Cultural America is under siege. And as the Soviet experience illustrates, ideology is a weak glue to hold together people otherwise lacking racial, ethnic, and cultural sources of community. Samuel P. Huntington More Quotes by Samuel P. Huntington More Quotes From Samuel P. Huntington The West won the world not by the superiority of its ideas or values or religion […] but rather by its superiority in applying organized violence. Westerners often forget this fact; non-Westerners never do. Samuel P. Huntington tyrants winning war Islam's borders are bloody and so are its innards. The fundamental problem for the West is not Islamic fundamentalism. It is Islam, a different civilisation whose people are convinced of the superiority of their culture and are obsessed with the inferiority of their power. Samuel P. Huntington islamic culture people It is my hypothesis that the fundamental source of conflict in this new [post-Cold-War] world will not be primarily ideological or primarily economic. The great divisions among humankind and the dominating source of conflict will be cultural. Nation states will remain the most powerful actors in world affairs, but the principal conflicts of global politics will occur between nations and groups of different civilizations. The clash of civilizations will dominate global politics. The fault lines between civilizations will be the battle lines of the future. Samuel P. Huntington powerful war civilization Expectations should not always be taken as reality; because you never know when you will be disappointed. Samuel P. Huntington taken expectations reality The question really is what will be the central focus of global politics in the coming decades and my argument is that cultural identities and cultural antagonisms and affiliations will play not the only role but a major role. Samuel P. Huntington focus identity play Critics say that America is a lie because its reality falls so far short of its ideals. They are wrong. America is not a lie; it is a disappointment. But it can be a disappointment only because it is also a hope. Samuel P. Huntington disappointment lying fall Partial truths or half-truths are often more insidious than total falsehoods. Samuel P. Huntington partial-truth insidious half Power remains strong when it remains in the dark; exposed to the sunlight it begins to evaporate. Samuel P. Huntington sunlight strong dark But then I came to the conclusion that no, while there may be an immigration problem, it isn't really a serious problem. The really serious problem is assimilation. Samuel P. Huntington immigration serious may Nationalism is a central ideology for people who are trying to establish their own states in which they can play a dominant role. Samuel P. Huntington play trying people The relations between countries in the coming decade are most likely to reflect their cultural commitments, their cultural ties and antagonism with other countries. Samuel P. Huntington ties country commitment Democracy is premised, in some measure, on majority rule, and democracy is difficult in a situation of concentrated inequalities in which a large, impoverished majority confronts a small, wealthy oligarchy. Samuel P. Huntington oligarchy majority-rule democracy Many more people in the world are concerned about sports than human rights. Samuel P. Huntington rights sports people I think fundamentalism is this radical attitude toward one's own identity and civilization as compared to other people's identities and cultures. Samuel P. Huntington attitude civilization thinking In the coming decades, questions of identity, meaning cultural heritage, language, and religion will play a central role in politics. Samuel P. Huntington roles identity play Some Westerners […] have argued that the West does not have problems with Islam but only with violent Islamist extremists. Fourteen hundred years of history demonstrate otherwise. Samuel P. Huntington islam doe years Global politics remains extremely complex and countries have different interests, which will also lead them to make what might seem as rather bizarre friends and allies. Samuel P. Huntington allies different country Hispanics speak Spanish or Portuguese, which are languages we Americans are familiar with, so it doesn't seem to pose the same types of problems as Arabic-speaking Muslims do in Europe. Samuel P. Huntington language problem europe Every civilization sees itself as the center of the world and writes its history as the central drama of human history. Samuel P. Huntington writing drama civilization The argument now that the spread of pop culture and consumer goods around the world represents the triumph of Western civilization trivializes Western culture. The essence of Western civilization is the Magna Carta, not the Magna Mac. The fact that non-Westerners may bite into the latter has no implications for their accepting the former. Samuel P. Huntington essence civilization culture
