Mongolia receives little attention in the press or in the blogosphere. Part of the reason for that is possibly that the country is making significant strides both economically and in terms of democratization. US President George Bush’s provides a welcome bit of recognition to a country that deserves substantial praise.
Still, while Bush deserves kudos for the visit, it’s a touch unfortunate that he chose to mark the occasion with an analogy that doesn’t really seem appropriate for a newly democratizing state.:
“There is a legend of a Mongolian woman who gave each of her five sons an arrow. She told each to break the arrow in his hand — which they did. She then tied five arrows together, and told each to try and break the bundle. None could do it. And she told them: Brothers who stand alone, like single arrow shafts, can be broken by anyone - but brothers who stand together, like a bundle of arrows, cannot be broken.”
It’s not quite a full-blown Bushism, but the speechwriter could have put a little more thought into things. From Wikipedia:
During the nineteenth century, the bundle of rods, in Latin called fasces and in Italian fascio, came to symbolize strength through unity, the point being that whilst each independent rod was fragile, as a bundle they were strong. By extension, the word fascio came in modern Italian political usage to mean group, union, band or league….
….
In November 1921, the National Fascist party came into existence.
New Mongols is quiet today, but further on the visit is available at Mongolian Matters.
November 21st, 2005 at 8:21 pm
A bronze fasces hangs on each side of the Speaker’s desk in the chamber of the US House of Representatives:
http://www.house.gov/towns/images/chamber.jpg
November 27th, 2005 at 1:15 pm
Oh, come on! The concept of strength in unity (arrows, rods, people, nations, whatever) is as old as dirt. Saying that an ancient Mongolian story, as read by Bush, foreshadows (or somehow connotes or implies) 20th century facism and therefore gives one the heebie-jeebies is absurd.
One example comes to mind from the Old Testament: “And while a man may prevail against the one, the two will withstand him; and a threefold cord is not quickly broken.” (Eccl. 4:12 Recovery Version).
It’s a shame that Solomon and the Mongols both prove to be the tools of modern facists, no? Shall we turn down the conspiracy detector?
December 11th, 2005 at 10:47 pm
Guan Yang,
Mongolia has a strategic common interest with the USA in our containment policy of China.It is also startegically located. The mumbo jumbo you speak of is tradition and it is empowering and important. Our nations seal has an eagle with bundled arrows for the same reason. We have common symbolism.
Or are you like many “modernists” who believe that tradition is anti-revolutionary post modernism characteristic of authoritarian minority middle roaders who require Maoist re-education?
China destroyed Tibet with your logic and caused millions of Chinese to migrate to Taiwan and the USA. Maybe you should re-examine your comments in the light of true history.