Notes and Fragments, Part II
This is the second
set of notes and fragments I have collated in the hope that there may be some
value in my random scribblings on scraps of paper, Post-It notes and paper
pads. The first set of these notes, principally on the environment and politics,
has been notable only for the lack of page views it has attracted – a measly 27
at the time of writing. I think there’s some value both in them and in these,
but I guess you can’t argue with the readers...
The left’s rationalism
The left’s rationalism excludes or delegitimizes feeling
by re-categorising it along the same lines as knowing, thereby judging feelings
on the same terms as knowledge – as right
and wrong. By doing this, it enables you, as a person, to be wrong in your whole being – in the way you
feel and experience the world. There is no escape. [N.B. Of course this isn't a lefty preserve. It is shared across the liberal spectrum by what we might call 'neo-liberals', who treat human beings rather absurdly as rational animals who are only obstructed from being rational by unnatural forces in government]
Party politics
Politics largely appears as a specialism just like other
professions, with a cadre of specialised practitioners with their own language
and frames of reference (rather than as a forum for a democratic community to
make decisions for itself).
Interconnected
The fantastic interconnectedness of our world is mostly financial,
not relational. This shadows GDP, since GDP numbers show people spending money,
through the economy, rather than dealing with situations informally – for
example neighbours helping one another (which damages the economy by stopping
spending).
Patriarchy
If patriarchy means there is sexism, and it is quite widespread,
that would not be desperately controversial. The trouble is the term is used
for rather more than this. It is used as a defining characteristic of our
society, more significant even than capitalism – and sometimes as an attribute
of capitalism. From some voices patriarchy evokes a conspiracy of men against women; but
if there is a conspiracy, then someone clearly forgot to tell me. If we are
talking about something unconscious that exists but that us mere mortals are
unaware of, then it certainly remains to be proven, using rather more than the
logic of ‘here’s an example of sexism, so everything and everyone is sexist,
including all women who don’t agree with me’.
Oppression
Oppression is an action, not a bunch of statistics.
Freedom
One thing they don't tell you about freedom is its bloody
hard work, and its only reward is itself.
A simple ethic, with consequences
We should be defining and if necessary judging people by
their actions, not by group membership. This is also a way to encourage good
behaviour. If you know you can get away with not doing the right (or loyal) thing
because of your group membership, you are more likely not to do it. Likewise if
you think you can’t win whether or not you do the right (or loyal) thing, the
incentive is there not to do it as well. This is corrosive for morale both in organisations and for individual people.
‘We’ and ‘Us’
Is there a ‘we’ any more for ‘us’? Are ‘we’ allowed to
exist anymore, except as a characterless blob that is to blame for anything that
we don’t want to blame anyone specific for?
Three stages of values in politics
Values have to be timeless in order to be values,
otherwise they are more of the nature of policies, and are contingent on
circumstances. In politics, we might see three stages in which to make sense of
values.
1) Statement
of purpose. For example: ‘Labour wants to help make the world a better
place for everyone.’
2) Values.
What we mean by ‘good’, and therefore ‘better’.
3) Policies.
Practical, realistic, realisable ways of making things better, demonstrating the
values in the world.
Hi Ben,
ReplyDeleteRegular reader here; just wanted to offer a word of encouragement. I find your musings valuable even if they don't bring in the sort of stats worth crowing about. Keep on keepin' on!
Before I retire back to lurking, I will say that I find the font here difficult to read, which somewhat distracts from the experience. Not a major gripe; just thought I'd mention it in case others have said anything similar, or in case you're personally indifferent to changing it.
thanks a lot Karl - always good to get feedback. On the font, it's a difficult one cos it shows up well for me and on my computer, and I haven't had any other complaints, but I'll have a ponder about it. Really appreciating the compliment anyway and do feel free to let me know any thoughts, either on comments or via the Contact tab email. I know what you mean about stats - I just find with blogposts if you deal with stats properly you quickly build the word count, and I have a tendency towards over-writing as it is!
Delete