you are here: > Self > 5. Society and ME
 
5.32
General Social Trend #9:
  
  The rise of urban radicalization and extremism  
  In generations gone by, when faced with oppression, when faced with intolerable cruelty and deprivation, masses of ordinary citizens rose up against the government of the day and those that benefited by it and changed society.  
  Unfortunately, the history of revolution has not always resulted in better conditions for those who need it. Many craft dictators have ridden to power on the back of social disenchantment only to create even worse conditions than the people who they helped overthrow. Such is the danger of growing urban discontent and radicalization.  
5.32.1 Urban disenchantment, radicalization and extremism is on the rise  
  Urban disenchantment, radicalization and extremism is on the rise. However, you may not have heard it put in such a way before. Instead, certain politicians have managed to skew the message as “the war on terror”, a seeming battle between the culture of Islam and the culture of Christianity.  
  Certainly, the tragedy of 9/11 and the World Trade Center is an example of this radical Islamic terrorism, but it is minor and separate towards a growing global trend.  
  Urban disenchantment and radicalization has nothing to do with Usama bin Laden, although extremist and unwise policies by some Western government seem hell bent on making the two one and the same. Notwithstanding poor choices of words and extremist rhetoric from both sides, in western democracies and developing nations, a growing permanent underclass is watching as it is largely ignored, remains under employed, or unemployed and increasingly victimized by more militant law enforcement regimes.  
  This is the same underclass mentioned in the first trend, people living in cognitive ghettos, people living in poorer housing, but currently with equal access to TV, news and to observe the ever increasing wealth of their cognitive elite neighbours.  
  Continuing demands for “zero tolerance” by the cognitive elites as well as deliberate ignoring of the plight of this underclass by many nations has now put this loosely affiliated group on a collision course.  
  We are not talking about a few sleeper cells of extremist Muslims. Instead, we are talking about tens of thousands and millions of disenfranchised people who have lost all work, lost all hope and have nothing to lose.  
5.32.2 The forest is dry, but where is the spark?  
  Come the day that the debt driven US consumer spending bubble bursts, will see many millions of the cognitive elite thrown into the same wretched conditions as the underclass they so despised. When this happens in months or a few years, the conditions will be ripe for social revolution and radicalization across a whole number of nations including virtually every developed democracy and developing nations.  
  It is at this point that the next breed of savvy, politicians will rise up and take control, using the mass protests against the very rich, against wealthy and corrupt corporations as the focus of mob anger.  
  Will they succeed? History tells us that in the short term almost certainly yes. Will these new radical leaders have the ability to solve the social problems of nations in turmoil? It is yet to be seen.  
 
<<Back       Continue>>
 

Copyright © 2010 UCADIA. All rights reserved.