In some previous posts, I showed that the four main “beliefs” touted by “conservatives” all boil down to a desire for power. Whether they talk about “small government,” or “low taxes,” or “strong military,” or “traditional values,” the bottom line for “conservatives” is their deep-seated need for power.
My hopes for our future are essentially boundless as we enlist more and more capable technologies, yielding unimaginable liberty and prosparity for each and every person on earth. However this is a frightening prospect for conservatives because: it started with enlightenment dismantling traditions, then overt iconoclasism, creative destruction, stranded assets .... Now it's looking like material progress is self sustaining -- has reached escape velocity -- that the natural order is undergoing a complete metamorphosis. And what does metamorphosis consist of? The complete repurposing of everything into something new. Pure heritage and traditions becoming, almost, toxic impediments. There will be no refuge from constant change in our future.
I like your optimism. Perhaps we are finally coming to a tipping point when people will realize that traditions and old habits, although they may be beautiful, are only as good as they are true. We must abandon them as soon as we realize that they are false and harmful. The more people who are willing to do that (i.e., the more liberals there are) the better the future of humanity will be.
This is off-topic for this particular column, but I don’t see any way of bringing it to Scott McMurrey’s attention other than posting it here as a comment to his most recent column.
Below is a post I just made to my Facebook page, with a link to Scott’s book “Asshole Nation” and this Substack blog:
“I spend an inordinate amount of time and mental energy reading about political issues over which I have zero ability to effect meaningful change.
And so, the only psychological relief available to me is to find writings that express my own feelings.
This is something I do for quite a bit of time on a daily basis. I’m sure it fits the description of compulsive behavior.
Yesterday, Amazon proffered a book to me as a freebie, by an author I had never heard of. His name is Scott McMurrey, and the book, published in 2017, is called “Asshole Nation”.
It is interesting that Amazon proffered this book to me as a freebie. There is an algorithm implanted somewhere in those vast humming server farms that figured out this book would resonate in my brain like the Tacoma Narrows Bridge when it shook to pieces in the wind in 1940.
It’s only 62 pages, and can be read in a very brief sitting.
But every single word is like political heroin: it goes straight into the limbic system of the brain and floods it with pleasure.
Today I will read his follow up book published in 2020, “Scum Nation”.
After which, I suppose I should start looking for some sort of political rehab facility.
Here is a link to his Substack newsletter. I haven’t read it yet but I suspect I’m going to like it a lot:”
Hi, SoTiredofWinning! I'm glad that my scribblings resonate with you. I wouldn't be so hard on myself if I were you. The politics of 21st-century America has messed with the minds of all of us who really care about the values of the Enlightenment. There is no more natural way to handle our distress than to seek out those who belong to our tribe and seek communication with them. I'm glad to have you onboard! Scott
My hopes for our future are essentially boundless as we enlist more and more capable technologies, yielding unimaginable liberty and prosparity for each and every person on earth. However this is a frightening prospect for conservatives because: it started with enlightenment dismantling traditions, then overt iconoclasism, creative destruction, stranded assets .... Now it's looking like material progress is self sustaining -- has reached escape velocity -- that the natural order is undergoing a complete metamorphosis. And what does metamorphosis consist of? The complete repurposing of everything into something new. Pure heritage and traditions becoming, almost, toxic impediments. There will be no refuge from constant change in our future.
I like your optimism. Perhaps we are finally coming to a tipping point when people will realize that traditions and old habits, although they may be beautiful, are only as good as they are true. We must abandon them as soon as we realize that they are false and harmful. The more people who are willing to do that (i.e., the more liberals there are) the better the future of humanity will be.
This is off-topic for this particular column, but I don’t see any way of bringing it to Scott McMurrey’s attention other than posting it here as a comment to his most recent column.
Below is a post I just made to my Facebook page, with a link to Scott’s book “Asshole Nation” and this Substack blog:
“I spend an inordinate amount of time and mental energy reading about political issues over which I have zero ability to effect meaningful change.
And so, the only psychological relief available to me is to find writings that express my own feelings.
This is something I do for quite a bit of time on a daily basis. I’m sure it fits the description of compulsive behavior.
Yesterday, Amazon proffered a book to me as a freebie, by an author I had never heard of. His name is Scott McMurrey, and the book, published in 2017, is called “Asshole Nation”.
It is interesting that Amazon proffered this book to me as a freebie. There is an algorithm implanted somewhere in those vast humming server farms that figured out this book would resonate in my brain like the Tacoma Narrows Bridge when it shook to pieces in the wind in 1940.
It’s only 62 pages, and can be read in a very brief sitting.
But every single word is like political heroin: it goes straight into the limbic system of the brain and floods it with pleasure.
Today I will read his follow up book published in 2020, “Scum Nation”.
After which, I suppose I should start looking for some sort of political rehab facility.
Here is a link to his Substack newsletter. I haven’t read it yet but I suspect I’m going to like it a lot:”
Hi, SoTiredofWinning! I'm glad that my scribblings resonate with you. I wouldn't be so hard on myself if I were you. The politics of 21st-century America has messed with the minds of all of us who really care about the values of the Enlightenment. There is no more natural way to handle our distress than to seek out those who belong to our tribe and seek communication with them. I'm glad to have you onboard! Scott
I should add that I have ordered multiple copies of the book, at $7.95 per copy on Amazon, and sent them to friends
And thanks again! I hope your friends like it as much as you do!