through proxies all over the globe. Small and large scales wars flared all throughout Africa, Asia and extended to Latin America. The standoff on actual battles between the two superpowers resulted in the lengthy cold war.

Developed society, mostly found in Western Europe and North America, struggled, but managed to keep its head above water. Meanwhile, the main threat to its existence started to crumble and eventually withered away.

Today, even the world’s remaining Communist regimes are slowly freeing their markets and copying the Capitalist market ideas. They are largely compelled to concede certain freedoms to their people. The Cold War is but a distant memory for most people these days. Even China’s government is loosening its grip and a rather well-off middle-class section of society is evidently enjoying many privileges.

All remaining bastions of Communism are fast falling or metamorphosing beyond recognition. For instance, Cuba, a stalwart of Communism, is unable to carry on in the same manner as before. It is allowing a small amount of free enterprise to flourish and is relying heavily on a growing tourist industry.

With the threat posed by Communism virtually removed, one may have hoped that the future would pan out smoothly. The developed world might have lived in peace, while waiting for others to catch up with our way of life, to develop. Could this happen or is that a naïve expectation? Immediately, it is best to opt for the negative side to answer this question. It would be naïve to expect a smooth transition into developed society for many a developing country.

The negative feel is due to a number of reasons, such as the danger of a fairly imminent change in the American economy, the fore-runner of Capitalism. It is also clear that the terrorist threat, which the USA has set out to fiercely fight against since 11th September 2001 is the big peril of today. Taking these examples shows that any threat to the world’s remaining superpower is something that the rest of the free world should and does take seriously.

The methods employed to fight such threats vary largely dependant on opinion, resource and the political policies of each country. Many of these policies may be over the top, and only some successful. For instance, the USA along with its allies has chosen to go for a full on war against terrorism. This is something that many others have chosen to steer away from.

The question of which group is right in their decision, is something that only time will answer. The history books of the future can dwell much on the finer details of this point. Hypothesising, based on today’s facts, some future possibilities can be discussed. Firstly, however, it is worth considering the form of the threat to our future.

An economic blip in the USA would throw the workings of the world’s money machine into a potentially devastating pitfall. As this is not the main topic of this essay, one can make some general assumption about it, in order to progress further.

It is possible to consider an economic downturn, a recession, to be the sort of event that can and probably will be fixed in a relatively short time period. The world’s governments and businesses would work hard to compensate for the deficiency of a strong economy and there could be a drive within the USA itself to deal with any crisis.

Within a decade of any such problem, recovery is likely to start, although the globalisation effort would have slowed down. Trade deals might have changed and generally the world’s economy would have suffered. Simply put, a recession, or even a depression, is part of an economic cycle and is something whose eventual defeat is guaranteed.

Thus this issue need not be catastrophic for our way of life. As long as each country or union of countries’ leaders are prepared for this and policies are put in place for the possibility, things should be manageable. However, there is a danger of a far greater magnitude that is becoming all too real as the days go by. This peril manifests itself in the form of a new ideology, one which has pretty much replaced the threat posed by Communism. It is known as Fundamentalist Islamism, referred to as Islamism in this article.

Assuming that a recession or depression will not cause anarchy and chaos, the free world is left with the predicament of the current wave of terrorism. Rogue groups, united mostly by religion, but also by a common feeling of lack of prospects, freedom and choice are led by opportunists who drive them to extreme action with the promise of a rich reward in their afterlife.

This phenomenon is known as Islamism. It operates at two levels, that of the individual and that of a government.

Many elements have contributed to the growth of this phenomenon and continue to do so all over the world. The very same opiate Marx depicted is the main driving force behind its success. The devout believer is taught she or he must follow the Imam’s teachings and accept his interpretation of the Koran, in order to escape the eternal damnation that is god’s hell.

It is not uncommon for the Imam to display or even distribute keys to the gates of heaven amongst his listeners whilst he asks them to become martyrs for his cause. He justifies his cause by claiming his enemies are infidels who are exploiting the brothers and sisters of his audience. His impassioned mannerism, holy knowledge and authority leave no room for doubt. His followers must follow what he says, for they are believers.

This level of organisation is next to impossible to combat using traditional methods. A rocket attack here a bomb there will is not only ineffective in solving the problem, but it is likely to further exasperate it. Such attacks simply confirm that the Imam was right in his analysis and that the infidels are truly out to destroy the believers.

