Newspaper Page Text
December, 1978 - New National BLACK MONITOR
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A Close-Up View Os Third World Events"
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A FOCUS ON “THE LIMITS OF
j WORLD TECHNOLOGY”
Throughout most of the world, during
•W our present century, there has been a grow-
O" ing—and almost unlimited —conviction
that what the world needs most is more
technology.
Such a technocratic “world view” might
Im have been subjected to some rigorous
scrutiny by the world’s philosophers,
OS historians and theologians. These are the
groups of men and women to whom we
• turn for guidance as to the large and small
lessons to be culled or gleaned from his
jßJ tory. It is from them that we normally seek
both appraisals and guidance when it
comes to a question of what kind of com-
EJ mitment or investment ought to be made in
■ a major new trend or possibility in world
events.
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■H It has always been true that men have
|M looked to the unknown with excitement
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Page 4
and with a kind of reverential awe. Rural,
or pre-technological, mankind is said to
have worshipped the unknown. Urban, or
technological, mankind is said by contrast
to seek to control the unknown and to bend
it to mankind’s ends.
From a philosophical point of view,
technology—as seen and depicted here—
places mankind at the center of the uni
verse. Theologically, it would be said
that—in our currently evident technological
craze—man has been the lord of all things—
that mankind equates itself with God. This
is thoroughly inconsistent with the main
stream of mankind’s wisdom inherited
from the ages.
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It may be said that most.of the world
has tended to resist our twentieth century
concept of technology, largely or chiefly
because it has conflicted with their concep
tion of what is the proper realm for man to
work and be at home. To the twentieth
century technological mind-set, this has
been called or labelled (and somewhat
flippantly dismissed) as ignorant super
stition.
The technologically oriented nations
have said in effect to the so-called “emerg
ing” or Third World nations: “What you
need is more advanced technology... like
ours.. .pure and simple! With more tech
nology you would become rich, powerful
Are you supporting your Congressional Black Caucus and other liberation efforts?
and superior like we are.”
But the Third World community has
continued in its resistance, although bow
ing to the many pressures of the powerful
nations and succumbing at times to the
wiles of national vanity.
*
A black American visitor to the Taj
Mahal in India some years ago was asked
what he thought of India’s great contribu
tion to “The Seven Wonders of the
World.” The black man replied that the
Taj Mahal itself was awesome. Then he
continued his comment with the techno
logically-oriented question: “But why is it
that right here, in view of this world re
nowned monument to India’s glory, you
still have the primitive tragedy of open
sewers?”
Unwittingly, the black American had
raised a “white man’s” technocratic type
of question. The Indian host’s reply was
calm and self assured.. but devastating.
“We close a goodly number of our
sewers,” he stated, “under pressure from
your country and from some European
interests. But we resist it. It is unnatural. It
is not good for us nor for the world.
“When we leave our sewers open to
drain steadily into the earth and to encour
age natural decomposition, we sometimes
—but very rarely—encounter ill effects
among a relatively few people.
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“But when sewers are ‘closed,’ like
yours, in your highly technological and
ultra-modernized world, you slowly kill the
natural life and human usefulness of the
lakes and streams, the rivers and the seas.
“You Americans, with one-eighth of the
world’s population, account for nearly one
half of the destruction of our oceans and
our air. You call this ‘technological ad
vancement.’ But we view it differently. So
much of your technology brings you and
the European community temporary con
veniences. But for the world’s elements it
means slow but sure destruction. It flies in
the face of the inherited wisdom of the
world.”
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What is suggested here is that, in the
mind of much of the Third World—the
peoples of Asia, Africa, South America
and the Caribbean—“technological ad- pQ
vancement” is not only a non-priority item,
but it is also overtly and covertly resisted
wherever possible. 1
As little as we like to give press space to
such problems, much of the resistance to
such “nobly-conceived” efforts as the
Peace Corps is but a logical resistance to .
what many among the emerging nations—
whether rightly or wrongly—have perceived W
as empty or unabashed arrogance. M 4
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Among the American Indians (or Native ■
Americans) there is a saying which goes: ,
“Old men for counsel; young men for
war.” It is a conviction throughout most of ■
the Third World peoples that inherited
wisdom must take at least some measure of
precedence over the circumstances of the
moment. The elders are those who reflect
upon and are the keepers and interpreters
of that wisdom.
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Hence, the imposition of “technological M
advancement,” while often enough of a
bitter or difficult pill to swallow, is seen as
being accompanied by what amounts to no
less than a “double insult” to many tradi- '
tion-minded Third World peoples when
youthful “specialists” from abroad appear (0
to flaunt the decision-making dignity and
the wisdom of the elders.
Behind so much of what is said here is ||||
the feeling or sense that our highly prized HK
twentieth century technological world rep- I ''
resents a deviant phenomenon in man-
•••••••••••• (Continued on page