Jihadism vs. Mc World

Hmmm...for now, something serious!:)

Two weeks ago, I had the pleasure to formally open a poetry reading session that exhibited eleven different societal concepts (including persons, projects, isms, etc.). From there, the concepts of Jihadism and McWorld were presented.

“Still, democracy has always played itself out against the odds. And democracy remains both a form of coherence as binding as McWorld and a secular faith potentially as inspiriting as Jihad.”

There is an obvious mark between Jihad and McWorld that made these two perceptions contradicting – carrying a sort of political conflict. This conflict elevated the current matter to the new world application and classified it as blueprint hauling a kind of confusion.

Jihad merely pictures out not only the way Middle East community hold permanence in light of their self-fashioned political process but gives us a big picture of how other groups struggle to maintain the primitivism of their culture, the ethnic identity and the tribalism. On the other hand, McWorld offers us the proposed play of the new culture. There existed a degree of possibility for some countries to be revolutionized even in the small traces of cultures, at the same time, to try stitching them as one. McWorld gives rise to the postmodern concepts such as consumerism, globalization, homogeneity and capitalism which simply leave us words of promises. Basically, Jihad vs. McWorld caters the idea of realizing that the new world is actually in a state of odds between the projected engagement of contemporary rationality and the preservation of religious primitivism, which are both functional in the current world.

Critics assert that fast food chain restaurants such as McDonald's are critical towards many aspects of the native, home-grown cultures in countries where they have been introduced. Government in itself is a product of belief system that is knotted in its distinct cultural template. While political institutions are entrenched in the matrices. On the same line, political institutions embrace schemes that made them the enemies of the state. Having this encounter, institutions with their initiatives, search for an alternative belief system. It should have been anticipated that both actors catch up with each other.

Looking for enough reasons why this situation happened is reinforced by the constant increase of incidence involving radical religious movements such as the emergence of cults, individualistic groups and other religious organizations advocating for cultural refinement. But momentarily, political institutions cannot jive on the planned intrusions of McWorld creating a dilemma that bolstered other belief systems to be accustomed once and for all. Muslims and other groups experiencing separatism felt that they are dehumanized. The humanization in all fairness crafted both by the government and social forces is not enough to satisfy these political institutions to finally decide to live in virtue of McWorld’s newly-built lifestyle. Taking into account the function of government, the whole cultural logic is truly dependent on it.

Speaking to deep, there are at least two fates that may happen given this decisive situation. The first is for these political institutions to finally surrender and allow retribalization process to occur but of course, this statement is easier said than done. It can actually trigger humankind to war and bloodshed.

The second is being instinctive for us to let the onrush of economic and ecological forces that command incorporation and standardization of the world with all being “fast” – (fast music, fast computers, and fast food—with MTV, and McDonald's) urging nations to weave complex webs of arrangements into one commercially homogeneous association bombarded or tied together by technology, communication and other factors.

Professor J. Ponsaran (UP Manila) has pointed out that the country suffers "identity crisis", the same case (for us to practice our own culture, or just adapt Western stuff). The seemingly “magnetism” of the clashing ideas of tribalism and globalization continue to flourish, even here in the Philippines.