Democracy isn’t built with guns and cash
The extreme collapse of the Afghan government in August should teach us this: Democracy isn’t built with guns and cash. The question remains: what, then, does?
Written by Hermund Haaland, founder / director
They had the President the West loved. He was one of us. He had worked for the World Bank, the UN, and even wrote the book “Fixing Failed States: A Framework for Rebuilding a Fractured World» in 2009. Yet, on August 15th, Ashraf Ghani fled the country, definitely a failed state. Apparently, claiming the recipe was not enough.
This blogmagazine does not claim to have the solution to the question: How do we build stable democracies? Nor to the question: How should we then live?
What we will bring to the table, is a desire. A desire to contribute to the common good to the area nearest to us, that of the continent of Europe. But also, to the conversation with and about the rest of the world. Whether one is a globalist or not, no one in the modern world is an island. We´re in this together.
We desire to contribute to the discussions on our common future. We aim to bring to the table voices with ideas. Experience. Perspectives worth listening to. Young voices. But also, those of older age-groups.
The challenges we face together, can leave no one passive. We aim to engage. To stir. To activate. The future of our planet is at stake. The quality of our democracies is being tested. The ability to build liberal societies, open for all, and not just for certain groups, is at stake. Our ability to create the jobs for the future is tested. We do not claim to be or have the answers to these challenges, but we are certain of this: Without engaged citizens, nothing will change.
We bring to the table a couple of premises.
First, societies not anchored in values that further both the development of common ground, fellowship between its inhabitants, and also secures the freedom of the individual, will not succeed in creating space for human flourishing. This blogmagazine is anchored in Europe´s Christian heritage and thinks it has served us well. What that means in 2021 needs to find new expressions.
Secondly, we need to develop our common entrepreneurial skills. Every society in the past has faced its own set of challenges. We must face ours. In order to do that, we need to enhance our ability to think out of the box, to think new thoughts.
Anchored, yet creative.
Welcome to the Zebr Blogmagazine.
