Under the enlightenment of the Science of Networks, one may view
the world, and especially, world history rather differently. First of all, it is traditionally
assumed that the great successes in history must have been proportional to the efforts or
merits of the makers. This may not be so. Instead, it is very often a question of being at
the right place and at the right time. For example, the thirteen weeks of mass
demonstrations in Leipzig, the then East Germany in 1989 that very quickly led to the dismantling of the infamous Berlin Wall on 10th November, 1989 is a case in point. The
repressive communist regime in the former East Germany had been in power for over four
decades since the end of World War II. There had been a number of far more violent
rebellions that did not succeed in even rocking the regime. The fact that the Leipzig mass
demonstrations ultimately succeeded merely pointed to the fact that the time was right for
a change within the larger political climate in Europe resulting from Gorbachev's political
reforms in the then USSR.
Secondly, the purpose of studying history is to learn from past mistakes to prevent future recurrence and, if possible, to improve on the ways things are to be done in future. Therefore, it is not enough just to examine the materialized portion of history but also to assess what could have happened to explore other better alternatives. From this analysis, we will appreciate that there is an existing bias in favour of the actual historical outcomes. The reader will be given a deeper analysis on this later in chapter (x), in the section- Of Destiny and Destination. It is always easy to be wise after the facts. Such lopsided view of history has to be modified in the light of the useful researches produced by the Science of Networks. This is because of the importance of the initial conditions or sum of history of the system up to a particular point in time. Slight changes in the initial conditions at any point can radically alter the subsequent course of history of that system. The reader should recall Edward Lorenz's weather systems which led him to the discovery of the Theory of Chaos.
Thirdly, the concept of Information Cascades leads us to the conclusion
that initial conditions that may not be very conspicuous can have a dramatic effect on the outcomes of an evolving system when viewed in hindsight . As a result, all factors under examinination should be assessed in the context of the structural conditions of the network as a whole. In other words, special attention should be paid to the existence or imminent appearance of Critical Thresholds or Synchronized States.
Before history has come to pass, it is rarely possible to predict the outcome of any given set of circumstances. It is the general consensus reached by the collective opinions of the majority that will win over the day. Owing to this only reliable rule, people usually base their own decision on the perceived majority view ( their perceived reality or PR as explained in chapter (viii) later on ). Hence, the results of collective decision making under a democratic process is notoriously difficult to predict because of the possibility of the cascade effect. It is a process involving both personal opinions of the individuals as well as observing the opinions of others in the system together with non- linear interactions between these two elements that determine the final outcome. And so is history. That is why sometimes history does not make any sense.
Secondly, the purpose of studying history is to learn from past mistakes to prevent future recurrence and, if possible, to improve on the ways things are to be done in future. Therefore, it is not enough just to examine the materialized portion of history but also to assess what could have happened to explore other better alternatives. From this analysis, we will appreciate that there is an existing bias in favour of the actual historical outcomes. The reader will be given a deeper analysis on this later in chapter (x), in the section- Of Destiny and Destination. It is always easy to be wise after the facts. Such lopsided view of history has to be modified in the light of the useful researches produced by the Science of Networks. This is because of the importance of the initial conditions or sum of history of the system up to a particular point in time. Slight changes in the initial conditions at any point can radically alter the subsequent course of history of that system. The reader should recall Edward Lorenz's weather systems which led him to the discovery of the Theory of Chaos.
Thirdly, the concept of Information Cascades leads us to the conclusion
that initial conditions that may not be very conspicuous can have a dramatic effect on the outcomes of an evolving system when viewed in hindsight . As a result, all factors under examinination should be assessed in the context of the structural conditions of the network as a whole. In other words, special attention should be paid to the existence or imminent appearance of Critical Thresholds or Synchronized States.
Before history has come to pass, it is rarely possible to predict the outcome of any given set of circumstances. It is the general consensus reached by the collective opinions of the majority that will win over the day. Owing to this only reliable rule, people usually base their own decision on the perceived majority view ( their perceived reality or PR as explained in chapter (viii) later on ). Hence, the results of collective decision making under a democratic process is notoriously difficult to predict because of the possibility of the cascade effect. It is a process involving both personal opinions of the individuals as well as observing the opinions of others in the system together with non- linear interactions between these two elements that determine the final outcome. And so is history. That is why sometimes history does not make any sense.
How was it possible that many German people maintained that they did
not know, and worse still, some even claimed that they could not believe that the Holocust
had actually taken place. Luckily, the German people as a whole together with their
elected government ultimately had the courage and wisdom to admit their older
generation's mistake and had taken remedial actions accordingly to enable the healing
process to come about. Unfortunately, the same cannot be said of the Japanese
government which, even now, still cannot face up to its historic responsibility regarding the
Second World War and continually attempts to cover up past mistakes of their older
generation by changing the history text books for their young. This is really a very alarming
as well as morally disturbing trend. Apart from preventing the healing process between
Japan and its neighbours and, thus, disqualifying itself from playing a positive role in world
affairs, such an ostrich attitude could ultimately lead to a possible repeat of the aggressive
national policy that ended in Japan's total humiliation and unconditional surrender in the
Second World War.
