For various reasons I was reflecting on yesterday’s post and I came to make a realization; there are two very distinct paradigms involved in the world and American society today: ours, and one we appear to not understand in the slightest. Some do; most do not.
Our largest mistake is believing that, in truth, all others think as we Americans do. We are increasingly a society based on what we as individuals want rather than what is best for the greater good. We believe that everyone can be made to sit down and come to a non-violent, rational consensus. We think if something takes “too long” it’s bad. If something is “too difficult” there must be another easier way. If someone doesn’t agree with us, we can convince them to “come around.” We find it difficult to believe that, in many people’s lives, religion is the only thing that matters — even over life and death.
But even so, we believe we can make people see the light and make them “understand” if only we turn the other cheek, stand down, acquiesce, rationalize or, perhaps even, give in — because if, after all these things have failed, then it must, it must, be our fault.
How is it that we have gotten to the point where we cannot even recognize or acknowledge Evil when it exists in our midst and, moreover, realize when this Evil wishes solely to change us or kill us — and nothing else will do?
How is it that we have reached this point?
BZ
It isn’t new. We had a pretty good segment of the colonists that thought appeasement was a better way than a revolution prior to our war for independence from Great Britain. There was Woodrow Wilson, Lord Chamberlain, even Jimmy Carter in the last century, and their thinking represents a large segment of any western society for centuries. Some people think you can negotiate with a rabid dog. The outcome is never pretty.
Why does this surprise you?
Discerning good from evil requires a moral compass. Having a moral compass is resented by those who don’t want to live up to the given standards.
Far too many Americans are morally retarded.
I hear ya on this.
I especially thought your last couple of lines were well said:
“How is it that we have gotten to the point where we cannot even recognize or acknowledge Evil when it exists in our midst and, moreover, realize when this Evil wishes solely to change us or kill us — and nothing else will do?”
That is exactly my point and why I don’t understand how so many people are so quick to abandon the just cause we are fighting right now.
It’s the anthropologic trinity: Me, myself, & I. I’ll repeat this once more: This is the culmination of the Great Enlightenment. The “philosophers” like Jean Paul Sarte who espoused that we are “free to be free”. Marx who perpetuated the blame game and labels society as cause of man’s failures. Freud who made it an issue of chemical imbalances of the brain.
God calls it sin, but what does He know?
The Great Enlightenment created great escape clauses from reality and people are using it. No one has to own up to anything anymore because without that “moral compass” (as bigwhitehat so eloquently stated), the reality of evil, wrong and injustice is an illusion. Maybe this is the back door indoctrination of Buddhism into society because they hold that all of life is an illusion.
IS THIS A REAL BLOG? WHY AM I HERE?
The PC culture has tried to define evil to a blandness level where anything that gives the slightest offense to anyone at any time is *evil* or bad.
They have flipped around ‘No pain, No gain’ to ‘No gain, No pain’! If we just all played nice and were inoffensive little lambs and hurt no one…
The Wolves would descend upon us.
All advances require change and pain and adjustment and rough edges and harsh language. Those wanting smoothness in everything are truly wanting everything to stop so that they do not have to be burdened with ‘thinking’.
From Time Bandits with Ultimate Evil talking to one of his lackies:
Evil: Oh, Benson… Dear Benson, you are so mercifully free of the ravages of intelligence.
Benson: Oh, you say such nice things, Master.
Evil: Yes I know, I’m sorry!
And that really does a good job of summing it up. PC-ism is being mercifully free of the ravages of intelligence and thinking that is *good*. All the while in the service of evil.
Fish: yes, most appropriate examples you cite. And your rabid dog simile — also most appropriate. One cannot negotiate with said rabid dog for three very important points: a dog lacks what one would commonly term exquisite, innate reasoning skills; two, its frame of worldly reference is massively different than your own; three, it is rabid and insane.
Yes, I’m sure you understand the comparison I’m making here.
