08
Nov 2012
After the elections of 2012: A first
attempt at an essay
“When
philosophy paints its gray on gray, then indeed has a form of life grown old.
It cannot be rejuvenated, but only understood. When dusk starts to fall, the
owl of Minerva spreads its wings and flies." G.W.F. Hegel (Philosophy of Right, 1820)
A
Orienting the mind through thinking
Making
the proper distinctions brings clarity to thinking. When the mind is disturbed
by events, as mine was by the election results two days ago, one must use
reason to sort through the emotional and intellectual disturbances. Making the
proper distinctions is an important part of reasoning, and right reasoning
restores balance and sanity to consciousness. Leaving one’s mind drenched in
emotions and disturbing thoughts arouses more disorder, disturbs psychic peace,
abandons one to mental confusion, and denies reason an opportunity to throw
light on various parts of reality. Hence, the disturbed soul must turn to
thinking, and especially to making the proper distinctions and asking the right
questions, in order to “live well,” to thrive, and ultimately to return to its
proper place within the Whole.
And
what is the human mind’s proper place within the larger scheme of things? That
is, what is the proper function of the human being, moved from within by mind
under the discerning guidance of reason? Human being’s proper function is to
thrive, to be “happy,” doing its particular tasks well, and seeking to
understand the Whole of which each being is a living part. In Aristotle’s
summarizing words, “Man by nature desires to know,” for in knowing what is, and
especially the ultimate causes of all that exists, one experiences happiness,
and in Platonic terms, “rises towards the Beyond.” To think, to reason, to gain
insight, to know--all within the existential response of loving trust in the
mysterious process of the Whole--the human being becomes what it truly is: a
partner with the divine Mind guiding all being-things to perfection in itself.
In
sum, this particular being, existing here and now, wants to sort through the
disturbances aroused by recent political events in order to be open to the
truth of reality: to the divine Presence that is moving all things into oneness
with itself. Mental disturbances break the peace of union, as they are in
effect little rebellions against the cosmic order being established by the Divine
Mind. What causes mental disturbances? The mind yields to irrational forces
without and within. Right thinking employs reason to restore mental order, and
so to be at once an image of the order of the Whole, but to be a partner in
divine creativity bringing forth all from nothing, and returning all into
itself.
B.
A few questions raised by the elections
Through
thinking, I just moved from mental disturbances to a contemplative gazing
towards the divine “steering all things through all,” using Heracleitos’
phrase. What does this mean? Thinking is a human mode of participation in God.
The human mind or soul is aroused to think because we exist in an incomplete
and ever-unfolding mystery. We do not exist in a state of complete peace,
union, fullness of life, happiness. Rather, human being exists in tension between
disturbance and order, between incompleteness and completeness, between coming-to-be
and passing away. Whether animals think about their place in the Whole, I do
not know. But to be fully human one must be engaged with one’s mind and one’s
body in life as it unfolds. Human is reality ever moving towards fullness of
life, of being, of loving-knowing. To be human, one must share consciously and
freely in this perfecting process.
Now,
what is disturbing my mind from within? What feelings or thoughts are
preventing me from living in peace, of being more truly one with the ultimate
source of all that exists? Or, is asking such questions just a form of
wallowing in the disturbances? Must the mind discover the causes of its own
disorder? Is that part of the price of a return to balance? Is that part of the
price of freedom: to discover why one’s mind is not fully at peace, and to take
action to restore order?
The
main distinctions I make in response to present mental disturbance are the
following: (1) This week’s elections, including the Presidential election, and
the results, over which I have no control. (2) What these results indicate
about American politics. (3) Possible ways to work towards better results in
the future. (4) A few decisions to consider. (5) The underlying conditions of
our society.
Regarding
the first (1), it does no good to yield to anger, sorrow, hatred, joy, or just
plain excitation over these events. They are past, and there is nothing I can
do about them. I acknowledge my disappointment, even sorrow, but I also choose
not to indulge in these feelings, but rather to learn from them. And that is
one reason I am writing now. I have many concerns for our body politic aroused
by the results, concerns for particular persons and groups, concerns for one
young man I know personally who apparently lost his job. And I am prepared to
take steps at the right time to assist either a better alternative (individual
or party) to those who won the election, and to assist persons who may be
suffering from the results.
