The Silence of the West...

I’m not certain that we, the ‘ordinary’ folk, the ‘men and women on the street’, the ‘working class’, the populace, the constituents, the ‘bourgeoisie’, the proletariat, the ‘burgherdom’, we ‘commoners’ and citizens, can have any faith in our elected officials and representatives any more.

Not only is our goodwill challenged but it is wearying and noticeably wearing exceedingly thin, and the worst aspect of that state of affairs is that we have no redress, nobody to complain to, and in most cases, nobody who will genuinely and with some empathy and compassion, listen to us. How has that happened in democratic environments? How has it happened, particularly in the West, where wars and conflicts have largely been suborned by the woke movement?

It doesn’t matter whether our fears and concerns are real or imagined, they must be heard, because they deserve to be heard. It is clear that without the societal imperatives driven by the Islamic faith that so emphatically influences the moderate perspectives of the Sultanate of Oman, their counterparts in the Western populace are finding simply ‘being heard’, beyond their influence, and while this situation is not ‘catastrophist’, a term used by Ross Douthat of The New York Times, identifying, if not the current situation, its possible consequences.

Now, I am not advocating anarchy, but something meaningful needs to be said, seen, and done, if the political entities of the West are to be even vaguely representative of their people, because from where I stand, it’s not happening right now. The silent majority is beginning to make itself heard. It’s not a chorus, a clarion call or a ‘call to arms’ of any description yet, but dissatisfaction is rife and growing. But how do you get their attention, due to the challenges facing Western societies, yet cannot, or will not, hear the reason and sense from their people. If they are looking, they don’t see, and if they are listening, as Simon and Garfunkel paraphrased... they aren’t hearing.

Europe has become, not only ‘post-Christian’ in its societal stance towards issues such as abortion, assisted death and a disturbing passivity towards drug-taking, fuelling a disturbingly facile morality. The Americas meanwhile face several similar issues upon which can be seen entrenched attitudes and deep division. Just think gun control! I feel this brand of liberalist thinking was fuelled by prosperity, with an underlying need for faith and morality, but now, today, I’m not so sure, given that China was never a flagbearer for faith ideologies.

Western morality currently appears to mean no morality, as it seems it has come full circle from the imperatives of the Crusades and will collectively step over anyone in its way, to get what it wants. Along the way, the West has alienated much of the support it had, and respect it held, internationally. It has been said that, “The West has no compassion with which to inspire morality, believing that wealth is enough”, so it shouldn’t make the mistake of thinking the disintegration of the British Empire and Commonwealth, for example, are steps away from the Empire and monarchy, when they are quite clearly steps towards greater dignity, respectability and morality.

To be morally strong, faithful in religion and relationships, and to be a compassionate listener even, is seen as weakness by those who, ironically, do have the power and influence to drive changes in individuals, therefore changing communities, societies and our world for the better, instead of having a predisposition towards more wealth, more power and keeping their foot on the throat of the common people.

While every culture has, at some time, been a purveyor of misery, and for startlingly similar reasons, the West, being an ideological nirvana for many imperilled souls, must lead the way in seeking, if not a new morality, certainly one that emphasises the values of respect, concern and care.