As it stands, we see a lot of people talking about how Western culture is superior, about how Israel needs to be defended even while it commits a genocide because it's a 'Western outpost'. We also see a rise in right wing governments across Western powers, and we're seeing them struggle as cheap resources are becoming hard to come by.
I truly fear that the ugly colonialism we saw in the past will return, and while they're committing horrifying violence they'll be claiming they're doing the global South a favor. They won't call it colonialism, but it'll be exactly that. Terminology rather than substance is what's more important; they'll be more concerned with what their actions will be called than what they're committing.
I want to point out that what we're seeing right now with Israel in regards to people trying to claim it's not a genocide, even if they do agree that all the horrors are real, is not something we haven't seen before in relatively recent history. In Iraq, when the oil for food program was instated, the human rights coordinator to Baghdad quit his job so he could criticize it as a genocide; his successor also quit saying this was indeed a genocide. The UN's response? To quibble about the term 'genocide'.
France has overthrown AT LEAST 22 African leaders since the 60's, and is most likely also behind the assassination of the Haitian president who was demanding reparations. They also, alongside America and NATO, overthrew Gaddafi, despite Libya being the most successful country in Africa.
How long before other European countries decide they want to go over to resource rich countries in the global South and 'liberate' them? I understand not every country can bring America's power to bear, but I wouldn't be surprised if they engage in joint ventures with America offering support.
All the horrors our government and Western accomplices have committed they've defended.
I genuinely hope the global South arms up heavily and prepares for this possibility, and I also honestly hope to see a successful pan Africa movement.
We're watching people literally say Israel's crimes are okay because Western culture is superior; if these people are, more than fine with genocide, ARMING a genocide, then these people will have zero compunctions with resuming the violent colonialism of the past. Colonialism didn't end because of the non-existent mercy of Western powers, it ended because it either wasn't feasible or because the colonizers were forced out. Life is getting harder in 'the garden' as Borrell called it, and since they see the rest of the world as a jungle, they'll have no problems 'taming' it for their resources. British people, even politicians like Farage, openly say they did nations like India a favor. They'll call the horrors they unleash a gift.
The rise of a right wing that idolizes 'the West', and despises everyone else is going to make this return of colonialism an easier undertaking.
Ask yourself if you could that with Gaza. They can't produce shit rn, everything in a middle of a war goes to surviving. If you go on the way of petty extortion you are more likely to get your bluff called or get a war than a steady supply of goods. The more you bomb the less you are going to economically get out of a place. You essentially would sacrifice economic surplus to get less economic surplus from a place. Then the country and it's surroundings either turns into a warzone or a symbol that you can fight against extortion. In both cases it's economic sinkhole for those who do the extortion and if that extortion is supposed to feed the whole cycle then even one country resisting turns the whole thing into a economic net negative. Also the coherence of the western homefront is quite dependent on the idea that we are the good guys. Even 1900th century empires had their idea white mans burden. This would be just blatant theft and extortion. You can't even easily hide it much less easily justify it.
Even the current economic system is basically just theft. West prints infinite money, gives it to the third world in form of loans so they can participate in the global dollar based market for whatever they need, then these countries have to give back resources to get more dollars to pay back that dollar debt. It's still theft, but theft that obfuscated behind narratives and lies.