Dmitry Furman Obshchaya Gazeta, No. 40, October 4, 2001, p. 1
A global order is presented as the only alternative to an inevitable apocalypse. Countering the risk of disasters similar to Chernobyl catastrophe, the Kursk sinking, regular oil leaks from tankers, must be international – just as the threats posed by them are international.
The terrorist attacks in the US resemble a first attack of a disease, which has for long been progressing in an organism, and felt even as a common ailment but has not been realized. Now the disease has crossed the barrier and one cannot disregard it anymore. Tremendous destructive abilities of terrorist groups seem to be one manifestation of our “man-made fragility.”
As is seen more or less clearly what the disease is about, it is also clear where doctors and pills must be sought. We would not reject equipment, and would not stop the “globalization.” The only way is to seek for a rescue in the source of dangers – the aforementioned equipment and “globalization.”
Hotbeds of terrorism may appear again and again. In the long run, it makes no sense destructing the existing terrorist networks and admit at the same time that the national authorities, which frequently follow extremely narrow and self-interested motifs, would create new hotbeds of terrorism wherefrom it would afterwards spread worldwide. If combating terrorism must be a cause of the entire “civilized humanity,” prevention of “terrorist-caused situations” like those in Chechnya or Palestine must also be the cause of the entire “civilized humanity.” Moreover, fragility of our world displays itself not in perils of the terrorism alone. Countering the risk of disasters similar to Chernobyl catastrophe, the Kursk sinking, regular oil leaks from tankers, must be international – just as the threats posed by them are international.
Thus, it is clear that a creation of a whole system of world power, which would finally finish in establishing a united world state, can be the only response to global threats posed to the rallying and fragile world. This is a clearly outlined agenda of the 21st century. The making of it is underway already. Court-martials in Yugoslavia and Rwanda, arrests of Lazarenko, Pinochet and Borodin, various “inspections” of the UN, OSCE, and the Council of Europe, NATO’s operation in Kosovo and many other examples – are numerous and diverse manifestations of this process. However, terrorist attacks on Washington and New York would become its powerful moving force. It was not the US the terrorists delivered the most dreadful strike on. On the contrary, the US’s role as a leading power in the cause of combating the world terrorism is even likely to increase now. Terrorists delivered a blow on the principle of non-intervention in the interior affairs and the state sovereignty. At the time even we, who had painfully perceived NATO’s actions in former Yugoslavia, do not mind against actions in “sovereign Afghanistan” and “intervention” into its “interior affairs.”
The process of establishing an integral world system of power would be accelerated now. However, it would still be a long-lasting and painful process of “detecting” principally new forms of legal order and organization, which would clash with colossal and diverse resistance.
Finally, this process must result in appearance of a worldwide democratic society, where the principle “one person – one vote” would be realized. A similar society alone complies with our values and such a society alone can provide for a real stable order. Even though the final target can be like this only, the process of establishing a world state envisages elements of paternalism and dictate, and the liberal minority, imposing the standards which, in case they are not observed, would bring to cessation of all. The civilized humanity must now inevitably assume the authoritative role of a policeman, a teacher, and of a “civilizer.” No other way exists and, as we see, now the “civilized” states with the US at the head have been making decisions of the future of Afghanistan, at best seeking for advice of individual “civilized” Afghans. Very importantly is to keep in mind that the “value” of an Afghan’s personality is worth that of an American or an Englishman, and that finally this principle must obligatorily be shaped legally.
“Civilized” humanity has entered the path at which they would have to combine incompatible, to go against their own principles without disavowing them and keeping them in mind. This is a path at which it is very easy to be “carried away” with the position of one’s leadership and dictate and yield to a natural yearning to ensure it; it is also very easy to “mix” the task of humanity’s survival with one’s own profits, rescue of global civilization with saving General Motors. It is the way, which requires colossal endurance, intellectual honesty, a difficult-to-obtain mixture to be ready to claim responsibility and realization of one’s own narrow-mindedness. It is a long and difficult path, which would occupy the whole of the century, which has begun with such scary events. However, there is merely no other way and we have already treaded on this path. It is not that we cannot follow it, since there is a sole option to establishing a world order and world power – an apocalypse, the rehearsal of which we could watch on TV.