A key figure in tackling this matter, worldwide, is the said Imam. It certainly is not everyone of his kind that harbours such extreme views. Many of these preachers are peace-loving and moderate. They understand the need for tolerance and co-habitation in this world, some perhaps even go as far as condone modernising Islam.

If an Imam sums up his Friday prayers with a speech on how it is thanks to the engineers of the West that cars and buses are there to transport us around or mentions the effect of the medical breakthroughs achieved as a result of research in Israel, USA and other infidel countries, his followers’ views would certainly change.

When he can stand in front of them and praise a Jew or an American for their achievements, is when his followers can open their minds, too. He must remind them that the technology to allow them to telephone their families came from the presumed enemy’s camp. It is his responsibility to highlight how the Israelis and the Americans too believe in the same god as them and follow their sacred prophets.

The individual Imam can in this way change the minds of a few and sway them from their cultural and ideological collision course with the rest of the world. However, no matter how important and effective that is, individual Imams’ efforts alone will not solve today’s problem. It is thus necessary to look at the bigger picture.

In the same way that Communism’s spread started with a revolution in Russia and expanded its wings throughout the world, the idea of Islamism too started with just one revolution. When in the winter of 1979, Iran’s revolutionaries united under the banner of Islam and an Islamic Republic was formed, the world once again changed.

Following the trend of onset of Communism, this had a snowball effect, and infected several areas of the world. The heated revolutionaries took their cause across the globe supported by their government. They exported their beliefs, skills and rather importantly guns. Just as the USSR supplied missiles to Cuba, Iran supplied arms to the Lebanese Hezbollah, the Sudanese Muslims and Algeria’s Islamic Front and so on.

Even today, despite the moderate presidency backed by a mainly moderate parliament, certain factions within Iran continue their support of such rogue fighters and groups. This support ranges from financially, by the wealthy and powerful individuals within the hardliners’ group to providing a safe-haven, training and even sending trained men to battles and demonstrations.

This help and unity is not limited to the mentioned factions, but extends much further. For instance, the mainly Sunni Al-Qaeda may not share their exact views with the Shia Iranians, but they have something more important in common. They share an enemy, one who is a real threat to their very existence. This enemy is so powerful that it can even cause the opposing sections within Islam to unite to an incredible degree.

Their perceived enemy is not simply the US government nor an individual Jewish person, but what the ‘Western World’ stands for. The West represents an entity that is a non-believer, who represents modern free living, and is a threat to their power. However, in the order of rankings, it is certainly the government of the USA and the state of Israel that are the number one enemies.

This has led to numerous people, whose identities are often based on Islam, feeling threatened. Regrettably, a large number of threatened masses will always strike out at their enemies. Even if they do not think that they will win their battle outright with small assaults and skirmishes, they know that they will be able to hurt the enemy. This is a large part of how the minds of the terrorist cells work, for they feel they have nothing to lose, but everything to gain, even if this is not material wealth, or in this life.

This is a difficult question to ponder and resolve. Firstly, it is essential to consider whether the current attitudes of both sides are likely to work in the long term. Secondly, the important factors of tolerance and understanding play a large part in progress. The later come mainly from education, a key to a better future world.

Looking at the operatives in these networks of Islamism, one can find a whole range of society, from the super-rich to the well-educated to the poverty-stricken with no prospects. These people are all under the influence of one belief, praying to one god represented to them by one prophet.

It is exactly through this same religion that the future path can be changed and a modern Islam can blossom. Only such a move can avoid greater conflict and clashes between these two worlds. The current methods on the other hand are cumbersome, costly and very risky.

It should be a fairly straightforward affair to travel down the education road. There are leaders within the various sects of Islam who are modern, moderate, forward-looking and tolerant. These are the people that should be encouraged and supported by the free world.

It is precisely such individuals as well as local secular politicians that need to be involved in the future planning of events such as the Middle-East Roadmap for Peace or tackling, at least part of, the ‘Axis of evil’.

This is not a question of promoting ‘Western’ culture in the east or corrupting the Islamic culture. Just the same as it is not a question of accepting fundamentalist behaviours. The objective is to accept and tolerate others’ cultures, beliefs and values.

One cannot naively believe this will be a smooth road ahead. The elements that encourage and instigate this ignorance, on both sides, will not easily let go of their positions of power. They tend to be ingrained parts of the establishment on either side of this divide.

However, with perseverance within a generation attitudes of both the governments and the populace should change and mellow somewhat. Tolerance and understanding should then become a normal affair rather than the exception it seems to be today.

By MaYa.

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