Tag Archives: group-identity

JUSTICE FLAYED

Hatred, anyone can see, is imPrudent.  In some circumstances one can understand anger, as when a person of color appears to have been mistreated or, God forbid, killed by police for no good reason.  Obviously his or her family has good reason to be angry in such a case.  His or her friends have a “right” to be angry, too, one could allow.  “Justice” is the correct call… in every instance, but lately by some process that translates into destruction of American culture and political existence.  How? Prudence wonders.

It takes a long-term plan, a lot of work… like a political campaign, and money – it takes money.  People are not born haters, we must be carefully taught.  Part of our social troubles… or dissolution, is our tendency to paint with broad, angry brush strokes.  It used to be if an Irishman were inebriated it was because “…those Irish are all drinkers.”

If an Italian pulled a fast one on you, then  “… those Italians are all like the Mafia.”

Frenchmen are all great lovers and they all have mistresses.  Scotsmen are cheap.  Germans are all rigid and militaristic.  Used-car salesmen are all liars.  There are dozens of similar generalizations.  These are prejudices.  They seem not so bad when applied to ethnic or economic distinctions… not nearly as bad as for racial distinctions.

Yet there are people who judge whole “racial” groups based on prejudice from anecdotes and half-truths and expressed hatreds, as well as from official, legal special treatments, real and perceived, based on popularized, but largely meaningless racial victim-hood.  In this sense, government is the worst offender for dividing populations by so-called, “race.”

“Blacks are too stupid to do…” whatever was in question.  “You can’t depend on Chinamen.”  “White people are racist white-supremacists.”  Almost everyone is guilty of some form of “group-think.”  That is, that individuals may be understood by virtue of their “group identity.”  This is diametrically opposed to the ideals of the Constitution.  In the ostensible American system, everyone is equal under the law.  Therefore, laws should be written for individual application, not racially or ethnically or for any other “group” connection.  Color-blindness is a virtue for a free people.

Governments, for the most crass, self-serving (politician) reasons, have proven themselves incapable of resisting group-identity codification.  They attempt, and intend, to garner votes by doing favors legally, legislatively for various groups, undermining the greatest strength of our Constitutional republic.  What a crappy way to damage one’s own nation.

These largely inaccurate distinctions are an easy building-block for generating hatred for groups, and, by natural distillation, for individuals within that group.  Automatically, that hatred is reflected back on the originating group and its individuals.  Great, great restraint and moral strength is needed to resist an easy slide into hatred and prejudice.  Religious teaching helps here, particularly Judeo-Christian teachings and the Bible.  It is instructive that those who would tear down the Constitution and the family-centered culture it protects, are doing their damnedest to dissolve Christianity, too.  Rainbow flags weren’t enough.

Where does the money come from to pay rioters, BLM agitators and Antifa thugs… busing or flying them around the country, covering living expenses and raising funds to bail them out if arrested while looting, committing arson, assaults and an occasional murder?  Is it surprising that, literally, Democrats provide it?  Millions of dollars flow from Democrats and Democrat-supporting corporations like Apple, Amazon, Nike, Microsoft and others who donate multiple millions to various Black Lives Matter-connected foundations and others.  Other Democrats donate and encourage others to donate money to bail criminals out of jail.  Why would people on the Left do such a thing to their own country?

It is what leftists do.  We are no longer contemplating the arguments of left-of-center liberals as to how we can organize America better for everyone.  We are watching socialists and avowed “Marxists” of all colors who are organizing total disruption – first of cities, by rioting and grabbing “reparations” for the “community” by looting and burning, then states by confusing and changing a perfectly good voting system, and ultimately the United States, again by confusing and changing voting procedures to reduce election certainty, and by destroying faith in our system of government by distorting economics and the justice system… possibly by stealing elections.

