Interview transcript

How does nationalism play a role in politics?

Paul: Nationalism in history has shaped in aristocracies, empires, monarchy and other political system, but they do not really have nationalism. There’s no national ethnic, but conglomeration. Now is republican or democratic. The constitution in 1950 is not really a nationalism constitution. There isn’t one nation or ethnic group who are citizens in that government. The concept of Hindu nationalist party, Hindu Indian people party can co-exist with the liberal arts constitution. The majority religious group should be able to identify themselves and being to compete on constiutuion based on their identities. Chinese communist party, didn’t define themselves as strict Han Chinese nationalism country. What’s the meaning of that if no one really believes in communism for a communist party government. Promoting market and capitalism. Mao’s communism, what’s the social legitimacy. Lied in Chinese people, tradition, which is Han.

Trump is closer to Modi, has a equal constitution. India is very puralist, US is even more pluralistic. Defined by ideas, equal natural rights.

Susan: Blood and soil nationalism, west nationalism in europe. Globalization effect. Nationalism, Patriotism. Can be good or bad. The emergence of many populist leaders is the response for the globalization and technology. More dangerous nationalism.

How religion, or christianity has the effect on american politics?

Paul: The christianity is correlated to the modern liberal constitutional democracy. Pluralist. Ethnically, religiously pluralist country. Agree to legal natural principle, you are a human being, you can be in this country. Those ideas attached with Christianity. Low participant rate of Christian believers. But Japan, India adopted modern liberal constitutional democracy as well. But Paul still believes there’s certain relationship between Chrsitianity and liberal constitutional democracy.

Susan: Christianity in theology has the capacity of welcome strangers, to convert. Like you can move to American freely and convert to it from other religions. It is no random coincidence that America this heterogenous country has Christianity values written in the founding principles.

Paul: a challenge. India is the world’s largest liberal democracy country in world. Hinduism has always evolved and deveopled its internal conciousness. Like what is a morally right person, divinity. The full development of Hinduism itself, it is pluralist inluenced by mulim and borned budhism. It is a fully Hindu concept while as a modern liberal constitutional concept. Modi agrees with that, he said one thing but did the other. Discrimination towards muslim, third largest population in Muslim in india.

Susan: India is more suseptible to Modi’s Hindu nationalism, intrinsic to Hindu political thoughts, cast system. They took a much long time to have Donald Trump. But Inida has Modi so quickly.

Paul: Took Christianity 800 years to develop this idea, hinduism involved with cast system a century ago and now adapted the liberal constitutional democracy.

Paul: Globalization. Modi is accused of window addressing, it is not really democracy.

Susan: resilience of american system reviewed itself to get rid of Donald Trump. India and china is not able to do that. Jihad vs Macworld. Benjamin Barber. Macworld is the force of globalization and technology. Jihad is struggle with those, feeling left behind. Support characters with populist appeals.

Paul: The rend appears to against the new political era of globalization. Populist leaders gathered people in rallys and ask do you want to go back to the old era? People don’t want globalization anymore, they won’t give up their jobs for that. And they don’t want send troops out to do things anymore, they want them to come back.

Paul: The technologies can fragment people like in civil war and encourage people to be together. But because US is so pluralist. Internet do not have the ability yet to hold the large complex society. He thinks it is important to emphasis on the civil eduction in US to catch up with the emerging technology. Resist angry populist.

If egypt would access the internet, they would want democracy. Technology alienated people, everyone stares at their screen. Be fully human. Build community with human connections. Technology influence on our lives is far more underestimated in politics. We don’t have anything in common anymore, my screen is the truth.

Paul: Healthy forms of politics. Freedom, talk freely. Don’t governed by fear. Undermine that freedom. Isolate people, take you farther away from complicated ideas. Take you away from people who disagree with you. The civic culture is not caught up with internet. Sadness with isolated engagement, or hyper angry engagement. How to find a healthy political middle ground with technology? Technology is not going away, printing press, newspaper, radio, telegraph, television, internet, social media. Learn how to adapt education, communication with liberal, law and a pluralist country.

The power of technology is so enchanting. We spend less time in civic education. We are so interested in technology power, managing these technologies, prosper. But less time in history, politics.