Tag: philosophy

The Pandemic Accelerant

Crazy glue: it will dry, there’s no stopping that. When it’s dry it’s dry, but it takes a bit of time. You can speed up the drying by adding baking soda. The baking soda is an accelerant. It does not change the process that was already happening; it only makes it happen faster.

COVID-19 is an accelerant, at least in the west. Before the pandemic, we already saw the stripping away of freedoms, the descent into clown world. We saw it, but it was slow enough to think about and debate about. There was no need to be too concerned. The warnings of lost freedom, even if they did come true, would probably not come true for many years. No big deal. But no more; COVID has been added to the mix and things are progressing much much quicker.

Look at Australia. They are no longer members of the free world. So long Australia, it was nice knowing you. There seems to be no push back from the citizenry there, aside from some small and ineffective protests. Their police are quite comfortable with their new state enforced thuggery.

Oh, but we can vote our freedoms back! Sorry, no. The differences between the parties that promote freedom and the parties that restrict freedom have all but dissipated. Besides, all politicians are liars anyway. What they said they would not do two months ago is exactly what they’re doing today. “No vaccine passports!” “We need vaccine passports!” Their words, their actions, are meaningless against the tsunami pushing into the world.

What is this tsunami? It appears to be the same old system we’ve seen throughout history: a powerful but small elite ruling over a poor, uneducated, subservient mass of humanity. We see hints of it already with the wealthy at their parties: unmasked VIPs being waited upon by masked servants. It’s a perfect image of the kind of world we may be headed toward.

Young people will not be the future saviors. They are not even getting a proper education these days. University students say the dumbest things. Many of these youth appeal to powerful government to protect them and care for them. They are stupid and subservient. Indeed, they are fit for the fascism they lovingly embrace.

Unfortunately, the totalitarian paradise the young long for in the future is being prematurely thrust upon us all today. The glue is drying, the accelerant has been added, there is no going back to normal. This is the new normal.

Perhaps our only hope is a great divorce. There may be enough freedom lovers, even within the millennial and Z generations, to break off of the madness and form a new society. Time will tell, but be sure, whatever happens, there are big changes coming over the next hundred years… or twenty… depends on how well the accelerant works.

Losing All Meaning

From Google Ngram Viewer – The usage of the terms “racism” and “prejudice” over time in literature

When I was a lad, one rarely heard the word “racist”. Instead, the word we were encouraged to use was “prejudice”. Don’t pre-judge people, we were taught. Treat people as individuals and ignore stereotypes. If a businessman said, “I don’t hire natives. They’re too unreliable,” no one would label that man a racist. Rather, one would encourage him to not be prejudiced against natives. We understood that just because he perceived a pattern, and applied that pattern universally, he was not necessarily being hateful towards native peoples. Was he wrong in judging all natives the same way? Yes. Was he being racist? No.

The title of racism was correctly left to the skin heads, the KKK, and the white supremacists. The racist man was one who saw his race as superior to all others and developed a genuine hatred towards all other races. The businessman above may have a genuine affection for native people, but has developed a certain opinion of them based on personal experience over the years of being a business owner.

I have a friend who is Thai. His wife is Canadian. They live in Thailand, but occasionally visit the wife’s family farm in Canada. Thailand is warm all year round, and an inexperienced Thai guy visiting Canada in the winter may not take the necessary precautions when going out at night in -30° Celsius weather. This is indeed what my friend did when deciding to make a quick late night trip to the nearest convenience store (which is not too close in farm country). Seeing as the car had a heater and he would be quickly jumping between home and car, and car to convenience store, he did not wear a jacket. Part way to the store, the car ran out of gas. My friend was forced to run through the freezing temperatures to get to the store. When he got there the female clerk was locking up for the night and he couldn’t open the door. He knocked on the glass asking to be let in. Now, it’s not unusual for a Thai man to be mistaken for a native man by the average Canadian. My friend also has tattoos. The clerk did not let him in, and he was forced to go back to his car and try to warm himself. Luckily my friend’s wife noticed how long he was taking and set out to get him, and thankfully found him before he developed hypothermia (it was close). So, was the store clerk being racist? Or prejudiced? Was she justified in her decision not to let him in knowing he had no jacket and was freezing?

These days the woman above would be labelled a racist and crucified. No one would ask her why she assumed the man at her door was dangerous. No one would care if the last ten times she was robbed, the robber looked very much like my Thai friend. Am I excusing her behaviour? No, but I wouldn’t accuse her of being a racist either. Her fear is not unexpected, and there are solutions to her prejudice which can be implemented without ruining her career and reputation.

The term “racism” has lost all meaning these days. It’s overused, and too broadly defined. This is intentional. Racism is the unforgivable sin, and the broader the definition, the easier it is to hunt down and punish the heretics. Many people are terrified of being labelled a racist, especially those in the public eye. They know that their entire life can be destroyed from even an unsubstantiated accusation. How convenient it must be to ruin your opponent by a simple finger pointing.

Let’s bring back the word “prejudice” and end the witch hunt.