The Force of Ideas

THE FORCE OF IDEAS

Man is an animal with ideas. Lower forms of life fight and die over food, sex, and territory. It is safe to say that only Man, besides sharing with other forms of life with the above concerns, fight and die over ideas. So ideas are important. They define who we are and govern how we live.

Ideas are not static. They change over time, reflecting the changing values and, usually, the advances in scientific knowledge as well as the trend towards the more egalitarian conception of justice.

Ideas are more than just opinions. The latter are usually uninformed, not well thought out, and lacking supporting arguments and evidence. That’s why there is a crude saying to the effect that opinion is like the orifice at the end of the digestion process. Everybody has one and usually it is not pretty. Thus, the opinions of educated (thus, usually informed), intelligent, and fair-minded individuals have more substance and weight than those belonging to men and women who love to mouth off their “thoughts” without giving due consideration to relevant facts and circumstances.

Let me illustrate the importance of ideas, sort of backing up the assertions I advanced in the first two paragraphs.

Religion is nothing but an idea, a construct by Man. It gives meaning to life and tells us how to conduct ourselves. Since this is an idea, it is no surprise that there is a proliferation of religions. All the main religions, namely Judaism, Buddhism, Christianity, Islam--- with the possible exception of Buddhism---, though giving lip service to the oft-repeated public pronouncement that all religions are equal, maintain theirs is the only true religion. That is why we have competition for converts and religious wars.

God is an idea, a construct by Man. God does not make Man in his own image, as some allege; it’s the other way around. The discussions about God would reveal the level of understanding about human psychology, cosmology, and logic.

The idea of God is tied up with the now discredited idea of ‘divine right of rule”.

Women are now more and more accepted as equal to men in all spheres of endeavor. More importantly, they are accorded the same political rights as men, the rights long denied to them in the past.

Communism is an idea, put forth by an idealistic, poverty-stricken German thinker of Jewish descent. And we all know how this idea has afflicted mankind. It is still causing misery and destruction to our beloved Vietnam.

Evolution is an idea and now elevated to the status of theory. It is not perfect, but it is a working thesis and is far more scientific and logical than the twisted counter-idea, Intelligent Design, embraced by those who cannot shake off the myth which was drummed up into their consciousness at an early age.

Now, allow me to get into the idea, currently advanced by some “thinkers” that the time for naked military invasions and empire building is gone and that nowadays one nation controls other nations through its economic strength than its military might. To me, this idea is unadulterated hogwash. Those who advance this idea apparently have no knowledge of human history and human psychology. It will take a book to take on this absurd idea. Let me quickly jot down some thoughts here:

1. Economic strength goes hand in hand with military might. It takes money to build up the military.
2. Militarily strong nations can overwhelm economically strong but weak militarily nations at any time during a military conflict. Russia can take out South Korea or even Japan in a heart’s beat.
3. Might makes right, though not necessarily fair. At the end of day, brute force rules. People are deadly afraid of being robbed and attacked by neighbors. That’s why nations, particularly those in danger zones, always put priority on defense. We have to make sure we can survive in case we are attacked by our neighbors.
4. To be weak is to invite attacks. A nation which is weak militarily is a sitting duck.

People who embrace this absurd idea are turning a blind eye to constant MILITARY conflicts going on throughout human history. They apparently don’t pay attention to the current conflicts in the Middle East, Africa, Latin America, and Asia (Islamic insurgency in the Philippines and Thailand, the revolt of the minorities in Myanmar, the saber rattling of North Korea, the perennial conflicts between Pakistan and India over Kashmir, and of course the increasingly bellicose posture of Red China, not only in the East Sea but also in the Indian Ocean, prompting Australia to increase its defense spending).

Because I believe in the force of ideas, I am fighting against the quiet take-over of Vietnam by China with my pen. I am trying to stir up the feelings of patriotism of Vietnamese. I am trying to wake up those Vietnamese who are deep in slumber, and thus blithely unaware of the invasion. I am trying to remind the Vietnamese that if our forefathers had the pride and the dignity and the courage to confront the Chinese, then we, their descendants who are blessed with more knowledge and education than them, should also have the decency to stand up and to resist the Chinese, rather than embracing the negative and defeatist attitude or taking refuge in finding comfort in cheap jokes and sex-laden materials.

The Declaration put forth by several friends of mine and I and now posted in the website haokhidienhong is a gesture that some Vietnamese are not content to lie down and play dead and let the Chinese walk all over us. The Declaration is not a petition, pleading for help or mercy. It is a call for arms, of advocating for action, of exposing to the world and to the Vietnamese at home and abroad, the quiet and comprehensive nature of the Chinese invasion which is conducted with the complicity of the Vietcong who are solely interested in getting rich. The inevitable conclusion after reading the Declaration is that all Vietnamese must get united and fight to preserve the territorial integrity of our fatherland.

Long live Vietnam!