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durign a debate with some of my friends, i was asked to fully articulate my feelings on, well, everything. i told him that was way too much info to go into at that late hour, and i started to write a "self descriptive essay". it's turning out to be as much for myself as for him.
so anyway, here it is after a few days. read this and pick me apart.
Religion
I have never been a religious person. I was raised a Catholic by my mother (my father was Dutch Reformed Protestant), but I ever really bought into it. I was sent to religion school for several years during my childhood, and I excelled in them. Religion intrigued me but I genuinely did not believe in it. As time moved on, certain events in my life caused me to reach out for something more, and I cried to God every night for nearly two years, in vain. Any chance of me believing in God had vanished during the rocky period of my early teens. As time went on, I began to genuinely loathe the Catholic Church, with its ornamental charade in the name of worship. Six foot golden crucifixes are needed to worship the lord, of course. After that, I began to realize that I didn’t like many of the other religions either, and I turned my hatred into one generalization: Anyone who believes in a religion to such a degree as they would render extreme deeds / die for it, anyone who uses religion to do anything other than maintain a higher moral standard, is a complete and utter idiot, a setback to the sciences and civilization itself.
As for myself, I am an Agnostic.
Being an Atheist is flat out ignorant. I can’t prove there isn’t a God any more than you can prove there is. From personal experience, I seem to be on the pessimist’s side of the fence, but I acknowledge the fact that I am not certain, and my judgment is fallible.
I have recently looked into the East Asian religions, Buddhism, Taoism, etc, but nothing seems to grab me.
Religion had a purpose long ago, and whether the end goal is real or not, it has greatly shaped civilization for the better, as well as caused some of the worst atrocities. Talk about a mixed blessing.
Social Structure
I firmly believe in equality for all those within a society. Note the distinct difference between a society and the human race. All those who are in a society, should want wish to better that society, as a whole. Those who do not wish to better the society, or downright seek to harm or destroy the society, both foreign and domestic, should be destroyed or otherwise neutralized, whether it be diplomatic, or forceful.
I believe in a classless society.
Classes, whether they be economical, social, or political, are detrimental to a society as a whole. When a group of people get together with the sole purpose of bettering themselves, they often do so at the expense of others in the society. One group will attempt to work it’s way to the top of society by exploiting, economically, socially, or politically, the other groups around them. I am aware that the two above paragraphs seem contradictory, but please again note the distinction between a society and the human race.
Politicians are the epitome of the flaws of a class system.
Politicians are nothing more than an upper class that preys off the lower classes of a nation, economically and politically. They are spineless, useless whelps that do nothing but represent their “interests”, often padded by wads of cash from “corporate sponsors”. The fact of the matter is politicians were “created” to make decisions for the people back long ago because, honestly, the people were quite ignorant, and politicians were supposed to be looking out for the good of the people. If anything is laughable, this is it baby. The system has been distorted to such a degree now, that the politicians are only looking to better themselves, only looking to make wads of cash, while appeasing the people enough to stay in office (which isn’t all that hard, if you’re in congress). Politicians are generally useless degenerates looking out for themselves.
I believe in Direct Democracy.
America is officially a Republic. Face that now and save the “Democracy” crap for someone who will buy into it. This is why the Politician class rose up initially, because Americans elect people to make the decisions for them. Power corrupts anyone. Politicians here aren’t any better than the Bolsheviks or the Stalinists in Russia, they all fall to corruption. We have created a weak middleman in America; one man is easier to persuade, easier to corrupt, than a million men. Now, I acknowledge the fact that Politicians serve one “significant” role: simply put, they know the politics so the common man doesn’t have to. Voter turnout in America sucks. Apathy, laziness, not identifying with parties, whatever. As stated above, individuals in a society should want to better it, including politically, they should want to participate in voting and the politics of running the society. To quote one of my fellow workers from the time of the 2000 election, “I don’t care who wins, so long as they don’t raise my taxes”. Clearly, not every American wants to be a part of the political clockwork, a horrible but true fact. To create an efficient direct democracy for a large group of people, a central system would have to be devised to allow the average citizen to vote on matters concerning the society, perhaps even from the home or work area.
