Greg Crane has written a short essay “Rethinking the Humanities and advancing civilization in a violent world” on the The Stoa Consortium blog. In it he argues that the humanities can help us understand the differences between “cultures that drive economic and political systems” on which we depend. It is the humanities that can help us understand Kandahar. He continues with,

it is the Humanities that provide – or can provide – the space in which a real dialogue can take place. The disciplines of the humanities – philosophy, literature, history, classics, to mention several –  are essential to the pursuit of genuine understanding across diverse cultures and intellectual frameworks.

In conclusion he calls for the humanities to broaden their horizons so that we collaborate across languages and cultures.