{This} whole book…has been written under the influence of a kind of religious awe produced in the author’s mind by the view of that irresistible revolution which has advanced for centuries in spite of every obstacle and which is still advancing in the midst of the ruins it has caused. – Alexis De Tocqueville, Democracy In America
Alexis De Tocqueville was a French writer who traveled the United States in the early 1800’s. Democracy In America was the result. Like most historical periods, it was an interesting time. The American economy, transformed by the War of 1812, was depending less on European imports and more on its own production. America was also expanding to the west and there was the influence, still felt, of President Andrew Jackson.
Us humans are very predictable. Throughout our history we have advanced at the same time we have destroyed and we have always regarded today’s thought as one of mankind’s most perceptive insights into our Human Experience.
…that irresistible revolution which has advanced for centuries in spite of every obstacle and which is still advancing in the midst of the ruins it has caused
The irresistible revolution is mankind’s inherent need to advance itself. It’s why someone discovered the wheel and why Columbus sailed west and why we carry the sum of human knowledge in our hands.
In spite of this advancement, we still have the ruins of a world mired in destruction, greed and misery. War continues to be man’s greatest obstacle; since time immemorial our species has had the need to resort to arms.
Throughout history this need has been real, perceived or drummed up.
We go to war in the name of self-defense, sometimes when the threat is half a world away. We do these things in the name of liberty, despite the fact war is liberty’s great enemy and we do these things in the name of religion, despite the commandment that tells adherents “Thou shalt not kill”.
The methods have changed over the centuries, of course, but History continues to show that war does not produce peace, and us humans still do a very good job of inflicting misery on others. We continue, as we always have, to advance in spite of the ruins we cause.
