A new explanation for the delay to my train this afternoon: cows on the line. This did, however, provide some time to reflect on other rather more serious characteristics of modern life than the inconvenience occasioned by the peregrinations of the odd Friesan.
So here are six which seem to me to be particularly pernicious aspects of our current situation.
1. Libertarianism: otherwise known as letting me do whatever I want and a plague on everyone else. Such a convenient doctrine for the already powerful and utterly malign as a philosophy for the common good with a resolution to remove everything that might be a constraint or require a contribution to the commonweal. This is wholly distinct from liberalism and indeed individualism which are both important and positive. The basic issues that libertarianism always avoid are that a free for all never serves those without agency. The deep structural imbalances in society that fuel inequality have to be collectively addressed. Atlas didn't shrug at the effort involved in doing that.
2. Anti-intellectualism. Often now seen in the derision poured on experts. Again a characteristic of the charlatan, the demagogue and the populist to avoid scrutiny from people who might actually know what they're taking about. Without expertise we end up simply with opinion which rapidly shades over into prejudice. Having freed ourselves largely from the shackles of religion and recognised that logic and evidence and indeed facts are a rather better basis for making decisions we move away valuing intellectual and expert contributions at our enormous peril. Just look at the con man sitting in the Oval Office. A vulgar buffoon with the attention span of a newt and an ego the size of a (small) planet.
3. Anti-Enlightenment(arianism). The critical values of the Enlightenment are scepticism, rationality, tolerance and the recognition of the value of the individual. They established the public square for debate and discussion. All are inimical to populist, authoritarian, regressive and nativist prejudice. These are the core values of civilisation. They need all our support and rigorous defence including unbending intolerance of the intolerant.
4. Self-improvement. A malign obsession linked to the dreaded 'positive thinking'; one of the most ridiculous and pernicious of doctrines, the stuff of snake oil salesmen the world over. Imagine it and you can be it! Maximum happiness guaranteed. So much the better if we would instead focus on self-reflection - a genuinely helpful approach to understanding our place in the world and our relationships with others. All the better again if this is accompanied by the willingness to embrace failure, pessimism and uncertainty all of which are the natural state of we flawed creatures. We'd all be a great deal happier as a result.
5. Transformation. A much abused term but reflecting a desire to makeover, to fundamentally change ourselves and particularly to look for magic cures for unhappiness, illness or obesity. The truth is that small, moderate, balanced improvements are almost always the right course to follow and have much the better chance of being effective and sustainable. Magical thinking is always just that: the stuff of fairies at the bottom of the garden. Leave it there with the compost.
6. Majoritarianism. Obscenities such as referendums are consistent with democracy only when seen solely as majoritarianism and an unhealthy desire to divide and direct fire at on out group in order to justify all kinds of malign activity such as dismantling the rule of law. In effect a form of popular dictatorship. That's why they are the plaything of the demagogue and the populist. A liberal democracy starts from the perspective that the main characteristics of any system are to be plural, to embrace nuance and to recognise that the world is a mess: its manifold not binary and anyone who tells you the contrary is doubtless up to no good.
Ditch 'em all!
You are largely on my wavelength in this blog. I belong to a book group (which is better than I will be making it sound here, honestly). I have been told, by two different people on different occasions there "I don't want a book that will make me think", and (something to the effect of) "I don't like the way you think about books. They don't need thinking about". Both of which make me wonder "Why then do you wish to belong to a book group?", the essence of which is surely to promote thinking and discussion? I've also increasingly found myself forced to bite my tongue on certain internet forums when I don't agree with the majority, knowing that the force of popular opinion is at such a pitch that they would brook no dissension, and given the chance would make decisions with malign unintended consequences rather than pause for a moment to think whether there is any merit in an opposing view.
ReplyDeleteMy only qualms about your list are: I'd leave a bit of space for transformation & self-improvement - there's nothing wrong with an attempt to be better in certain respects, or even to jump-start a better life with a makeover of some kind. It can work out well. And religion is a complex phenomenon, not just a set of shackles. For believers - leaving aside the crucial god issue - it is a source of community, a focus for community action, and a daily aide in their attempt to be the person they wish to be - the opposite of selfish libertarianism. Churches, mosques, temples etc. tend to be heavily involved with people & problems that many of us prefer to pass by. While I can see that it has also been used as a means of control, I am loathe to write off the whole thing. In short, a bit of magic is a wonderful thing.
Thanks. On the book group, that is indeed the kind of majoritarian thinking that is so dangerous. For many people, being part of the in crowd rather than the out group is always going to feel easier. That's why protections for minority opinions and for space in which discussion can happen are so critical and why places that are veering rapidly towards dictatorship - yes, hello, not for the first time to Poland and Hungary in a European context - always want to close down a safe public square and provide only a conveyor belt to a single opinion.
ReplyDeleteI anticipated that it would be transformation and self-improvement that would be more controversial. The Enlightenment gave us the gift of scepticism and that was of course first manifest in respect of religion as the division between private belief and a secular polity became ever more distinct. If we look around us at confessional states they are not ones that I would choose to live in even though many have strong elements of religion of the (in Christian terms) Sermon on the Mount variety which are more focused on improving the lot of fellow citizens than just on salvation. For me, any blurring of the line between the secular polity and private religious belief is, quite simply, dangerous.
I loathe positive thinking. One of my all time favourite books is 'The Antidote' which has the wonderful subtitle : Happiness for people who can't stand positive thinking. The lure of positive thinking is akin to a drug: keep on doing this and it will change your life. Generally, it won't. It is far more likely to make you deeply unhappy as the goal remains as far away as ever. On the other hand, I'm a great believer in the examined life; self criticism and the occasional bit of self flagellation.
Magic is all around us in the sense that the natural world does amazing things and is (in the proper sense of the word) awe inspiring. Watching the sun set from a tent high up in the Sierra Nevada is the kind of magic I'd buy any day!
Oh yes! That sounds my kind of magic too. But some people get into a rut, or into terrible trouble, and need a bit more than small & gradual changes, more than a sunset even. They need a new direction, they need to get optimistic about things, and/or they need a lot of support from people they can trust - which may not be their existing friends or family (religion may offer that).
DeleteI personally found it liberating to realise that my attempts to supress negative emotions were making me unhappy, and that it was better to just let myself feel them, so I know where you're coming from on hating positive thinking. But I don't think that is incompatible with making changes - large or small - that will improve the way someone feels about themself. Those changes may or may not have the desired effect. Some are more likely to succeed than others. But people often do pick themselves up, throw themselves into new things, alter other people's perceptions of them, and feel a darn site better. Self-criticism is of very limited use - may even be malign - if it doesn't lead to any action.
I entirely agree that just continuing with self flagellation isn't a great approach! I know, because I've been there. My ire is directed at those who suggest to others that there is some magic bullet or panacea. I'm much more comfortable when change comes from self realisation or from trying something out by the individual themselves.
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