Al Taqafa Al Maghribia -- First edition -- August 1941.

Such a question may appear strange, because what people reap from any war is nothing but physical suffering, famine and a violent death in the midst of terrible destruction. When the notion of war crosses the mind of common folk, they envision horrible scenes of misery and ruin; they see images parade through that break one's heart and bring tears to one's eyes. Nonetheless the fact remains that war, no matter how cruel and catastrophic is its aftermath, represents a historic event where the collective memory retains its profound disruptions in human life. Suppose for a moment that we are able to ignore our current emotional state and our sense of desolation. And suppose we can view war with the serenity of a social historian, who, thanks to the lapse of time, is able to distance himself from the events such that he can submit them to cold and objective analysis, something which the immediate victims would not be capable of doing. Then we would note that war has a positive aspect which can only be observed long after its atrocities, when the storm has passed and stability allows life to resume its normal course. The best that armed conflict could offer is political, economic and social changes that revitalize the nation, drawing it into productive activities and pushing it from the precipice of idleness it might otherwise fall into. By choosing to rest on its laurels, it will lose its reason for an existence that requires perseverance in its efforts and an ever present high morale and physical readiness.

Without the recent ongoing world war, the Arab nations would not have awakened. This bloody war has encouraged Egypt, Syria, Irak as well as other nations to seek a newer life, be it on the political front where liberated men have striven to organize civil affairs and to strengthen the tools of administration or on the socio-economic front where their people have shown a great desire to instill new moral principles and where builders (statesmen) have created the foundations of economic activity that are free from the hold of foreign firms. If the war continues with its daily allotment of misery and cruelty, it will be of course difficult to gauge the horrors it inflicts on humanity which it delivers all tied up to the law of blind violence. Therefore it would be pointless to think that our future lives should expect any benefit from this current war, nor should anyone give credence to any declared benefit before the hostilities have long ended.

Morocco is one of those countries that was not touched by the war despite its proximity to the war's volcanic crater and to its geographic location between two seas that witnessed its most fierce battles. The decisive impact of the battles between certain countries is not confined within, instead in many cases, the consequences extend to nonbelligerent nations as well. All have come to realize in this era (and int times of peace), that the complementary nature of needs has rendered them interdependent on one another. The flow of economic trade is able to increase thanks to the stunning developments in the means of communication which have revolutionized the basics of interstate activity (particularly) in the area of international commerce. However if one nation deploys all its economic sectors exclusively for military purposes, this will have direct negative consequences to not only its affairs but also to those of its close or distant neighbors. It will impact negatively the economic and social well being of these states because both the volume of commerce and the frequency of the ability to communicate will diminish.

Morocco has certainly not experienced any bloodshed or destruction of any of its urban patrimony during this war but it has witnessed a drop in imports most notably those consumption goods needed for modern living. First of all this shortage is due to the war but it has been widened by a blockade that has put an end to all commercial transactions with the outside world. Hence Morocco has entered a new era of an economy based on self-sufficiency and has begun to ask what has it won from this war that is not waged on its soil. It is disillusioned about any prospects for having some advantage (to offer the outside world) at the conclusion of hostilities. We have no pretense in this regard, having not paid tribute by spilling our blood nor by leading our country in any important social revolution. We have been swept into regression both individually and collectively. The indirect consequences of war have not overcome this phenomena nor do they have any effect on our mental state. So much so that we continue to live as if it was the good old days; an agreeable life without a need to change the course of our lives. As the war began it will end far from our shores. We will have escaped its (physical) danger but we will remain at the mercy of its perils which we bear deep inside. On the economic front, the blockade has forced us to review our economical activities under a new light. Our industrial production has dropped considerably causing a major spike in pricing. Only the rich can afford the luxury of procuring externally manufactured goods, which although coveted by them, their quantities will inexorably be reduced to the dismay of the affluent class. Could the rarity of consumer products noted today and the shortage predicted for the near future serve as a lesson to the Moroccan people? Would they understand that they can do without a major portion of these luxury items and in any case that we do not deserve to purchase them as long as we are incapable of producing them ourselves?

I am convinced that the Moroccan nation has learned nothing from this, At the very moment when the humanitarian crisis has ended, Moroccans are rushing to buy goods imported from abroad and the consumption is even more frantic than the past. This can be explained by the fact that we are not thinking of building a growing economy based on new methods in order to gain from circumstances arising from the war or to produce modern goods to meet our needs. Instead our leaders of the economic sector have resorted to speculation and the benefits it procures for them. And so here they are, asleep at the wheel, without a thought for creating industries, or building factories nor establishing any companies.

The circumstances of the war have led to disastrous results. Speculation has created a chronic imbalance between the social classes, leading to the disappearance of the middle class whose savings were quickly absorbed by big business. The latter made their riches at the expense of the middle class which melted into the lower strata of society. if we consider the (possible) benefits that war provides to those directly or indirectly involved and then consider the viewpoint from Morocco's aloof perspective, we note that the current war has not unblocked neither the stagnation nor the raging slump of our internal economy. While other countries have used the aftermath of war to mark a new impetus in their development and to put an end to weaknesses by applying appropriate therapies, Morocco sits idly and watches the events unfolding elsewhere, be it a social revolution, a political movement, improved economic performance or innovations in industry. They plugs their ears content to make do with the little they have and wallow in a life of idleness. The day will come when this atrocious war will end and all nations will compete with each other to find ingenious ways to ensure the recovery of their nations while Morocco and Moroccans will remain as they are, immobile even in these times of exceptionally dynamic change that is experienced by the rest of the world.