Back to “justice.”  In MOST instances, the offending police officer or officers are dealt with properly and prosecuted as he or they should be.  Some are in jail.  But not all are appropriately sanctioned, and anger toward a closed, obscured process is well justified.  What should relatives and friends do to seek real justice?  Here’s the list that lately is providing popular choices:

Protest loudly and publicly in large groups, vilifying all police.

Throw stones and bricks at police who are trying to maintain order during the protest.

Burn a police car

Burn a store or restaurant near the site of the use of excess force by the offending officer(s).

Bring in Antifa and BLM to rile up ever larger crowds.

Shoot explosive fireworks at police.

Pull down or deface a statue that honors someone few if any in the crowd know much about.

Assault, or worse, whoever is wearing an article of clothing that offends somebody in the crowd.

Force police from one of their buildings and burn it down.

None of this, obviously, generates “justice” for the victim of a perceived crime, but spreads INjustice across the lives of as many people as possible.  How does this bring even a sense of justice to the family of the original victim?  Maybe our erstwhile leaders could institute something like the following:

First, legislation that requires police agencies to provide a comprehensive, public report no later than 5 days from the date of the questionable incident.  This report could not include any statements of judgment that could distort other legal actions or suits.  The same legislation should include a strict limit of, say 20 or 30 people who are permitted to stage a protest during those 5 days; more than the right number would be apprehended and fined.

Political leaders would call for a 5-day cooling-off period and offer such help as would be accepted to the family of the “victim.”  No public funds could be diverted to any advocacy groups not related directly to the family. This process, however, must be free of admissions of any guilt or responsibility by the municipality or agency before the public report is made.  During the 5-day waiting period groups could apply for permits for demonstrations to follow the waiting period, that may or may not be granted in some form.  Beyond that, demonstrators will be strictly contained and arrested for actions outside of the parameters of issued permits.  Public safety and the civil rights and private property of others are paramount.

Being “really angry” is no excuse for rioting or stealing things or setting fires anywhere.  Municipal leaders: WAKE UP!

Government by Unreality

We are truly vexed in this, our great, open, rich, cruel, loving and generous country with our $20 Trillion debt, by social and civic problems of our own making. Whole industries are comprised of complaining and hating perceived groups of people unfairly imposing problems and then unfairly benefiting from them. Not much money seems to flow toward the loving business, but various dolled-up hatreds are profitable.

Some hatreds are aimed at Republicans, for no specific reason other than party affiliation; some are aimed at Democrats for the same reason. Both of those groups seem to have the same goals of expanding welfare, growing government and raising the debt ceiling. Neither is trying to seriously fight the LGBTQW revolution, although one side obtains money by claiming the other side hates LGBTQW “victims.” But aside from a lot of posturing, little honest change is proposed by either party, whether in power or out, although there’s plenty of the opposite.

When erstwhile Republicans and various independents and conservative-leaning parents elected a hard-to-fathom or mollify President Trump who thought he had the balls to actually change SOMETHING, leftists and others wedded to the status-quo ante began raising gobs of cash from fellow travelers and bird-brains who actually do hate HIM. Most of the money comes from people who hate haters. Those same hate bigots – people who pre-judge their neighbors as somehow flawed, just as much. In fact, they are able to spot bigots from quite a distance, especially if they are wearing one of those stupid red hats… or deign to vote for Republicans.

There has been some change, but nothing so dramatic as to let Constitutionalists relax.

In our hubris, we, Americans, a large minority of us at any rate, are convinced that normal laws of economics and well-established human nature no longer apply to us. Through our elected representatives we have become convinced that we can borrow a richer life, today, from our great grandchildren to whom and for which we’ll never answer.

We also believe that our enjoyment of freedom and wealth is somewhat automatic and somehow deserved. We are so happy with it and it’s easy accessibility, and being suspicious of our governors and bosses, we’re determined to share it with anyone those governors and bosses don’t like – just to get even. Why should we be so selfish as to keep America to ourselves? This misunderstanding leads us to fight against any standards or limits, like anachronistic borders, that those cruel governors want to maintain.

