год 2010-й - более 30.000.000 обращений

Owing to the extended education, the Planet's sane majority has ever known that Earth is a globe. Any other assertion would be equal to a challenge of some scientific revolution. And that sort of challenge was quite resently pronounced at the State Duma in Moscow, as the Duma Deputy Vassily Shandybin in his anti-globalist speech of a Russian patriot made a curiousity of statement that "the Earth is round and flat, but quite stout". Whether he meant the whole world, or just Russia alone may be the deviation to need a certain check.

It is very interesting to follow the world polemics and gialogue of globalization apologists and opponents. In my opinion. however, it is never a dialoque, but rather the two monologues. Whatever its aspects, however, it is worthy of looking into, and most thoroughly.

The humanitarian anti-globalists will apply to the tested expedient, that is to declare that the globalism as a new tool of neo-colonialism - "Any attempt to create some global synthetic culture will lead to destruction of many national cultures. In this context the latter are to be sacrificed to some kind of universal mass culture which is as dangerous to the national specifics as the fast food system is to the pizza, kebab and borshch traditions." And the argument has gained much of the common support as is testified by the ill-fated McDonald's restaurants being vandalized all over the world.

I am neither pro-, nor anti-globalist, for I find that both of them have their points. I think that it is neither originality, nor utter openness that should be the sole conditions for any full-blooded ethnos to survive further. Somehow that should be both combined. Any national culture is the skill to live in harmony with nature and humananity that has developed in a survival struggle. Otherwise, it is a system of traditional practices and taboos suggested by the historical experience. In a vulgar image, the culture could be figured in a sort of traffic lights wherein liberties and restrictions would be marked off by the respective green and red. In the meantime, the art that is to praise the ideals and to denounce the evils is just its media of expression.

As soon as the culture degrades - degrade the personality and the human society, and the spiritual bankruptcy leads to physical extinction. The death of culture has ever been the cause of disappearance of thousands tribes and peoples, dissolved in the floods of history like salt. Otherwise it might be said that only the culture-minded mankind will be preserved by it to a lasting history.

If we should understand the national culture as a kind of ethnic self-protection, then the globalism would signify the "world culture" as a system of collective security. The world nations might be appealed to unite before common dangers right now. Indeed, it is about time we at least realised the perils and problems that even the super powers can not cope with single-handed. The climate warming, ozone holes, desert advancement, ocean contamination and other dangers are global, and accordingly our response to it should be adequate - our consolidation. And this endeavour, being objectivated by the natural law of self-preservation of the species, is not be frustrated by any individual or national pretences.

The globalization cannot be abolished, albeit incidently it could be strongly contended by some anbitious men to get them into a political dead-end. By all means, that would be similar to one holding back from radio, television and Internet by switching oneself off any contacts with the outer world -just like putting a home-applience off power. Just like those "rogue states", excluding themselves from the civilized context, very often for the sake of keeping up the dark regime. "The put-off states". But that can never last long.

Now, why couldn't there be "the world culture" to supplement the "world" series of economy, civilization and comminity? In fact, it has existed since long. Since the time of Pharaohs, or even longer. There is a saying inherited by the Italian from the ancient Rome - 'Tutto il mondo e paese!' (All the worls is a village). I should think the imminent dangers of ecological and geopolitical self-destruction urge us all to look for collective forms of survival on a unique cosmic body in the Universe. And the globalism, in a good right sense, is to help us make the best use of the Universal Interdependence idea, that must be taken for a basis in national development programmes from now on.

All those interested in attending the Conference are kindly requested to apply to: 103064, Moscow, Furmanny Per. 14, Build. 4, Human Rights Institute,  tel./fax (095) 208-3301, e-mail: kalandarov@ropnet.ru