People tend to attribute this stubborn refusal to accept past mistakes to the so-called hero syndrome which is a long standing tradition of the samurai spirit- rather die than surrender implying that to accept that one is wrong also amounts to a surrender of one's initial position. A closer examination of this misguided spirit will easily reveal its logical fallacy. To accept one's mistake takes a lot of courage and courage is the defining hallmark as well as the bench mark for a true hero. To be a hero does not mean that you should not be afraid of anything but rather being very much afraid of it and still do it because it is the right thing to do. Therefore, to refuse to accept one's past mistakes is tantamount to the behaviour of a coward who dares not face the truth. Conversely, accepting your past mistakes ( in this case the mistakes of their older generation ) and facing up to the consequences will require tremendous courage. To undertake such a difficult act of contrition is undoubtedly a very heroic deed. My simple logic runs like this. If you have the guts to do it, you should also have the same guts to admit it. If my older generation had committed acts of atrocity, I would not hesitate to denounce such crimes vehemently and distance myself from such behaviour. It is both irrational and against the Natural Law to close rank with any wrong doers of heinous crimes. By so doing, it makes one an accomplice. A supporter or sympathizer of any heinous crime is in a even worse position than the perpetrator because the criminal had to face up to the consequences of his deeds somehow and runs the risk of punishment while the supporter only does the perpetrator lip service without even paying a price.
There is absolutely no fundamental differences between anybody or anything in this universe because all people and all things have ultimately originated from the same humble beginning that is stardust as explained in chapter ( ii ). No special favours should be done to your own race or even your own flesh and blood at the expense of natural justice. In the long run, justice and fairness to all will prove to be the only sensible way to maintain good order in society as well as the universe. So, please heed my warning. It is up to the younger and more open-minded generation of the Japanese citizens to do their part in keeping their own government in line with the prevailing moral standards and not to repeat the painful mistakes of the past generation. It would seem to me that in today's global village the more appropriate idea on the identity of inhabitants of this village is the concept of harmony with one another and more importantly with our environment. To this end, the idea of world citizenship is far superior to the narrow perspective of individual nationalities, races or religions. May John Lennon's ideas of world peace and harmony as expressed in his well known song “Imagine” carry the day.
People tend to attribute this stubborn refusal to accept past mistakes to the so-called hero syndrome which is a long standing tradition of the samurai spirit- rather die than surrender implying that to accept that one is wrong also amounts to a surrender of one's initial position. A closer examination of this misguided spirit will easily reveal its logical fallacy. To accept one's mistake takes a lot of courage and courage is the defining hallmark as well as the bench mark for a true hero. To be a hero does not mean that you should not be afraid of anything but rather being very much afraid of it and still do it because it is the right thing to do. Therefore, to refuse to accept one's past mistakes is tantamount to the behaviour of a coward who dares not face the truth. Conversely, accepting your past mistakes ( in this case the mistakes of their older generation ) and facing up to the consequences will require tremendous courage. To undertake such a difficult act of contrition is undoubtedly a very heroic deed. My simple logic runs like this. If you have the guts to do it, you should also have the same guts to admit it. If my older generation had committed acts of atrocity, I would not hesitate to denounce such crimes vehemently and distance myself from such behaviour. It is both irrational and against the Natural Law to close rank with any wrong doers of heinous crimes. By so doing, it makes one an accomplice. A supporter or sympathizer of any heinous crime is in a even worse position than the perpetrator because the criminal had to face up to the consequences of his deeds somehow and runs the risk of punishment while the supporter only does the perpetrator lip service without even paying a price.
There is absolutely no fundamental differences between anybody or anything in this universe because all people and all things have ultimately originated from the same humble beginning that is stardust as explained in chapter ( ii ). No special favours should be done to your own race or even your own flesh and blood at the expense of natural justice. In the long run, justice and fairness to all will prove to be the only sensible way to maintain good order in society as well as the universe. So, please heed my warning. It is up to the younger and more open-minded generation of the Japanese citizens to do their part in keeping their own government in line with the prevailing moral standards and not to repeat the painful mistakes of the past generation. It would seem to me that in today's global village the more appropriate idea on the identity of inhabitants of this village is the concept of harmony with one another and more importantly with our environment. To this end, the idea of world citizenship is far superior to the narrow perspective of individual nationalities, races or religions. May John Lennon's ideas of world peace and harmony as expressed in his well known song “Imagine” carry the day.
