Continuing the geopolitical predictions and recommendations from the previous post:
Israel
In addition to halting the Iranian threat, Israel must strengthen itself internally by fully embracing its Jewish identity. Above being a state for its citizens, above even its democracy, Israel is first and foremost a Jewish nation, and it must never forget this.
At the same time, meanwhile, the Jewish state must remain unified. Religious or secular, Sephardic or Ashkenazic, resident proper or settler, Israeli Jews are one and the same. United together, the Jewish people are far stronger than when divided into factions. (And this of course goes for Diaspora Jews, as well).
These principles, I believe, are a recipe for success. For more information, see TheSolidSurfer.com's extensive Israel archive.
U.S. Politics
America also must reclaim its unity, and focus on maintaining and strengthening its role as world superpower. If America were to stumble, nations that operate under far lesser ethical and moral standards (China, Russia, Iran, the EU) would rush to full the void.
To that end, the U.S. must succeed in Iraq, help Israel halt Iran's nuclear development, and stand strong against the ultra-corrupt United Nations.
The recent elections which handed the House and Senate to Democratic control might possibly harm these objectives, but I believe it unlikely. President Bush is still in office, and the elections were far more a repudiation of Republican corruption and ineffectiveness than a genuine popular leftward shift. Indeed, most of the newly elected Democrats are moderates, and America as a whole has shifted noticeably rightward from decades past.
Strong American support for Israel, meanwhile, should also continue. For all her leftism, incoming House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is actually pretty pro-Israel, and if Democrats ever choose an anti-Israel stance on any issue, Joe Lieberman will probably caucus with Republicans (hence giving them a winning majority) against it.
Of course, though, Israel should never take U.S. support for granted, and we should all support the best efforts of groups like AIPAC and Washington PAC to help make a difference.
U.S. Economy
One other aspect of keeping America strong is maintaining a strong economy. This entails keeping taxes low, reducing governmental regulation (the government should provide an even playing field, and that's all), and encouraging the nation's entrepreneurial culture. I have written several essays on such topics, but to get a much fuller understanding, read material by such economic greats as Thomas Sowell and Walter Williams, both of whom write for and have archived columns at Jewish World Review (Sowell's latest article in particular is an essential primer on wealth and economic disparity). Also to note is the pioneering economic work by the late, great Milton Friedman.
Science
Economic productivity, meanwhile, depends vitally on scientific and engineering breakthroughs and innovations. And the most pressing issue in these areas, I believe, is achieving energy independence. Both our clean air and (especially) our national security desperately depend on it. I have also written extensively about this topic (see here, here, here, and here), but check the news regularly as new technologies seem to constantly emerge. So what should America's strategy be? I say just try everything: new energy sources, experimental technology, drilling our own oil reserves - you name it. The more we try, the greater the chances of success.
One thing to beware, however, is the lure of politically motivated science. Global warming as a catastrophe is still unproven, but that hasn't prevented it from becoming the buzzword of the decade. This is not to say global warming is a hoax, but facts are still facts, and we should always pay them attention regardless of hype.
Purely speculative science, meanwhile, can also lead to errant conclusions. Only months after reversing 75 years of research by declaring Pluto a non-planet, scientists have now decided that the Earth's continents looked far different in the past than previously believed. So what does this mean? Simply more proof that no matter how popularly accepted, science of a speculative nature (i.e. science without direct here-and-now verification) can be only just that - speculative. Hundreds of years ago, scientists speculated that the earth was flat; obviously they've since been proven wrong. And just the same, current speculative theories like Darwinian evolution cannot be proven correct; hence genuine challenges to them should not be rejected, but rather seriously entertained.
World Politics and Trends
The world right now is in a great state of transition (when is it not?). It is difficult to summarize complex global trends in only a few sentences, but I believe a number of key outcomes will become quite clear in the upcoming years: America will maintain its superpower status. China and India will continue to rise, and eventually China will democratize. Western Europe will continue to slide into mediocrity, burdened by its welfare states and unassimilated Muslim immigrants, but ultimately things will get so bad that they'll have no choice but to finally right the ship. Eastern Europe, Latin America, and Sub-Saharan Africa will continue to emerge as part of the global economy, despite many bumps along the way. The Muslim world, meanwhile, will reveal itself as the paper tiger it is once Western countries achieve energy independence and cut off their petrodollars. This will transform most non-Arab Muslim states into moderate governments, but the Arabs themselves will have a much more difficult time. They will probably continue to blame everything on Israel, but in the end Israel will succeed. The Jewish people are eternal, and as the faith has long maintained, Israel is but the first flowering of our return to the Holy Land.
You sure are going out with a bang, Surfer. Nice job of consolidating your body of work.
Posted by: Madzionist | December 21, 2006 at 07:02 AM
Thanks MZ, I appreciate it!
Posted by: Solid Surfer | December 30, 2006 at 10:53 PM