The kids of today will reject the woosy weakness of the 60's generation because its in their nature to do so. The only hope of reform ( taking what's good forward ) is if the currently powerful admit to their mistaken reactionary adventures.
Institutional adherents to an established philosophy often forget the creative tension that caused a movement in the first place - this is particularly true of the children of the 60 ' who think good things flow out of being adaptable and waiting for good to prevail . Most new movements are highly reactionary in origin. Cultured in cotton wool , Fabianism is a child and will give in to pressure , as it has done throughout its history; it will give in to pressure because the woosy ( if perfectly democratic) household is its theme . More than 2 children in your house, and the adults don't matter. Tradition provides no tension for the ravages of blind self will and optimism of youth . Fabianism is doing what its always done because its weak - its giving in to fanaticism.
Bertrand Russell, Chesterton and Orwell could see this because they were closer to why government worked in the West - Fabians just took it for granted that government worked. .For the radical thinkers the price of freedom was never the cooercion of power but the coercion of ideas - eternal vigilance .Men weren't to be trusted and neither were the institutions of power . The Fabians faith in the public and the public service is unreasonable and unreliable - change is fine as long as its actually for the better. Shaw's support for the Russian revolution was blinkered stupidity cultivated by popular reactionaries parties . The faith of our forefathers was that the greatest evil was actually done in the name of the best intention: the intention of giving children in a household their freedom to rule equally was the biggest act of indiscipline ever possible in a household . Animal farm advocates are still everywhere - why is this?
Since the West has thrown off the idea that freedom is a state of mind ( Thinkhebrew ) all we have is any number of advocates of animal farm .
Labor leader know the children are in charge but they don't know what to do about it: but neither do the Libs or even the IPA ( complete free trade is not economic freedom unless we want the culture of all countries to be the same ) If freedom is to mean something its gotta be more that the press releases of the powerful
Theabove 4 groups all talk in grand terms of the need for cultural change -but can only talk simplicities when it comes to actions . God help us if Labor think they can master such things with their ads and their educational revolution . To understand why the price of freedom is eternal vigilance you have to be a lot more radical and a lot less reactionary than most parties in our country today .
Sunday, July 15, 2012
More Fabianism or more Fanaticism?
Labels:
animal farm,
equality,
fabianism,
fanaticsim,
hitchens,
orwell,
vigilance
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment