It used to be, in the olden days (the true olden days, which ended basically the same time this country started). There was no real expectation of fairness or equality or the same law for everyone. There were clear social classes and (by and large) you were expected to stay where you "belonged." There weren't really any ladders …
It used to be, in the olden days (the true olden days, which ended basically the same time this country started). There was no real expectation of fairness or equality or the same law for everyone. There were clear social classes and (by and large) you were expected to stay where you "belonged." There weren't really any ladders other than through getting rid of the people above you (which rarely worked domestically and usually only happened when outsiders came in and took their place).
Then we started talking about law and equality. Expectations were created. Since there was a fair amount of land and resources that could be taken from the natives, there was room to climb up. Opportunities to be had if you were ruthless enough or corrupt enough, or connected enough. But that is gone now. Taking advantage of the "new" frontier requires education, connection, funding--which means in many cases the people with actual ideas end up holding the brown end of the stick, while others make tons of money off their ideas and innovations... or they just got bought out and shelved so as to kill competition.
A lot of this stuff was largely invisible because there was no video, no internet, no social media, no 24/7 news cycle. The higher visibility of the actuality of existence and the limits of opportunity creates anger and resentment--because the words and actions don't match the narrative, don't match the grand principles.
Having Mammon as your God (regardless of what God you might supposedly confess) amplifies it. Capitalism atomized culture and society. Niche marketing is increasingly a thing, The isolation of segments of society into smaller groups based upon interests is a thing. The internet did not connect people, it segregated them--because now you can see and hear only what you WANT to see and hear.
Most of these people truly believe they are invincible and that they can keep doing what they are doing with no repercussions. It is blatantly obvious--and it IS true, until you reach that magic point when it is no longer true... and it is almost always a surprise.
The 'atomization of culture and society' (a great description) by capitalism is a real problem and a real danger to democracy...an economic system that mirrors and encourages one of the driving aspects of human nature. As with many things, when used in 'moderation' (read smart and meaningful 'regulation' here??), not particularly or at least overly harmful, I think. 'Penny capitalism' works great. Local and regional pretty well, too. When it gets to national level large fault lines and cracks start to appear and global capitalism is a bunch of tectonic plates waiting to slip and shift. Absent 'moderation', not sure what other 'ism' might be the answer to this danger.
Like nearly all our problems, it comes down to our 'nature'. We're all greedy to some degree. Not many of us are satisfied with the bare minimum. But many of us seem to have a built-in 'governor' on the throttle of our desire to acquire things. The word 'enough' actually has meaning. Those for whom the word has no meaning are the real danger. Not only to us, but ultimately to themselves as well.
Your observation about the internet and its segregating effect is spot on. Are we here in this comment section not the perfect example of that?
I agree.
It used to be, in the olden days (the true olden days, which ended basically the same time this country started). There was no real expectation of fairness or equality or the same law for everyone. There were clear social classes and (by and large) you were expected to stay where you "belonged." There weren't really any ladders other than through getting rid of the people above you (which rarely worked domestically and usually only happened when outsiders came in and took their place).
Then we started talking about law and equality. Expectations were created. Since there was a fair amount of land and resources that could be taken from the natives, there was room to climb up. Opportunities to be had if you were ruthless enough or corrupt enough, or connected enough. But that is gone now. Taking advantage of the "new" frontier requires education, connection, funding--which means in many cases the people with actual ideas end up holding the brown end of the stick, while others make tons of money off their ideas and innovations... or they just got bought out and shelved so as to kill competition.
A lot of this stuff was largely invisible because there was no video, no internet, no social media, no 24/7 news cycle. The higher visibility of the actuality of existence and the limits of opportunity creates anger and resentment--because the words and actions don't match the narrative, don't match the grand principles.
Having Mammon as your God (regardless of what God you might supposedly confess) amplifies it. Capitalism atomized culture and society. Niche marketing is increasingly a thing, The isolation of segments of society into smaller groups based upon interests is a thing. The internet did not connect people, it segregated them--because now you can see and hear only what you WANT to see and hear.
Most of these people truly believe they are invincible and that they can keep doing what they are doing with no repercussions. It is blatantly obvious--and it IS true, until you reach that magic point when it is no longer true... and it is almost always a surprise.
The 'atomization of culture and society' (a great description) by capitalism is a real problem and a real danger to democracy...an economic system that mirrors and encourages one of the driving aspects of human nature. As with many things, when used in 'moderation' (read smart and meaningful 'regulation' here??), not particularly or at least overly harmful, I think. 'Penny capitalism' works great. Local and regional pretty well, too. When it gets to national level large fault lines and cracks start to appear and global capitalism is a bunch of tectonic plates waiting to slip and shift. Absent 'moderation', not sure what other 'ism' might be the answer to this danger.
Like nearly all our problems, it comes down to our 'nature'. We're all greedy to some degree. Not many of us are satisfied with the bare minimum. But many of us seem to have a built-in 'governor' on the throttle of our desire to acquire things. The word 'enough' actually has meaning. Those for whom the word has no meaning are the real danger. Not only to us, but ultimately to themselves as well.
Your observation about the internet and its segregating effect is spot on. Are we here in this comment section not the perfect example of that?