A Sad Commentary on the World

[chr0naut]

I think you may have that confused.
If America thrives under a free market capitalist system, it can help defend the world against the likes of the WEF, and the Soros Klan.

Really? Are ridiculous tariffs and other heavy taxation (to a private corporation, none the less) 'free market' now?

[andy06shake]

The Nazi's and Italian Fascists would not have risen to power if there was not a feeling that their countries had 'lost out' on post WW1 reparations. They both promoted that their country should be supreme over all others - for reasons of history, or natural justice, or other bigotry. And the people believed it, and voted them into power, and we know where that led.

Many US citizens think that the USA is, and/or should be, supreme in all the world. It is at the core of recent political platforms and the people have voted them into power.

This implies to believers in the nationalist ideology (as defined by the Fascist manifesto of Mussolini, from which it gets its name), that any and all attempts to be fair and equitable amongst the countries, in things like law, trade, production, human rights, medicine, migration and aid, are to be condemmed by the Fascist.

And all ideas of statesmanship, and looking for win-win solutions, is likewise denigrated as 'weakness' because there must - always and only - be only one winner (and to the many who 'flag-wave' for such nationalist ideology, you can be pretty sure that, ultimately, you wont be the one winner).

But that argument oversimplifies history and modern politics.

Post-WWI resentment certainly helped fuel fascism in Germany and Italy aka The Treaty of Versailles.

Fascism is an authoritarian system that enforces absolute total control, racial purity, and suppression of dissent.

U.S. patriotism, at least for the time being, still exists within a democratic framework, and allows for debate and opposition.

Not all national pride leads to fascism, but it can be a slippery slope.

The problem is that when we equate nationalism with totalitarian ideology.

It risks trivialising the horrors that fascism can bring about.

[andy06shake]

Really? Are ridiculous tariffs and other heavy taxation (to a private corporation, none the less) 'free market' now?

On the tariffs, i certainly agree.

Because they oppose free market principles and distort the natural competition.

Taxing imports equates to the government artificially raising the price of goods.

And that obviously limits consumer choice.

Instead of prices being set by supply and demand.

They create market barriers.

Which in the end, simply undermines overall economic efficiency.

That's not a free market, point of fact, quite the opposite.

[IgnorantGod]

And yet another one that lament the state of the world. Well, it's not like the 'world' could please everyone anyway, right? or left?

And of course, I guess it's all the fault of some shadowy figures, of which nobody knows about, but somehow 'everybody' know it's because of them. It can't possibly be the fault of the "innocent" population...

Let's just ignore the fact that a deception needs both the deceiver and the deceived to play their role.

As for repeating history, and not learning from past "mistakes". Aren't those "mistakes" all human's conceptual constructs? The planet doesn't seem to 'bother' about one species exterminating most of the others + debalancing the conditions that allow such species to live in the first place. I'd say it's not because we don't 'learn', it's because we can't properly communicate our life's experience to others. It's just as when you tell your kid to not do something because it'll 'hurt'. Probabilities are on the side that the kid won't listen to you, and learn it the 'hard way'.

But then, even if you could transfer your 'pure' experience to your kid, would you do it? It's akin to make it 'suffer', could it even cope (either physically or psychologically) with what and how you experienced your life?

Anyway, at the end of the day, I think most people just do what they can in their daily life. I wouldn't place the 'blame' on anyone about the state of the 'world'. If anything, we are simply a broken species.

[andy06shake]

We're a contradictory species.

Capable of destruction and creation, cruelty and compassion, good and evil. 

The "shadowy figures" narrative, Illuminati nonsense, ignores our complexity.

It's clear that most of our problems emerge from our collective stupidity, wants, needs, and agendas, not some secret shadow cabal hiding behind a curtain.

Learning from history isn't impossible, it's just uneven, because it's filtered through culture, bias, and emotions.

I suggest that while we can't transmit pure experience from one person to another(yet) our ability to empathise and language lets us approximate an understanding.

But it's a poor substitute for experience in doing a thing. 

The fact is, the planet's indifference doesn't absolve responsibility.

Our awareness grants us moral weight.

"Cogito, ergo sum" 

Most people indeed do their best, but that doesn't erase accountability.

And i suggest the state of the world reflects our immiturity as opposed to brokenness.

It's like we are trying to learn how to balance intelligence with wisdom.

And unfortunately doing a pretty poor job.

[IgnorantGod]

[...]

The fact is, the planet's indifference doesn't absolve responsibility.

Our awareness grants us moral weight.

"Cogito, ergo sum" 

Most people indeed do their best, but that doesn't erase accountability.

[...]

And unfortunately doing a pretty poor job.

Of course, I wouldn't try to argue otherwise. But as far as I see, "accountability" is also a human conceptual construct. Point is, I don't see any other species having existencial crisis (not saying there aren't any).

Awareness has a lot of potential in my opinion, morality being one possible outcome. But that state of mind stands on a thin line, just like any system. It's resilient, but it's not flawless, and it will eventually collapse.

A 'poor job' necessitate a 'standard' to compare it with in order to be 'poor'. I simply haven't seen anything from the universe that says human does a 'good' or 'bad' job in anything. It just does what it does, like everything else.

[andy06shake]

Of course, I wouldn't try to argue otherwise. But as far as I see, "accountability" is also a human conceptual construct. Point is, I don't see any other species having existencial crisis (not saying there aren't any).

Awareness has a lot of potential in my opinion, morality being one possible outcome. But that state of mind stands on a thin line, just like any system. It's resilient, but it's not flawless, and it will eventually collapse.

A 'poor job' necessitate a 'standard' to compare it with in order to be 'poor'. I simply haven't seen anything from the universe that says human does a 'good' or 'bad' job in anything. It just does what it does, like everything else.

None of the other species is sentient or has opposable appendages in the same manner we do.

We know better, or at least we darn well should....

We will always be flawed because we are imperfect animals.

But those flaws are also what give us strength and diversity.

[IgnorantGod]

None of the other species is sentient or has opposable appendages in the same manner we do.

[...]

Well, if they do, they are 'pro' conartists then, in my opinion.

But how can we 'judge' the other species using our own standards anyway? What is 'sentient' for a human may not be 'sentience' in any absolute sense.

 

[...]

We know better, or at least we darn well should....

[...]

I honestly don't know. How do we know that anything we know as any objective value whatsoever? By "better" implies that there is some standards to be met. By who? or what? and when?

As far as I see, at some point we simply choose some values because it makes some senses in that particular context. Morality makes sense when living in a collective with individualist values. 

But does it have any weight outside that paradigm?

Personally, I've stop expecting anything from human, or from anything else. Is there anything to expect to begin with? (Yes, it's somewhat nihilistic, but I can't stop reminding this to myself).

Again, it's not an argument against societal laws and orders, nor against any ideals. However, I do think that some people are a bit too quick at projecting their beliefs as an absolute 'Truth' of some sort for everyone to follow. And well, who am I to judge the people that decide to follow anyway?

Am certainly not paid enough for this shit!

[Datguy]

Hanlon's razor :
 "Never attribute to malice that which is adequately explained by stupidity."