Some people think they know what they're talking about. They seem to think that because they're able to point at some badge or name plate, they have complete and unrestrained authority to blabber. Here's a little quote from the American Museum of Natural History's website:Darwin passionately opposed social injustice and oppression. He would have been dismayed to see the events of generations to come: his name attached to opposing ideologies from Marxism to unbridled capitalism, and to policies from ethnic cleansing to forced sterilization. Whether used to rationalize social inequality, racism or eugenics, so-called Social Darwinist theories are a gross misreading of the ideas first described in the Origin of Species and applied in modern biology. More>Is this just a misquote...maybe. Maybe, this writer was trying to say Marx - who favored social justice and the fight the oppressed must wage against the oppressor - used an unproperly tagged ideology "Social Darwinism" to fight capitalist. There is no clear proof that his writer is referring to Marxism as a "socially unjust" ideology. However, Faith and Evolution begs to differ:
Darwin passionately opposed social injustice,” and “he would have been dismayed” to see his name attached to ideologies like MarxismA clear misquote. No where had Marx ever "attached" Social Darwinism to "his ideology." Although, this is only a simple blunder. Eugenic Socialism, however, very much fits this proposal.
So, to close, here's a little Voltaire: "I may not agree with what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it."
4 comments:
I think that attitudes perceived as ignorance, reflected from people who consciously strive to be aware, isn’t real ignorance as much as it is defiance. At least for me. Much of what I’ve verbally and emotionally combated in my recent life, using the majority opinion I never wanted to actively promote as a shield against the minority criticism I always respected and believed in (maybe not in its application but in its merit as an idea), was out of a sheer, all-encompassing defiance. I don’t think most “torchbearers” of the status quo are inherently ignorant. Rather, they manifest ignorance via emotional mechanisms of self-defense. It’s really hard to admit the comfortable life you’re living is, in some way, flawed at the systematic level. Take capitalism, for example. What incentive do I, as a privileged young adult born into a financially and emotionally nurturing family that has enabled me to pursue every dream undeterred by money or worry, have to consciously criticize this comfort system that has done me no wrong? And yet, I’m not oblivious to the deep inequalities fostered by capitalism. I know that for every fortunate student like me who has the unrestrained capacity to conquer his/her dreams, there are even more who have those dreams but not the resources necessary to enable them. So, if a critic of contemporary capitalism were to constantly remind me of how wrong the system is that has done me no wrong, out of my aforementioned defiance and internally-rooted self-defense mechanism, I would passionately disagree and cite a million reasons that support my side that ultimately miss the entire point of the discourse. Moral of the story (even though this wasn’t a story but a random Monday morning thought process): I agree. Capitalism is plagued by inequality, unrealized dreams, and creates serious, dangerous rifts in any society that aspires to be fully functional. I wish I was more willing to set my defiance aside before. But it’s never too late to promote awareness, even when what you’re promoting is difficult to accept because it behaves in contrast with how you live.
If you don't know the difference between Orthodox Marxism and Marxism "reformed," i.e., mutilated, then you are by definition ignorant of the Marxist ideology and its development. This is ignorance, plain and simple. That said, no one with it should be attempting to make such generalizations. Surely no one should make such sweeping generalizations. Marxists shouldn't believe in the exploited phenomenon that is social Darwinism. It is a rationale that only cleansers and eugenicists use. Surely, combinations and permutations between ideologies can be created -- and Marxism and other ideologies that promote cleansing and eugenics are no exceptions -- but they themselves cannot be combined. How do these things mitigate oppression? How do they bring about socialism/communism? They don't. And to say they do or to say it is possible to forge a legitimate ideology from the two is ignorant, not defiant, of Marxism and its tradition.
And regarding capitalism: we're not in a capitalist society. We are in either a socialist or a pre-socialist society (depending on where you live). This is the second stage of the sequence: unbridled capitalism, controlled capitalism (pre-socialism)/ socialism, and, finally, communism. Activists have done so much to get us here and most people, either by being ignorant of their work or by assuming we're still in a capitalist society, are a danger to the progress/evolution of our society. That is, ignorance of simple economic evolution is a harm that could potentially throw a wrench into the works, the progression towards the communist ideal, or, in my opinion, total democracy, omniarchy.
Post a Comment