BWH: It still surprises me when apparently good people — or perhaps I should limit it to, in a theoretical way, “well intentioned people” (and not uneducated), cannot see more than a foot or so beyond their very limited scopes of perspective — it is as if The Truth has a continually-activated Klingon Cloaking Device about it, but only in their presence.
LMC: It is, in my opinion, that perfectly simple: We are Borg. You will be assimilated or you will die.
NeoSoc: and tell me, how far do you think this Great Enlightenment, this Great Experiment, can be pushed? For I clearly do not see an end.
— Yes, my blog is real, though thankfully it has been created using only 100% recycled electrons.
Ah, Mr. A Jacksonian — are you a British Humour Kinda Guy? I am a Python fan of the Nth degree as well as cast spinoffs! A Time Bandit quote! Most appropos!
And yet, all, think of this: is that not how the Left portrays the Right? We are mere boobs, simpletons, addled, obtuse, sluggish dolts who cannot seem to find it within ourselves to understand the One True Reality: THEIRS. How frequently do you read, sense and hear the dripping arrogance and condescension as the Left gurgles and clatters on about the Right’s inability to understand the infinite, infinite shades of gray necessary to operate on this horribly complicated and nuanced planet — nuances that only they have the cognition to interpret!
“the Left gurgles and clatters on about the Right’s inability to understand the infinite, infinite shades of gray necessary to operate on this horribly complicated and nuanced planet — nuances that only they have the cognition to interpret!”
BZ, that is it in a nut shell. My experience with arguing with a liberal always winds up in that attitude. They can’t or won’t agrue the facts so they wind up insulting my intelligence, education, upbringing, or what have you. It’s like they’re saying, “poor ignorant thing, you just don’t understand.”
Fish, in my opinion you have hit the Big Nail on the Head — it is just as you say: when there is no acknowledgment of a fact, there is only emotion and a “sense” of superiority. When in fact, superior they are not.
Merely “Bereft On The Left.”
BZ
Mr. Z – I am addressing the mentality being put forth. By making even the slightest offense to be bad or evil, then the culture itself turns to pap. The world is not a nice place nor ever has been. Trying to make barbarians out to be mis-guided but ‘nice’ people that shouldn’t be offended will get you… Death.
When instructed to turn the other cheek and try to shame the other, what do you do when that cheek is slapped? Bend over to offer two more?
I cannot remember where I read it but it was interesting to see the viewpoints of US political thought on when one is attacked without cause or good reason…
Jeffersonians admit that it was within the bounds of the other’s right to attack you, but allow that you have the right to do so in return.
Hamiltonians hold a grudge and ensure that when they hit back it will be in such a way so that a response cannot be easily taken.
Wilsonians will want to form a peer group and vote on the rightness of response and put a proposal out to help everyone defend against a future attack, if a majority can be found.
And Jacksonians? A Jacksonian will just kill the attacker as the attacker is a dishonorable rabid dog that has attacked without fair warning nor giving warrant for such.
Now Americans do mix this lot up pretty well and no one is pure in any strain of thinking… I have my Jeffersonian and Hamiltonian leanings, betimes, but really don’t get what the Wilsonians are on about.
As time goes on and I look into myself and hear the railings of my Bear Shirt ancestors and the cries from those that stood at Second Vienna, I come to understand my affinity with that line of thought. One of the reasonings for fighting a duel must have been: ‘If I win, I don’t have to hear from this person ever again. And the same if I lose. Either way I get peace and quiet.’
Harsh? Yes.
Un-PC? Incredibly so.
And that is the point. The more the culture is made bland and non-provocative, the less it can stand change and resist against evil. If the culture is dumbed down enough to that blandness it will, because it will not recognize a difference between good and evil, be evil in and of itself.
Those that wish blandness and uniformity do the work of evil.
We can all be equal with differences that we know and recognize and respect.
What we all cannot be is the same. A bland and homogeneous mass.