(05-29-2019, 01:41 PM)isis Wrote:
These are American conservative phenomena. 'Freedom', 'Free speech' coupled with 'individual'. Not to mention the concept of 'divine right'.
This combination does not exist elsewhere in the world. They dont even exist in England, where many Americans see their roots. Or in Germany. Or China. Japan. South America. Mediterranean. Eastern Europe. Nowhere.
This combination of concepts belongs to American conservative segments. It combines elements of religion with their personal ideology, then used as justification for various kinds of 'freedoms' in their positions toward the society.
But whichever such social position you examine, you see that it basically is a selfish position, justified by the above rare combination of religion and ideology. And its self-contradicting and self-harming too, ironically:
Healthcare - they dont want to pay for other people's healthcare, because 'freedom'. Its basically just selfishness because of not wanting to give something to others, to the society. But in the end they end up paying much more for themselves to private insurers which seek to profit at the expense of their sickness as a result, and also risk practical robbery and even death at the hands of their private insurers. All the stuff those insurers and healthcare companies do, of course, are in turn justified by the very same weird combination of ideology and religion.
Social programs -> The same -> "Individual responsibility". They dont want to pay for other, lazy people's social security. So they save a few hundred dollars per month, while risking going homeless, bankrupt, in the streets, for themselves or their extended family or friends
Taxes -> Its violence! Violates freedom! My freedom! -> Reduce taxes!. They save a few hundred dollars per month from the tax breaks. Massive megacorporations and their a few thousand majority shareholders save trillions. Now their society is practically bankrupt to fulfill any society-wide function. Society's coffers drain, and even infrastructure starts breaking apart, bringing all kinds of risks like dying in a collapsing bridge or not even being able to drive on a proper road, to these very people
https://www.businessinsider.es/asce-give...?r=US&IR=T
https://edition.cnn.com/2018/03/19/us/br...index.html
.............
What's even more in stark contrast:
Historically these social segments in US had no problem with others' freedom of speech or individual rights being repressed. Back in 1950s, it was ok to repress anyone who deviated from the good old religious, capitalist, conformist and dutiful philosophy that was defined as 'American'. Charlie Chaplin, for example, had to escape to UK to save himself. Many more were prosecuted, jailed or repressed.
Actually even worse.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zoot_Suit_Riots
Wearing the wrong size of pants was something to get into jail for, in that good old US.
It was all ok when these were happening. It was even ok when the most peaceful movement which the US has ever seen, hippies, were being shot at at colleges.
But now they may risk losing being the main narrative, these conservative segments suddenly have an unending love for freedom of speech. And individual rights.
..........
Basically its self-centered inclination, and accompanying hypocritical position that is necessary to justify that selfishness. People who would not defend your right to criticize Iraq invasion merely 15 years earlier are now screaming about their freedom of speech... To dehumanize, vilify and spread hate against anyone who is not from their own group, precisely.
...........
Most surprisingly and ironically, that [i]is freedom[/b]! They are correct!
It is the freedom offered in 3d, for choosing a path.
Except...
The path chosen in that manner, is the negative one: Demeaning, vilifying and hating others, which is then in turn used as a justification to put oneself as the superior to those others, and to exploit them for one's own benefit: Like how Mexican immigrants are being shoved into prison labor camps and being made work for corporate profit.
In the later stages of this freedom of choice process towards negative path, the 'others' are sufficiently vilified to the point of being hated sufficiently and dehumanized sufficiently in order to justify crusades against them. Like the negative behavior formats and ensuing wars that are explained in Ra material.
So, most interestingly, these segments are right that it is a divine right, given to the individual as a freedom. It is the gift of choice.
But it doesnt lead to the place where they think it leads.
............
Actually even worse - the choice of negative path is the choice to suppress, repress and exploit. So in the end, those who choose that path swiftly find themselves being repressed and their freedoms taken away by their very societal construct - they have to fit a certain mold, they have to behave in a certain way, and they are obliged to do it even if they want it or not. They are not even outcast from the society because of incompatibility like could potentially happen in a positive society - in a negative society, they are made obey. Their very companions with whom they started on that road in that direction become their enforcers, and themselves end up as enforcers to other people. And all of them get exploited in a hierarchical pyramid for the benefit of the ones who sit at the top because those ones at the top are the 'most' 'free', 'religious', 'nationalist', 'pious', and whatever other adjective their religious ideology requires.