Regarding
the second point (2 above): I have begun to think about what the results
indicate about American politics, and especially what the more conservative
party must do in order to win elections, even as it becomes more insightful,
more understanding, more able to help improve some of the deeper and more
persistent problems afflicting our body politic. Winning elections and gaining
power ought not to be the primary goal, but a means to serve the common good.
Much is seen in the recent elections which reinforces known truths about the
defects and strengths of the American character. That the President won
re-election by vilifying his opponent, by a focused “smear campaign,” was
visible to anyone observing as fairly as possible. President Obama did not take
a “high road” of presenting the best that he has to offer, but spent enormous
financial and human resources arousing anger and hatred in people for his opponent
(Romney) and the social class to which he belongs (“the top 1%”). Hence,
victory was gained at the cost of performing many ignoble actions, and perhaps
more importantly, of inflaming increased anger, hatred, and division in the body
politic. (Other than listening again to one of Obama’s campaign speeches--a
most tedious task--one could watch a few minutes of the Vice-President’s
performance in his “debate,” and see the tricks of doing anything to distract the
mind of listening and thinking to what his opponent has to say.) What shows up
is that American political leaders, or rather some of them, are willing to use
destructive means to attain their goal of gaining political power. For the sake
of one’s power-position, the body politic gets knifed, sliced, agitated, and
divided. Hence, part of my sorrow and disappointment is not only that President
Obama won, but that he did so by engaging in tactics that damage the common
good. What does it say when a person who claims to be seeking to serve the
common good, proceeds by dividing, agitating, harming the common good? What it
suggests to me is that for such a person, gaining power is the real goal, and
that any means needed to gain and maintain power are justified. Most
unfortunately, this is an all-too-common problem in American politics, and it showed
up with shocking bluntness in the recent Presidential election. In short,
American politicians will lie, obfuscate, smear, avoid, promise all sorts of “goodies,”
and so on, all to gain or to maintain political power. Or viewed from the role
of the voters: Many Americans are unwilling or unable to discern truth from
error, good character from bad character, deception from reality. “We the
People” live in spiritual darkness which clearly shows up in politics.
Regarding
the third point (3), about what to do to work towards better results in the
future, I will leave that question for the time being. First I prefer to see
the problems, the underlying diseases, as well as I can, before offering any
possible medicine or solutions on the more explicitly political level. After
all, politics is a form of activity within a culture; in the United States of America,
it is not only the political landscape that displays evident problems, but more
fundamentally, the American culture, the American way of life.
I
suggest several practical points (4) as a first response for consideration.
Given what has been displayed by the President of the United States,
with numerous politicians and citizens complying by supporting him, how could
one respect the man, or listen willingly to his voluminous and often voluble
speeches? His seemingly empty words, his calculating promises, and his
impassioned rants against those whom he hates or judges to be his political
enemies reveal a politician to whom one would only foolishly listen.
Immediately after the election of 2012, the Republican Speaker of the House,
John Boehner, told the President to lead, “and we will follow.” The House
Republicans may seek to work with the President and his party, but need to
resist being “led” by him, lest they share in his deceitful and destructive
ways. One should follow a good person who leads, not a highly defective “leader,”
regardless of his power-position and outward displays of “authority.” Hence,
the Speaker’s words were flattering to the President and may have suggested a
sycophantic attitude, or a genuine but naive attempt to “be led” by the
President. What matters here is that by his actions and words, the President
has forfeited a position of serving as a true leader or political model. His
actions and words have rendered respect impossible, unless one willingly blinds
himself from the President’s actions. What shows up is that this man has gained
and maintained political power, but forfeited authority. Hence, one must choose
to follow right reason, and respectfully obey only those men and women
displaying in public good character and genuine concern for the well-being of
our country.
Now
we come to the main issue (5) clarified by the recent elections, hinted at
above: the underlying condition--disordered condition--of our American
political society. So many issues must be raised, so many problems must be seen
and sorted out, that only some sketchy hints can be provided here at the present
time.
