By Olumide Goodness Adeyinka

http://saharareporters.com/article/east-vs-west-indoctrination-and-world-divide-olumide-goodness-adeyinka

The obfuscating conundrum in which the world is roasting presently calls for sincere mediation and de-indoctrination therapy if the entire human race will ever enjoy a blissful co-existence based on rational and objective thought process instead of the present evil we all call school of thoughts in both political and economic parameters of global existence.

The subtle mannerism and profound methodology with which the invidious Easternism and the traitorous egocentric Westernism, as untrammeled power of world view, has crept into our psyche as a people is not only outrageous but seriously challenging and unquestionably threatening to our fragile institutions either as nations or kingdoms. The attendant division it has unleashed on our world can only be imagined. Human disasters all over the world are now viewed and explained on the platform of which divide you have come to adopt in life. Terrorism is simply explained off , so are wars and social upheavals in the most delicate parts of our common habitat.

Easternism is this article is simply the concepts that postulates Eastern mental universe anchored on the external orientation with the primary loyalty to Islamism or Arabism, which rhetorically is in congruent contradiction to Western ideologies and principles that is seemingly predicated on the doctrines supposedly hinged on Christianity. Whether we believe it or denounce it, Easternism has evolved as a universal ideology completely and precisely aimed at the goal of Arab/Islamic solidarity, collaboration and identity. This scenario is not new as it was first introduced as a tool to divide the civilized world into the East and West blocks. In 1928, a political newspaper Al-Siyasa al-usbu’iyya in Egypt predominantly advances the movement. It was a derivative, not intrinsic, concept to strengthen everything against the apparently well defined, homogenous and dominant West. In simple sense, the East only derives a meaning in contrast to the West.

By 1932, the Journal of the Eastern Bond Society in its editorial on “Eastern Idea” presented a retrospective concept denoting “Asia and Africa in comparison to the western idea of Europe and America”. The definition and identity is more or less circumstantial in its derivation. Hence Easternism is a form of expression of the character peculiar with the violent battle between Imperialism and freedom, or between the West and the East. So the concept is more of reactivism rather than a sincere bond of internal solidarity. The weakness of Easternism is that it only rallies against the West rather than evolve a developmental agenda that will empower the solidarity and emancipate the people or nations within its scope of identity. This is the reason for the implosion currently happening in the Arab springs lately, because for too long the West has been published as the problem but now their people see the leaders of Arab as the real problems. I will come back to this later.

Westernism is a concept that has its root in Greco-Roman civilization and the advent of Christianity. It simply refers to the nations of the West and its influence and control over other nations. The concept of Westernism postulates Western mental world and the total absorption of its values and norm. The West could also be defined on the basis of the Renaissance, The Protestant Reformation, The Enlightenment and The Expansive Colonialism of the 16th and 17th century. Westernism is a term used broadly to represent heritage of social norms, ethical values, traditional customs, religious beliefs, political systems, artifacts and technologies of the people of the West. Whichever way you prefer to look at it, the West is simply the Imperialist world of domination and conquest. The East sees it as the evil incarnation of our world. The West is seen as an empire that employs “expansionist doctrine”. The domination of the West definitely confers on it the emblems of hatred and articles of disaffection by not so successful entities.

Much of anti-West rhetoric sees the finger of the West in havocs and destructions in its quest to the pursuit of mostly selfish aims at the detriment of other nations. However, the West believes their only antidote to widespread criticism of policies and control is the pride with which they attend every issue and the arrogance of conduct and candor. I will not digress in my approach at the topic above anyway.

Colonialism remains the single most unforgivable sin of the West, with which the East portrays a sign of solidarity to the third world nations especially with grievances on the continued exploitation of their labor and resources even at post-colonial state. A great sense of outrage emerged at the imperialistic nature of America as the front-runner of the Western agenda, with its sincerely selfish foreign policy among nations of the world. Another major scourge of the West is the cultural imperialism through which traditional values of developing countries are eroded substantially by their “Modernization”. I particularly detest it myself.