America is a “Generous Plutocracy”.
That’s the term I coined for it. Patent pending. America, in my eyes, is simply and completely ruled by the rich upper class. The “generous” part comes from the fact that the rich upper class gives the rest of the country anything they want, as long as it does not directly interfere with the rich’s lifestyle, affluence, or personal affairs. The rich tend to take care of their own, and the richer people tend to be higher up on the political chain.
I love America. I loathe America.
Contradiction is a way of life, I suppose. Although I could sit here all day and pick out the flaws and foibles of the American system of government, I love my country, and in all honesty, I would risk my life for it if I were called upon to do so. Even though I believe this nation is ruled by the rich upper class, I know this is the best government we have had to date. Winston Churchill put it best, “Western democracy is the worst form of government, except for all the others”. The bottom line is, I have enough freedom in this society to feel content. I am not persecuted for what I believe. I am allowed to do almost anything I chose to do. I walk the streets care free, free from battling warlords and civil wars. I do not fear my government. I see the suffering of other nations. I know how good I have it. I love America; I love being an American. This nation is single-handedly the greatest experiment in personal freedom in the history of mankind, and for that I am grateful.
Economics
I strongly believe in equality within a society, as stated in the social structure section, and I affirm that capitalism is in direct opposition to equality. Social and Political power are derived mainly from Economic power, as Karl Marx so elegantly put it, “The Political and Social aspects of a society are the sum total of their economic system”. The fact of the matter is, the rich upper class have more social and political power. Having stated this, I contend that capitalism is indeed counter to equality, in all forms, and must be abolished in all its forms.
I am a socialist.
As I stated above, the path to being truly equal in every shape and form begins with being equal economically. Simply put, everyone should be provided with everything they need from society. Problems arise when defining the word “need”, and this is one pothole socialist nations have bumped hard upon. Stories of people constantly running short on food, and thousands of people lining up for toilet paper have been burned into our perception for decades, and most of these stories have some background in truth. A socialist system would take an incredible amount of organization and planning, which was next to impossible to achieve in past instances. With the advent of computers, large-scale wireless networks, and lower level artificial intelligence, a massive central system could be devised and managed to organize the massive amounts of data required to run a socialist system more effectively.
Communism has failed.
I recognize the fact that communism has failed. Go ahead, take the pot shots now. Socialism’s failure, in every instance to date, can be attributed to many other factors other than a major flaw in the ideology, ranging from the fact that the major economic powers of the world refused to deal with many socialist / communist regimes, to the sheer lack of resources, to the corrupt, power hungry dictators that usually sit atop the social structure. I am aware. I am not blindly following an ideology just because it sounds good, I am not ignoring the past, I am clearly stating that what was tried has failed, but I affirm that it was not solely the fault of the ideology itself. I am affirming that a socialist system is not only feasible in theory, but in practice. We must learn from what has failed, and attempt again.
Capitalism is innate.
I wholeheartedly agree that people, in general, are greedy, manipulative bastards, who wish to work only for their sole benefit. I agree on that, and I believe it is innate in our cognition, a remnant from our earlier evolution, an antiquated heuristic that should be eradicated. Back in the early years of evolution, food was scarce, and being greedy ensured you got most of the food, ensured your own survival, ensured that your genes would be passed on, etc, etc. In the modern era, resources are still scarce, but not nearly to the degree of yesterday. Everyone can live comfortably off the resources a society can produce without the ones at the top hoarding goods, while those at the bottom are left to starve. This food-based example can be extracted to any other good or service, there is enough of everything to go around, the mindset that allowed us to survive through hard times is now no longer a necessity, and should be abandoned with all the other malicious evolutionary traits.
Ought from is.