C.
On the disorder of American political society
The
recent elections illustrate underlying diseases in the American body politic,
but they are not primary causes, nor do they change my thinking on our regime,
our American way of life. My desire to disengage from much that happens in
American society is not new. I am not one to think, “I may leave this country,”
because the elections did not go the way I would wish. Rather, what I think and
write now is what I have thought for years. Indeed, I do not want to be unduly moved
or biased in my judgment because being disappointed by the recent elections.
Both political parties display the diseases rampant in our body politics, although perhaps to
differing extents, or in different ways. The worst of the underlying spiritual
and political problems seem to show up in our large urban areas, but rural and
small-town America
is by no means exempt from the diseases. For a major cause of the relative
equity of disease is the power of media, entertainment, “higher education,” and
government to penetrate into the furthest recesses of American life, thinking, and
practice. No one is protected from these powerful social diseases.
If
American society is not in a late stage of decay, and not dying in us and
around us, then I am radically mistaken. This issue will be partially examined
below. First, however, assuming that American society is corrupt, one wonders, “What
can one do?”
D.
What is one to do?
Granted,
an analysis of the spiritual and political condition of American society should
properly be offered before attempting to answer the question, “What is one to
do?” In order to act reasonably, one must discern properly the conditions in
which he is living. Suffice it for the present to note that although I have not
yet written the preceding section analyzing the disorder in American society,
it is a subject about which I have given much thought since the mid-1960’s. The
upshot of my thinking on American society can be given most briefly, without
details or explanations at this time, and this short summary may suffice to
consider the practical question, “What is one to do?”
And
this is the summary view on American political society: The substance of
politics is the character of the human beings in the political society.
Americans display an enormous range in qualities of character, from
well-ordered and prudent down to very serious mental and spiritual disturbances.
The bulk of the people seem to be well-intentioned, but heavily immersed in a culture
of self-seeking: pleasure, entertainment, restless money-making, self-worship
in various forms. As for the ruling elite, what most comes to mind is that our
political and social leaders display enormous “egos,” or over-weening
self-love, greed, lust for power, deceitfulness. These traits do not show up in
every political and social leader, but they predominate.
So
what is one to do in this society? Surely it depends on one’s age and station
in life. As things stand, I do not understand why one would want to bring
children up in this country today, given the overwhelming effects of a highly
corrosive and corrupting culture. One cannot escape the destructive power of
the entertainment industries, the mass media, mass education, and the power
elites. If one is sufficiently old enough and grounded enough not to have to be
immersed in “education” or indulge in popular entertainment and the foolishness
of mass media, then one can “keep oneself unspotted by the world” to one extent
or another, albeit with enormous effort. For these older people I will offer
some thoughts below.
But
for young persons who are being “educated” in American schools, colleges, and universities;
and for those who freely and willingly indulge in mass entertainment and the offerings
of main-stream mass media, then I can offer virtually nothing other than to
say: Become aware that you are being manipulated, brain-washed, and corrupted,
whether you want to be or not. Your minds are being malformed by men and women who
know very little about proper intellectual and spiritual formation (right paideia), and because you lack the experience to judge wisely of what is
being done to you, your chances of thriving mentally and spiritually are slight
indeed. You need to ground yourselves in divine reality and right reason as
well as you can. But know this: The forces at work in your “education” and “entertainment”
are corroding whatever sound order may have been built in you from the earliest
years, largely by the hard work of your parents. You may survive and live, but
you will be sharing in the evils of this culture more than you realize. You
need to make conscious and deliberate breaks from the mass culture, but without
formation from within, you will not know how, and attempts may be more foolish
(as in rebellion) than wise and life-giving (as in genuine conversion of mind).”
