Much talk has been made of Mark Carney’s speech at Davos in which he stated that the old world order is finished and we are witnessing the transition to a new world order. The speech was filled with little titbits which sounded a lot like what people had been saying for aeons.
He spoke of how this world order was one really of might and is right cloaked in the camouflage of international law. He stated bluntly that the former colonial powers went along with this might is right led by the US simply because countries like Canada benefited from this system.
He continued by stating that with the world order changing, countries like Canada must be at the table and be heard lest they be lost in the noise coming from major powers. The speech was hailed as one which spoke for the middle powers and marked a new chapter in this changing world order where middle powers no longer hide behind the US and now act in their own interest.
Let us contrast the speech by Carney with the speech given by US Secretary of State Marco Rubio at the Munich security conference.
In his speech, Mr Rubio chronicled the shared history between the US and Europe, spanning colonialism and the end of the Cold War. He noted that the US is a child of Europe, and that while America was more boisterous, it had no intentions of abandoning its longtime allies.
The speech was also notable because Mr Rubio said that the thing which undid five centuries of European domination was socialism and the anti-colonial projects which he saw as pariahs in need of rolling back. He spoke of the need for allies to be proud of their culture and free from shame as they seek to be strong in the face of new competitors.
Let us be clear, the speeches and what they represent are two sides of the same coin, preaching the same thing. It is important to note that while Carney correctly described the old hypocritical system, he did not critique it; on the contrary, he lamented its passing and expressed worry for countries like his, which have benefited from the imperialist actions. Rubio did similarly, mourn the passing of the great empires and the unipolar moment, and demanded that allies double down to ensure that they remain number one.
All Western countries outside the US praised Carney’s speech; they likewise praised Rubio’s speech. Is it that the leaders and news agents are confused and don’t see the contradiction between what the two men said, or is it that they see something deeper and understand that while Carney was mourning the death of the old order, he didn’t really distance himself from the Western world and its aims and left the door open for US cooperation? Isn’t that essentially what Rubio said as well — mourn the death of the old order, and demand cooperation as they tackle new and old “threats”?
With the old order firmly dead, we should not believe the old powers when they say that they seek something new and different. They seek the same thing they have always sought :control, domination, and power over others as they grow rich off the backs of the global south. The countries that, over the last five centuries, have shown no inclination to act as anything other than monsters when they deal with the global south should not be believed when they say they want a new order. What they want is imperialism with manners, an imperialism that stays in the periphery and does not sully the metropole as Trump, Orban, Meloni, etc do. We must ignore them and seek to build a more just world in the place of the crumbled old order.
Europe, Canada, and the US are all the same and want the same thing; they are not to be trusted as far as they can be thrown and more fool on those who believe them now, as they cry about an old order that benefited them and harmed everyone else.
Europe, Canada, USA, same imperialist attitude
By Alex Scott
Much talk has been made of Mark Carney’s speech at Davos in which he stated that the old world order is finished and we are witnessing the transition to a new world order. The speech was filled with little titbits which sounded a lot like what people had been saying for aeons.
He spoke of how this world order was one really of might and is right cloaked in the camouflage of international law. He stated bluntly that the former colonial powers went along with this might is right led by the US simply because countries like Canada benefited from this system.
He continued by stating that with the world order changing, countries like Canada must be at the table and be heard lest they be lost in the noise coming from major powers. The speech was hailed as one which spoke for the middle powers and marked a new chapter in this changing world order where middle powers no longer hide behind the US and now act in their own interest.
Let us contrast the speech by Carney with the speech given by US Secretary of State Marco Rubio at the Munich security conference.
In his speech, Mr Rubio chronicled the shared history between the US and Europe, spanning colonialism and the end of the Cold War. He noted that the US is a child of Europe, and that while America was more boisterous, it had no intentions of abandoning its longtime allies.
The speech was also notable because Mr Rubio said that the thing which undid five centuries of European domination was socialism and the anti-colonial projects which he saw as pariahs in need of rolling back. He spoke of the need for allies to be proud of their culture and free from shame as they seek to be strong in the face of new competitors.
Let us be clear, the speeches and what they represent are two sides of the same coin, preaching the same thing. It is important to note that while Carney correctly described the old hypocritical system, he did not critique it; on the contrary, he lamented its passing and expressed worry for countries like his, which have benefited from the imperialist actions. Rubio did similarly, mourn the passing of the great empires and the unipolar moment, and demanded that allies double down to ensure that they remain number one.
All Western countries outside the US praised Carney’s speech; they likewise praised Rubio’s speech. Is it that the leaders and news agents are confused and don’t see the contradiction between what the two men said, or is it that they see something deeper and understand that while Carney was mourning the death of the old order, he didn’t really distance himself from the Western world and its aims and left the door open for US cooperation? Isn’t that essentially what Rubio said as well — mourn the death of the old order, and demand cooperation as they tackle new and old “threats”?
With the old order firmly dead, we should not believe the old powers when they say that they seek something new and different. They seek the same thing they have always sought :control, domination, and power over others as they grow rich off the backs of the global south. The countries that, over the last five centuries, have shown no inclination to act as anything other than monsters when they deal with the global south should not be believed when they say they want a new order. What they want is imperialism with manners, an imperialism that stays in the periphery and does not sully the metropole as Trump, Orban, Meloni, etc do. We must ignore them and seek to build a more just world in the place of the crumbled old order.
Europe, Canada, and the US are all the same and want the same thing; they are not to be trusted as far as they can be thrown and more fool on those who believe them now, as they cry about an old order that benefited them and harmed everyone else.
