السودان هو مركز دائرة الوجود

Dr. Cornel West visited Ohio University in January to talk about the election of Barack Obama, Mahmoud Mohamed Taha, and Progressive Islam.

"This is an important time in history, with the election of Barack Obama, but also an important moment for Ohio University," OHIO President Roderick McDavis said. "The work of Dr. West marries public and politics, and we are honored that he comes here at this important time."

McDavis' introduction of Dr. Cornel West was followed by West's praises of Mahmoud Mohamed Taha, and how honored he felt to even mention the name.

"I am humbled to mention Taha's name," West said. "It makes me shiver that someone could leave such a legacy." West also praised OHIO for having the insight and knowledge to bring together such a conference on Taha and 100 years of Progressive Islam. West said that he hoped one day Taha's name could be as well known as Mahatma Gandhi, Martin Luther King, Jr. or Nelson Mandela.

"Can this be a new moment, where all of us are more courageous and sacrificial?" West asked. He then quoted Socrates from Apology 38a, "The unexamined life is not worth living." He encouraged everyone in attendance to think for themselves, to think about themselves and their life, and move away from America's consumer and market culture.

"It is time to shift from bling-bling to truth and justice, from the frivolous to the serious," West said. "The Greek word 'paidea' means deep education. Have the courage to think for oneself, and you may find that your world view rests on pudding." But, West encourages the examination anyways, because as he said, when you live your life make-believe, you reap what you sow.

West also commented on the lack of coverage in the news and other media about those who are struggling all over the world, and at home.

"Never allow the voices of the suffering to be marginal," West warned. "Justice is what love looks like in public."

West was excited about taking his mother to Washington, D.C., or as he called it "the chocolate city" for Obama's inauguration. And while he was excited about the change from the end of the "era of conservatism," which he said lasted from Reagan to Bush, he was also knowledgeable that we have problems of our own in America, from Iowa to Ohio. But West also addressed the issues our country faces with terrorism, and how Taha and other greats would have reacted.

"In the face of terrorism, do we engage in counterterrorism?" West asked. "No, we talk about freedom and liberty and truth; that's real courage."

West also talked about the concept of optimism for America and the world, but said what we needed instead was hope.

"Optimism deodorizes the catastrophic; hope confronts it," West said. "Optimism means things are going well for me, but what about your neighbor?"

One woman in attendance said that she believed West's words could bring peace to the world if there could only be a way to broadcast his message on ABC of CNN. West thanked her for her compliment, but said that TV often gets ignored and that the best idea was to continue giving out the information about Taha and peace in sound bytes, in conferences the way he had just presented the information to the audience.

West used truthful humor and deep insight to get his message across. He appealed to adults, children and the student population of OHIO. His final was, in fact, for students to be Socratic, but not to imitate Socrates.

"Don't imitate that fact that Socrates never wrote a word," West said. "You've got to right your papers, now, and you've got to write them well." Socrates was also known for never crying, but West said then that he must have never loved..