***
On
fleeing the culture: introduction by way of referring to my life
Now I
write for those of us who are no longer subjected to “education,” who can
refuse to indulge ourselves in popular music and mass entertainment, who know
enough not to rely on the propaganda machine of the mass media (especially
major news and entertainment outlets). I write for those of us who understand
that American society is corrupt and corrupting, and who desire to free
ourselves from its worst influences, and to do what we can to benefit ourselves
and perhaps a few others. I write on behalf of Americans who have the sense to
know that the ship is sinking, and that we must at least put on life jackets
and prepare to swim in icy-cold waters; for the Titanic of American society has
been taking leaks for years, and a number of icebergs may be about to rip the
hull wide open.
Before
generalizing, I shall make a few concrete suggestions based on my life and
experience, which may or may not be of any worth for someone else. Still, it
gives an idea of the direction in which to go: flee immersion in the culture!
Years
ago, having experienced mental abuse at the hands of “Progressives” in the
Catholic Church, I learned a lesson: That I am in the church, but not of it;
that I do my duties, but keep myself as unspotted from the church’s politics as
I possibly can; that I remain in the church to help serve
spiritual-intellectual needs of others, and for my own financial support, but
not primarily for spiritual enrichment. My spiritual life is nourished
primarily through studying philosophy, political philosophy, and some theology,
and only to a lesser degree, through fellowship or communion in the church. In
other words, I remain active in the church as a means to assist others, but
also because I still need to earn an income.
Now I
add to my formula of being “in the church but not of it.” Although I may wish
to do so, I cannot say, “I am in America, but I am not of it.” For I
am indeed of the American political order from birth, so I cannot in truth say
that “I am not of the American regime.” I am not only an American citizen, but
I think and act in ways that are distinctly American, whether I like it or not!
This country is my homeland, and it has constituted a very large part of my
psychic formation. On the other hand, I am choosing to detach myself to the
extent possible from much that is current now in this country: First and
foremost, from the American mass-pop culture, especially as it propagandizes
through the entertainment and music industries. For years I have reduced my
exposure to this cultural garbage--to put the matter bluntly--to the extent
possible. But watching television, I cannot escape the trash music on
commercials, or the effect of entertainment-”values” even on news broadcasting.
So I must limit television watching more than I have in recent years to keep
myself less spotted by the corruption of American mass culture. Secondly, since
2004 I have been investing in U.S.
equities, which I can continue to do for the time being. But to limit time
wasted on them, I must keep off margin to the extent possible, not spend hours
watching CNBC with financial news and chatter, and look for other ways to
invest for my financial future that require less mental involvement.
***
General
considerations on fleeing American culture
Orienting
question: Given that we already live in the United States of America, and given
an awareness that there is much in this regime and culture which corrupt and
wound genuine human-spiritual life, what is one to do? What are the main
options open for a person who recognizes the need to reduce immersion in mass
culture, and to break from corroding influences to the extent possible? Several
different answers to the orienting question are outlined below, then briefly
explained. Finally, we shall focus on what seems to be the most reasonable
response.
"
A. Extremist-destructive responses to decadent American culture
1.
Deny that American mass culture is corrupt and corrupting: the way of spiritual
blindness
2.
Attempt to flee from the corrupt culture by leaving the USA: the way of ignorance of
reality
3.
Seek to destroy the political regime and culture by violence: the way of
terrorism
4.
Wait for, even desire, the “utter collapse of the system” (the way of
apocalyptic dreaming)
B.
Half-hearted, spiritually foolish responses to decadent American culture
1.
Make one’s peace with the culture, submerging oneself in it: the way of
spiritual laziness
2.
Embrace American culture and try to “move it forward” to become more “progressive,”
that
is, more decadent: the way of Gnostic intellectuals
3.
Believe that the culture will transform itself for the better: the way of magic
4. “Pray”
that things will get better in the corrupt culture: the way of futile wishing
C.
More constructive ways to live and thrive in decadent American culture
1. Do
one’s daily duties and tasks while seeking to remain “unspotted by the world”
2.
Seek to understand the nature and causes of the corruption, and avoid them
So
much for a first essay written after the election of 2012, and trying at least
to raise a few questions about underlying issues, especially the decadence of
our mass culture. Duties press on me that I am unable to organize an essay or
pursue questions as I wish. My plan is to post this draft as a first response,
and then to begin afresh.