A common fallacy among many, the “ought from is” fallacy states that it is wrong to say “This is the way it is, so that is the way it ought to be”. Capitalism has “worked” for hundreds of years, but is that the way is ought to be? Capitalism has “worked” off the backs of the massive lower class. The “great equalizer” of the system is the fact that anyone from the lower, poorer class could eventually work their way up to the top of the system. To a degree, this is true. Aside from the fact that the rich often look out for their own, and attempt personal gain at the loss of the lower classes, once in a while one of the proletariat can save enough money, work his way up to be one of the elite. American society is slowly creating many upper-middle-class citizens, doctors, lawyers, etc, and the jump from there to the upper class isn’t too far a leap. This has proven to be the strength of capitalism, the force that drives the lower class to work harder. This has given the working class hope, however fleeting, and as they work their way up, the upper class reaps the benefits. This strength will eventually lead to capitalism’s downfall. As Karl Marx has said, “Capitalism carries within it the seeds of it’s own destruction”.
Flipping the pyramid.
We’ve all heard about pyramid schemes, we’ve all probably seen one or two; we know how they work. Capitalism is nothing more than a state sanctioned pyramid scheme, the smaller, rich upper class sits atop the work of the lower, massive working classes, a few profiting off the work of many. As stated above, however, America is producing more and more upper-middle-class citizens, who will eventually make the leap from middle to upper class. This is how the system in America works: A family emigrates from their native land, be it in Europe, Africa, Asia, or South America. The initial immigrants are usually uneducated, and they become manual laborers. They have joined the lower working class. They work very hard, and provide their children with the chances that they didn’t have. This first step may last between one and three generations, each generation being born into a wealthier family, moving slowly up the pyramid. Eventually, one of the children has the opportunity to go to college, or to master a trade, to essentially hit it big, to have made it to the top of the middle class. This child, or perhaps his child, will then have the opportunity to make the leap into the upper class. Now, you’re probably looking at this and nodding along, this is the glory of capitalism, a family coming here with nothing and eventually working their way to the elite, this is the American dream. This is the demise of capitalism. In short, too many people are going to college, too many people are reaching the top of the pyramid, too many people are reaching the economically elite, too many people are attempting to profit off the backs of the working class. We have become dependent on a steady flow of immigrants to profit off of, our nation is simply growing too “top heavy”, the pyramid is flipping, and eventually it will fall upon itself.
so anyway, here it is after a few days. read this and pick me apart.
Religion
I have never been a religious person. I was raised a Catholic by my mother (my father was Dutch Reformed Protestant), but I ever really bought into it. I was sent to religion school for several years during my childhood, and I excelled in them. Religion intrigued me but I genuinely did not believe in it. As time moved on, certain events in my life caused me to reach out for something more, and I cried to God every night for nearly two years, in vain. Any chance of me believing in God had vanished during the rocky period of my early teens. As time went on, I began to genuinely loathe the Catholic Church, with its ornamental charade in the name of worship. Six foot golden crucifixes are needed to worship the lord, of course. After that, I began to realize that I didn’t like many of the other religions either, and I turned my hatred into one generalization: Anyone who believes in a religion to such a degree as they would render extreme deeds / die for it, anyone who uses religion to do anything other than maintain a higher moral standard, is a complete and utter idiot, a setback to the sciences and civilization itself.
As for myself, I am an Agnostic.
Being an Atheist is flat out ignorant. I can’t prove there isn’t a God any more than you can prove there is. From personal experience, I seem to be on the pessimist’s side of the fence, but I acknowledge the fact that I am not certain, and my judgment is fallible.
I have recently looked into the East Asian religions, Buddhism, Taoism, etc, but nothing seems to grab me.
Religion had a purpose long ago, and whether the end goal is real or not, it has greatly shaped civilization for the better, as well as caused some of the worst atrocities. Talk about a mixed blessing.
Social Structure
I firmly believe in equality for all those within a society. Note the distinct difference between a society and the human race. All those who are in a society, should want wish to better that society, as a whole. Those who do not wish to better the society, or downright seek to harm or destroy the society, both foreign and domestic, should be destroyed or otherwise neutralized, whether it be diplomatic, or forceful.
I believe in a classless society.
