A Hegemony of Ideas?

Despite its subtitle, the authors focus is on explaining 19th and 20th century world history. Tutoring without condescension, he explains fundamentals of historical interpretation, and how democracy, free markets, and peace emerged as unchallenged principles for governance and international relations following the end of the cold war. The legacy of the Cold War is the historical demonstration of the failure of communism, in any incarnation, to deliver what people generally expect governments to deliver - peace, order, and material well-being. A whirlwind world tour examines the status of the implementation and acceptance of these ideas in various regions, and the risks remaining. Despite the verdict of history, there are holdouts - notably China and the mid-East - and resistance to full implementation. The biggest risk to world peace is found in China, where the potential for war over the status of Taiwan is unmitigated by Chinas participation in the global economy. But the author also worries over the possibility of failure in the "core region" of the world, for example rejection of free trade for protective tariffs and quotas for domestic political reasons could send the world back to the conflicted and warlike condition driven by defeated ideas.

Disappointment - the author dismisses the Islamic challenge to the Western world because they offer no viable alternative. Rule by religious elites not chosen democratically - including a cluster of values such as dispute resolution thru trial by combat on a national scale, economic policy reduced to trading for short-term profit without long-term investment - these ideas appeal not because they reject the West and its ideology. The indigenous peoples of the Islamic world believe that ideals of personal submission to Gods will, governmental enforcement of His laws, and restoration of the cultural dominance of these values transcend and triumph over ideas put forth in this book. China may fight a war for rational, if poorly thought-out reasons. But the dragons lair of Middle East politics has sucked us into wars for causes that can only be understood outside the authors framework. Thus the authors historical treatise falls far short. Peace, democracy, and free markets are rooted in Judeo-Christian values. Why did they fail in the 7th and 8th centuries, and what will prevent a recurrence in the 21st? Without this analysis the story is incomplete. The authors conclusion that these ideas have achieved hegemonic status rings empty.