Political and Social Storms
What we haven't addressed for 300 years
Legislative changes have been spoken of. I am greatly disposed to think that these changes are not only very useful, but necessary; thus, I believe in the need of electoral reform, in the urgency of parliamentary reform; but I am not, gentlemen, so mad as not to know that no laws can affect the destinies of nations. No, it is not the mechanism of laws that produced great events, gentlemen, but the inner spirit of the government. Keep the laws as they are, if you wish. I think you would be very wrong to do so; but keep them. Keep the men, too, if it gives you any pleasure. I raise no objection so far as I am concerned. But, in God's name, change the spirit of the government; for, I repeat, that spirit will lead you to the abyss.
-Alexis de Tocqueville "Gale of Revolution in the Air" January 29, 1848
As I ponder both history, and the responses to de Tocqueville’s speech, I’m left with two impressions.
The first is that most people today can read into it the ills of our modern age that the want to see. Whether it be apocalyptic nightmares, wars, revolution, social ills, politics, etc - I think that there is the right mix of rhetoric there to get you hooked. Vagueness in some areas, specific in others, to read into it.
The second is, and more important, is that modern man has divorced the social question to such an extent that we now believe that we shouldn’t even ask it. That it simply “is and forever shall be thus.” Even to the extent that we have capitalists, socialists, and communists each trying to re-write their own histories, as if the social question was always with us, always answered in the same manner, and was on the lips of Christ Jesus mouth in the same manner of what we see today.
And you, dear reader, likely have no idea what I even mean when I say “the social question.”
Up until the industrial revolution split society between those that made money through investing in capital, and those that made money by their labors alone, there was no “social question.” It was all life, and organizing the Polities around it.
However, with the invention of Industry, man convinced himself that Politics and society were two separate realms of life. Specifically, economics and the needs of the middle class.. Those artisans that did masterful, good work were replaced by cheap goods the same way the US industry has been replaced by cheap junk by China.
And so, with the spread of Liberalism and Revolution, the political liberals that wanted more rights allied with the down and out that couldn’t afford rent, property, food, water, etc. When the former got what they wanted, they pushed the poor out into the streets, and told them ‘too bad, so sad, pull yourself up by your bootstraps, boyo!’
And thus, Marxism and Communism were born.
Now, we still haven’t addressed the problems of the social question
We still have issues like a Federal Reserve that says it’s apolitical.
We still have politicians that adhere to liberal Politics, expanding the political question, and not doing anything to solve the social question. It’s either burn it all down, or let it all keep going as if nothing is wrong.
Because the social question is hard, and requires viewing humans and politics as a complete, wholly integrated sum. Not as a piece meal machine where you can tinker with one piece, removing it willy-nilly and it not affecting any of the other structures put into place.
And so…
I wonder when the storm will rage?
When the fires will burn?
And when the volcano will blow?
When will we turn to the hard answers?
Nice title picture. Those people should be running to throw our “leaders” and corpo CEO’s back in the fires of Mt Doom.
The moment a people become little more than a number, rather than well a tribe or a nation to be recognized as having inherent value, and being treated with warmth and affection there is a problem.
It's why I've begun to think a monarchy is preferable, as back then the Kings had to suffer with the rest of us half the time, and had to think before making decisions, as to declare war meant they had to be out in the field also or their sons would be (up until the reign of the likes of King Louis XIV who was a terrible coward).
I must confess to being hopeful to see in my lifetime a resurgence of old things; old mercantile and artisan guilds, the commencement of new Cathedrals, castles (even if only for local tourist reasons) and for people to remember the old ways and old codes, in place of the liberal nonsense that is rotting away our nations.