Lately I have had the honour to hang out with several people who have far greater revolutionary credentials than I can hope to lay claim to! These people struggle everyday to make the world a better place. They are not violent, they have an almost indestructible sense of right, and they have almost no hope of ever achieving their aims in their lifetimes. They live in a corrupt and evil country in a corrupt and evil world, and they always have their ideals at the forefront of their mind. True, they don't always remember that Che Guevara was a killer as well as an inspirational reformer, and they might sometimes get a bit carried away (let's not talk about the 1st of January 1994...) But these people are bringing the revolution to Mexico.
And it's not just the zapatistas. Across the globe there are millions who hope fervently for change and are actively promoting it with every resource available to them. And many more do the same when a notable event, such as the Obama campaign, for instance, prompts them to.
At ever stage of history, there have been those who have pushed the barriers of human progress, and taken us another step towards the true meaning of humanity. At the same time, there are those who take us several steps back towards our animalistic origins through their unbelievable acts of evil. Never once has sudden revolution made any more change to human nature or human existence than the gradual revolution that takes place naturally every day across the globe. In many countries, slavery, that great pillar of the egocentric half of human nature, is already unthinkable.
These are the various and disconnected thoughts that I have about revolution. Idealism cannot be flawed unless it misunderstands the theory of evolution. Our progress is slow, but one day idealism will be all that we know. Romantics and Idealists know that Love and Respect are the foundations of true humanity, and they know that hope and idealism are the cement with which the house will be built. I hate when people say that all we need is love, but this is because I fail to understand what love is. Love is empathy, and empathy is human nature.
I've said it before, and I'll say it again. Love is empathy, and empathy is human nature
PS: on a slightly related note, I'd like to say that we do not rebel against a capitalist system that was created on purpose for the rich to beat down the poor. There is nothing purposeful about capitalism, as my good friend Weapons of Mass Destruction supposes, nor is there anything purposeful about socialism. They are merely reflections of the two sides of human nature. True, capitalism is far better at creating wealth, but this is only because our animal half is far better at doing things for oneself...and though many have tried to justify capitalism because it accidentally has positive effects for everyone, it is still only possible in a society that clings to the original egocentricism over the emerging altruism of empathy. True, a true and well informed altruist might select capitalism over socialism because it will create better living conditions for more people. But what percentage of humanity makes a personal decision about which economic template they follow? Society makes the decision for us, and we have no choice but to bow to social pressure, not having free will of our own on such issues (see my previous post about this) There is nothing intrinsically wrong about the omnipotence of society, nor about our lack of free will. It makes sudden revolution impossible, of course, which is a shame. But ultimately the final incarnation of human society will be socialist. It cannot help but be so. Whether it will work or not is up for discussion. I pray it will, because if not, humanity is a failed species.
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You make a good point. I don't however agree that human society will ultimately be a socialist one; for one, this will rely on human empathy - seemingly so powerful on an individual basis - overtaking our self-interested and incentive driven natures.
ReplyDeleteOf course, it could be argued that significant steps towards a socialist ideal have been taken over the last two centuries; in Britain we have the NHS, free education for all and benefits of all different kinds (unemployment, disability etc. etc.).
What remains unchanged however is the concentration of power in the same people who have always had it - namely the wealthy. David Cameron, probably to be our next Prime Minister, is Eton and Oxford educated - how can he possbily empathise with even normal families, let alone those living in impoverished ghettos and those sleeping on the street? Think Tanks which create policies for what I am afraid to say are now faceless political parties only care about one thing - attracting votes from those most likely to vote, i.e. the white middle-class. And why would the white middle-class prefer to have their taxes spent on cleaining up inner-city ghettos as opposed to improving the education system (even though in the long-run it would be beneficial to society to get the homeless off the streets and into tax-paying jobs!)?
Without sudden revolution I can't see anything much changing but if we follow your logic then sudden revolution is apparently impossible (barring, of course, some 'black swan' event taking place).
Sorry that turned into a bit of an aimless ramble...maybe their is some fat in their to chew on as our favourite politics teacher would have said. ;)
Of course Cameron couldn't empathise with someone living in the same building as him...all of what I said will happen in the futuer..the distant future. Maybe hundreds, thousands of years. Evolution take a long long time. Took us about 6 thousand years to realise slavery's not very nice. But at least we've realised it.
ReplyDeleteOuch, clearly I'm destined to live a cold and robotic existence forever like Mr. Cameron. I don't care for him much though.
ReplyDelete