In the middle of this contest of relevance and domination are many of us who have no other means of defining our world, our existence, our perception, our understanding, our views, our culture, our history, our beliefs, our opinions, our dispositions, our tastes, our focus and ultimately our reasons for being humans in the first place. So many of us are infernally consumed by the story lines of the Western or Eastern tale tellers who presents the other one as bad and only theirs are good. The harsh reality of the extent of our rancorous and resentful discourse in political and social concerns leaves a bomb in the middle of both divide. An average Muslim and Christian have completely lost everything that made them human first before their acceptance of devotion to their avowed faith. All over, it is either one is fuelled by the doctrines of the concept of Westernism or Easternism. The acerbity of our loyalty to the system of believes now defines our world, unfortunately.



We now have two worlds. One is created by the lust and passion for control and dominance of the landscape of the Earth at the expense of peace and understanding. This world is the Western World that bludgeons its way ruthlessly through the social and political will of sovereignties. The other world is created by a severe, hugely violent, and hatred-filled, terrorist-inclined order that works in total opposition to the dominating West. The Eastern World is simply a reactive world engaged in a violent “liberation” of the world from the Imperialist West. Behind the two worlds are ill-driven agenda postulated and advanced by men that have no regards or respect for human liberty and choice.

A critical look at both worlds suggests an evil been attacked by a greater evil, and the real world stands still with winds of violence and waves of fear visited upon it by ordinary men who has no regard for God and no respect for men but eternally consumed with the passions of exterminating each other and waiting for the last man standing.

Let me come home to Nigeria now. It is so disheartening to see how Nigerians view issues of world history and contemporary occurrences. Even those who have not left the shores of Nigeria ever sees with the eyes of deception championed by the two worlds. Everything Western is evil but yet their technology and their songs are good to them. All Eastern culture and representations are bad yet Dubai is a great land to visit; their gold is good to put on. The Western News Media are portrayed as evil driven by an agenda as perceived by a man who is corruptly indoctrinated by the East yet he has all their channels in the secrecy of his home. The Eastern News Media is also seen by a corruptly Westernized man as only tellers of errors and defender of terrorism yet he watches Al-Jezeera with somber reflection in the corners of his abode.

The truth is both can be good if only balance is introduced. After all, nature itself teaches balance in everything we do. There is nothing absolutely evil about either the West or the East except their rivalry for domination and the indoctrination of extremism that is malignantly dividing the world. A man who has no intellect should be redefined as one who is passionately consumed by the excessive lies of the extremism of either world. An illiterate is one, though educated in letters, but ignorant in the wisdom of denouncing evil when seen. As humans, we have the prerogative of objectivity not to consume anything hook, line and sinker. I live in the West but not consumed with the passion of defending it against all sense of equity and balance. I criticize when evident evil is done by the West and commend when good comes from them.

The most annoying thing about the negative influences of both the West and the East is when Religion becomes intricately interwoven with it. The truth must be told here. East and West does not represent any religion but a parochial agenda. Certain perceive Islam as evil including all its practioners and will not realize it is also part of the concept of the West. Many also see Christians as the first enemy to be consumed because it is part of the teachings of Easternism. We are now at a crossroad where there is absolute intolerance and disrespect for lives and property because we live in two different Worlds of East and West consumed in the rivalry of dominating us. It is obvious from the writings on the wall that Easternism only wishes to possess a relative domination or at least a balance with the arrogance of the West. There is nothing to suggest it will bring a better alternative because it is also selfishly driven and ruthlessly disrespectful. Believe me sincerely; both West and East are just mere same identity competing for our servitude. Both have no plans for us as Nigerians or Africans but absolutely entrenched in their quest to wrestle power and dominate forever.

I heard a statement recently that goes like this “One man’s terrorist is another man’s freedom fighter”. The discussions that followed that statement brought the monster out of some of the discussants. Evil is no longer seen as evil but explained on the doctrines that pro-Easterners should see terrorism as freedom fighting and pro-Westerners should see it the other way. Evil is evil, and cannot be called any other name by any school of thoughts.

Finally, in our quest for self-control and actualization, we as individuals must cultivate the excellence of freeing our minds from the innuendoes of doctrines that perpetuates us in servitude and bondage. The West and the East has divided us for too long and it is high time we left their indoctrination. Our loquacious verbiage of petty parochial thinking should stop as we embrace a broadminded scope of understanding the world. Let us think first as humans and not as Easternized or Westernized folks.