A very interesting and engaging perspective “The political thought of John Gray provides an unblinking vision of the world, a perspective of unclouded realism which reveals the intractability of today’s most pressing problems. Both Christian and Enlightenment ideologies have perpetuated the myth that humanity’s problems can be overcome, that history is a narrative of man’s progression and perfectibility. According to Gray, such ideas, which were typified by the Positivist movement, have come to rest at the core of liberal political philosophies, and are exemplified by Fukuyaman assertion that the ideals of Western liberalism represent the historical end-point of man’s ideological evolution. For Gray, however, claims to this effect are grounded on a number of flawed assumptions. In the first instance, they reproduce a Christian anthropocentrism which elevates the ‘story of mankind’ to a position of unparalleled significance. Secondly, they assume that ‘humanity’ exists, that diverg...
“The West won the world not by the superiority of its ideas or values or religion (to which few members of other civilizations were converted) but rather by its superiority in applying organized violence. Westerners often forget this fact; non-Westerners never do.” —Samuel P. Huntington, The Clash of Civilisation and the Remaking of the World Order, 1996, p. 51