ABSTRACT
All of the countries comprising the West have reasonably stable political regimes and should in this respect be capable of preserving the central features of Western civilization. They should be capable of doing this, that is, if their elites and publics can find ways to contain and manage increasingly ominous international and domestic trends. The bloc of communist countries that so preoccupied the thinking of conservative elite factions and commentators in Western countries following World War II proved to be a temporary phenomenon. Current and foreseeable political and social conditions in developing countries make attempts at close relations with them inadvisable. Respect for human rights and other liberal political principles, the benefits and problems of affluence, fears of terrorist attacks, and awareness of the need to combat climate change and other environmental threats are sufficiently strong and uniform among Western countries to support close relations.