Classes, whether they be economical, social, or political, are detrimental to a society as a whole. When a group of people get together with the sole purpose of bettering themselves, they often do so at the expense of others in the society. One group will attempt to work it’s way to the top of society by exploiting, economically, socially, or politically, the other groups around them. I am aware that the two above paragraphs seem contradictory, but please again note the distinction between a society and the human race.
Politicians are the epitome of the flaws of a class system.
Politicians are nothing more than an upper class that preys off the lower classes of a nation, economically and politically. They are spineless, useless whelps that do nothing but represent their “interests”, often padded by wads of cash from “corporate sponsors”. The fact of the matter is politicians were “created” to make decisions for the people back long ago because, honestly, the people were quite ignorant, and politicians were supposed to be looking out for the good of the people. If anything is laughable, this is it baby. The system has been distorted to such a degree now, that the politicians are only looking to better themselves, only looking to make wads of cash, while appeasing the people enough to stay in office (which isn’t all that hard, if you’re in congress). Politicians are generally useless degenerates looking out for themselves.
I believe in Direct Democracy.
America is officially a Republic. Face that now and save the “Democracy” crap for someone who will buy into it. This is why the Politician class rose up initially, because Americans elect people to make the decisions for them. Power corrupts anyone. Politicians here aren’t any better than the Bolsheviks or the Stalinists in Russia, they all fall to corruption. We have created a weak middleman in America; one man is easier to persuade, easier to corrupt, than a million men. Now, I acknowledge the fact that Politicians serve one “significant” role: simply put, they know the politics so the common man doesn’t have to. Voter turnout in America sucks. Apathy, laziness, not identifying with parties, whatever. As stated above, individuals in a society should want to better it, including politically, they should want to participate in voting and the politics of running the society. To quote one of my fellow workers from the time of the 2000 election, “I don’t care who wins, so long as they don’t raise my taxes”. Clearly, not every American wants to be a part of the political clockwork, a horrible but true fact. To create an efficient direct democracy for a large group of people, a central system would have to be devised to allow the average citizen to vote on matters concerning the society, perhaps even from the home or work area.
America is a “Generous Plutocracy”.
That’s the term I coined for it. Patent pending. America, in my eyes, is simply and completely ruled by the rich upper class. The “generous” part comes from the fact that the rich upper class gives the rest of the country anything they want, as long as it does not directly interfere with the rich’s lifestyle, affluence, or personal affairs. The rich tend to take care of their own, and the richer people tend to be higher up on the political chain.
I love America. I loathe America.
Contradiction is a way of life, I suppose. Although I could sit here all day and pick out the flaws and foibles of the American system of government, I love my country, and in all honesty, I would risk my life for it if I were called upon to do so. Even though I believe this nation is ruled by the rich upper class, I know this is the best government we have had to date. Winston Churchill put it best, “Western democracy is the worst form of government, except for all the others”. The bottom line is, I have enough freedom in this society to feel content. I am not persecuted for what I believe. I am allowed to do almost anything I chose to do. I walk the streets care free, free from battling warlords and civil wars. I do not fear my government. I see the suffering of other nations. I know how good I have it. I love America; I love being an American. This nation is single-handedly the greatest experiment in personal freedom in the history of mankind, and for that I am grateful.
Economics
I strongly believe in equality within a society, as stated in the social structure section, and I affirm that capitalism is in direct opposition to equality. Social and Political power are derived mainly from Economic power, as Karl Marx so elegantly put it, “The Political and Social aspects of a society are the sum total of their economic system”. The fact of the matter is, the rich upper class have more social and political power. Having stated this, I contend that capitalism is indeed counter to equality, in all forms, and must be abolished in all its forms.
I am a socialist.
As I stated above, the path to being truly equal in every shape and form begins with being equal economically. Simply put, everyone should be provided with everything they need from society. Problems arise when defining the word “need”, and this is one pothole socialist nations have bumped hard upon. Stories of people constantly running short on food, and thousands of people lining up for toilet paper have been burned into our perception for decades, and most of these stories have some background in truth. A socialist system would take an incredible amount of organization and planning, which was next to impossible to achieve in past instances. With the advent of computers, large-scale wireless networks, and lower level artificial intelligence, a massive central system could be devised and managed to organize the massive amounts of data required to run a socialist system more effectively.