Freedom is some sort of gift, leftists say, provided to us by government, the source of all that’s good. If you aren’t as free as you’d like, more government will fix it. They don’t want to be limited by those Christian haters, especially the ones actually in churches… you know the ones, in their black suits and robes who read the “Bahh-bull,” for Heaven’s sake. The basis of Western civilization has no connection to today’s disconnected leftists. “Thanks, God,” they say, “thy system was far from perfect so we’ll take it from here. Call me, we’ll do a funeral.”

It’s the perfect statement of non-responsibility, which is the leftist, group-identity outlook. Whatever group we can burden you with is the reason things have gone the way they have for you – even if we don’t really know how things have gone for you. If you’re black (the best group ever invented, thank you, Lord, for giving them different skin; it helps a lot) then all sorts of causes for your victimized life can be proclaimed. Don’t y’all worry about finding justice in this White-privileged world, we are here to help the helpless. Take this check and be sure to put yourselves in POWER on election day.

To live a political existence on the basis of resentment of White people, is to, eventually, be subsumed by hatred. Evidence of this effect is everywhere poor, or “disadvantaged” blacks and other minorities are concentrated: ghettos. Surrounded by others who feel cheated out of their fair shares, and further surrounded by more richly “advantaged” Whites, ghetto residents become hateful, regardless of EBT cards, free health care and food subsidies. Welfare becomes merely a down-payment on justice.

It should be obvious, had education done its job, that government cannot create or impose justice on a social system; but, it can adjudicate injustice. In other words, if laws are made clearly and succinctly, the failure of some one or of several some-ones to treat another person or group of several persons fairly under the law, then government can ascertain appropriate charges for failing to act legally toward another or toward others, and prosecute illegal actors for their failing and impose penalty or restitution to those so treated.

What government should never do is create crimes out of feelings, or stretch clear laws into fuzziness about things people feel are unfair. This includes creating laws to cover self-declared conditions for which there is no empirical, quantifiable proof. Unfortunately, this includes special laws concerning homosexuality, sexual indecision or confusion, and mis-named trans-genderism. It should also not provide special legal strictures based on race. Rather, law is intended for, and only fair if applied to, sanctioning individuals or legal constructs like corporations when those persons/entities act outside of clear laws that are applicable to everyone of the members of society. We as a people or nation, create immense structures of unfairness and unreality when we attempt to legislate based on feelings and political unhappiness.

This old observer suggests that mankind’s worst circumstances result from acceptance of – even codification of – unreal, baseless claims and beliefs. For some this is religion, and many examples of severe warfare between religious groups or sects, can be cited. For shame. But there are other incredible murderers, like Hitler, for whom occult religious stories justified warfare on a global scale. Coupled with hatred of a group for unreal reasons, it formed an upheaval from which we still suffer, almost 80 years later. Unreality made “real.”

Communism is much the same. Not so much riven by group hate, Communists hate individuality and freedom. It is more economic than philosophical, and even more deadly than hatred. Power, of course is the currency of socialism of all stripes. For Communists there are only two groups: the official Party and, economically, everyone else. Resistance to being part of the nationwide serfdom into which Communism inevitably devolves, yields starvation or the gulag. Venezuela is an obvious current example of Communism’s “promise.”

Communism is based on unreality although its effects are brutally real. It believes in a different human nature than what is in fact reality. We are on this same path in the United States, evidenced not the least by our world-threatening debt.

Yet on we stumble, electing and re-electing people who don’t like America or the ideas that created it because the people who crafted it were white or owned slaves in a slave-owning society, or picked their nose in public. They are blind to the fact that these were the men who built a ladder to get us out of slavery and a thousand other unfairnesses. And so we are locked into hatred and failure and inability to govern while anguishing over millionaires taking the knee at football games, another example of trying to “govern” based on unreality.

Unreality as the basis for action is the same as dishonesty, well-stated by Mark Twain: “It’s not what you don’t know that’s the problem; it’s what you do know that just ain’t so.”