Communism has failed.
I recognize the fact that communism has failed. Go ahead, take the pot shots now. Socialism’s failure, in every instance to date, can be attributed to many other factors other than a major flaw in the ideology, ranging from the fact that the major economic powers of the world refused to deal with many socialist / communist regimes, to the sheer lack of resources, to the corrupt, power hungry dictators that usually sit atop the social structure. I am aware. I am not blindly following an ideology just because it sounds good, I am not ignoring the past, I am clearly stating that what was tried has failed, but I affirm that it was not solely the fault of the ideology itself. I am affirming that a socialist system is not only feasible in theory, but in practice. We must learn from what has failed, and attempt again.
Capitalism is innate.
I wholeheartedly agree that people, in general, are greedy, manipulative bastards, who wish to work only for their sole benefit. I agree on that, and I believe it is innate in our cognition, a remnant from our earlier evolution, an antiquated heuristic that should be eradicated. Back in the early years of evolution, food was scarce, and being greedy ensured you got most of the food, ensured your own survival, ensured that your genes would be passed on, etc, etc. In the modern era, resources are still scarce, but not nearly to the degree of yesterday. Everyone can live comfortably off the resources a society can produce without the ones at the top hoarding goods, while those at the bottom are left to starve. This food-based example can be extracted to any other good or service, there is enough of everything to go around, the mindset that allowed us to survive through hard times is now no longer a necessity, and should be abandoned with all the other malicious evolutionary traits.
Ought from is.
A common fallacy among many, the “ought from is” fallacy states that it is wrong to say “This is the way it is, so that is the way it ought to be”. Capitalism has “worked” for hundreds of years, but is that the way is ought to be? Capitalism has “worked” off the backs of the massive lower class. The “great equalizer” of the system is the fact that anyone from the lower, poorer class could eventually work their way up to the top of the system. To a degree, this is true. Aside from the fact that the rich often look out for their own, and attempt personal gain at the loss of the lower classes, once in a while one of the proletariat can save enough money, work his way up to be one of the elite. American society is slowly creating many upper-middle-class citizens, doctors, lawyers, etc, and the jump from there to the upper class isn’t too far a leap. This has proven to be the strength of capitalism, the force that drives the lower class to work harder. This has given the working class hope, however fleeting, and as they work their way up, the upper class reaps the benefits. This strength will eventually lead to capitalism’s downfall. As Karl Marx has said, “Capitalism carries within it the seeds of it’s own destruction”.
Flipping the pyramid.
We’ve all heard about pyramid schemes, we’ve all probably seen one or two; we know how they work. Capitalism is nothing more than a state sanctioned pyramid scheme, the smaller, rich upper class sits atop the work of the lower, massive working classes, a few profiting off the work of many. As stated above, however, America is producing more and more upper-middle-class citizens, who will eventually make the leap from middle to upper class. This is how the system in America works: A family emigrates from their native land, be it in Europe, Africa, Asia, or South America. The initial immigrants are usually uneducated, and they become manual laborers. They have joined the lower working class. They work very hard, and provide their children with the chances that they didn’t have. This first step may last between one and three generations, each generation being born into a wealthier family, moving slowly up the pyramid. Eventually, one of the children has the opportunity to go to college, or to master a trade, to essentially hit it big, to have made it to the top of the middle class. This child, or perhaps his child, will then have the opportunity to make the leap into the upper class. Now, you’re probably looking at this and nodding along, this is the glory of capitalism, a family coming here with nothing and eventually working their way to the elite, this is the American dream. This is the demise of capitalism. In short, too many people are going to college, too many people are reaching the top of the pyramid, too many people are reaching the economically elite, too many people are attempting to profit off the backs of the working class. We have become dependent on a steady flow of immigrants to profit off of, our nation is simply growing too “top heavy”, the pyramid is flipping, and eventually it will fall upon itself.
you call them failures?
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