At truthdig, Nomi Prins reviews A Question of Values, by Morris Berman:
A Question of Values is an alternately sobering and inspiring collection of essays by noted historian and cultural critic Morris Berman. Berman pulls no punches in laying bare the truths about who we are, not just as a nation, but also as individuals wrapped up in the destructive pursuit of material excess. In the unswerving style of his other writings, he rips apart the national illusion of greatness.
The book is divided into four sections: “Lament for America,” “Mind and Body,” “Progress True and False” and “Quo Vadis?” (Where are you going?). Each part examines the American identity from a historical, spiritual, technological and alternative future perspective, respectively. Taken together, they ask the imperative questions: How did we get to this point, and how do we get out? Or will we? (Here being a country caught in a societal malaise of promoting external accumulation over internal compassion.) Taken together, the sections inspect our inner and outer fabric as a nation.
In Section I, the second essay, “Conspiracy vs. Conspiracy in American History,” Berman dissects America’s profound sense of self-importance, a central theme of the entire collection. He discusses how the “post-election euphoria in the United States over Barack Obama was nothing more than a bubble, an illusion, because the lion’s share of the $750 million he collected in campaign contributions” came from Wall Street. Thus, the fact that Obama proceeded to promise to rein in Wall Street’s excesses lay in stark and rather public contrast to his own connections with the banks.
This political sleight of hand is part of a larger problem for which Berman lists four descriptive conspiracies (or fallacies): First, that we are a chosen people (so we get to do whatever we want); second, that America itself is a kind of religion; third, that we must endlessly expand, whether it be geographically or financially; and, lastly, that our national character is composed of extreme individuals going back to our colonization. This he considers to be the main reason why “American history can be seen as the story of a nation consistently choosing individual solutions over collective ones.”
A reporter related a story about a driver of a Mercedes Benz in Vail, CO who struck a cyclist and failed to stop and render aid. The cyclist was a surgeon who’s spine, scapula and clavicle were broken, will live the rest of his life in pain. The driver/owner of the Mercedes never stopped, or called to send aid. In fact, his first call was to see about repairs to his Mercedes. His car was so damaged it wasn’t drivable.
The owner of the Mercedes had a pretty import job. He worked for Morgan Stanley advising ultra high worth individuals. If he had been charged with a felony, it might have jeopardized his career, the prosecutor explained why he offered Misdemeanor charges to the driver.
It’s disturbing that we’ve seen trillions of dollars looted and no one charged, but if a vagrant steals $20 from a gas station, we throw the book at him.
http://www.businessinsider.com/martin-joel-erzinger-morgan-stanley-private-wealth-manager-hit-and-run-in-denver-2010-11?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+businessinsider+%28Business+Insider%29
“This he considers to be the main reason why “American history can be seen as the story of a nation consistently choosing individual solutions over collective ones.”
That may be valid. The collective never seems to ‘act’ until the proverbial nothing left to lose …so occasionally some individual(s) take it upon themselves to act for better or worse. Americans may pay homage to “individualism” but the truth is most people are followers, not leaders and have to have someone or organized cause to follow.
Somewhat related to values….if we want to consider when being ‘civilized’ verges into ‘uncivilized’ when the conventional morals and rule of law are applied to only the masses and not the governments. I came across this the other day and found it interesting…according to this study political assassinations have a 13% advantage in bringing about democracy than other means.
But it is based on assassinations in autocrat governments, not democratic governments.
Also found that the chaos after such acts was short term.
Probably not a good model for the US though…we have too many autocrats in democratic disguise and it would take forever…LOL
I was actually looking for a study of assassinations on “Shadow Government” individuals, the money men or cabals behind the power of various rulers and government, but haven’t been able to find any yet.
http://www.nber.org/digest/mar08/w13102.html.
James Poterba is President of the National Bureau of Economic Research.
He is the Mitsui Professor of Economics at M.I.T
THE NATIONAL BUREAU OF ECONOMIC RESEARCH
Monday, November 22, 2010 HOME PAGE
Do Assassinations Change History?
(Disclaimer…I am not planning any assassinations).
I know a young middle class individual who pulled a gun on another person in a traffic related altercation. After months of delay, charged with a misdemeanor, few hours of community service and two days in jail. I worked around the legal system for 25 yrs. Anyone who believes in justice is a member of the clueless American middle class. Punishment begins at the very bottom of the American rigid class system and decreases rapidly as you move upward until at the top, justice doesn’t exist. I can quote examples I have personally observed for hours.
I came to the conclusion, decades ago, that the entire American system is, essentially, a myth perpetuated by all forms of media, including our educational system, and has been that way from our initial moments. Makes us very easy to manipulate and control.
Re: Zeke Putnam: as more and more of us realize how badly and extensively the entire U.S. political/economic/judicial/educational/commercial/media system is corrupt and fixed against the poor and middle class, and how both major political parties do little more than the bidding of the Sociopathic Corporatist-Militarist Ruling Class, what will happen here, especially when the Great Recession soon becomes the Second Great Depression and catastrophic climate chaos devastates our coasts and farmlands in the next decade?
As more and more of us realize how badly and extensively the entire U.S. political/economic/judicial/educational/commercial/media system is corrupt and fixed against the poor and middle class, and how both major political parties do little more than the bidding of the Sociopathic Corporatist-Militarist Ruling Class, what will happen here, especially when the Great Recession soon becomes the Second Great Depression and catastrophic climate chaos devastates our coasts and farmlands in the next decade?
As the reviewer notes toward the end, Berman offers no ‘wrap-up’ feel good answers to the American dilemma — because there are none.
The Constitution, and its system of governance that served a nation of farmers and immigrants so well has long been out of its depth. The Romans found that the political system that brought them to the brink of empire was unable to guide them through it. The solution, an emperor, always crowned in violence and corruption, lasted for almost five hundred years. The Brit’s short-duration empire was basically a commercial enterprise that overflowed its abilities. Not surprising in that, as we can now see, commerce is a damnably poor foundation for any social system.
However, the Constitution is the biggest enemy of people who would convert it into the system that might work today. The only solution seems to be what is happening — the corruption of all facets in the original system into one that better serves the commercial classes in their reach for empire. As the Brits have proven, the worst model of all. The next ten years promise to be very interesting — from a distance.
Christopher, your comment is most interesting, you used the term “American dilemma” which in fact was a 1944 study on democracy and black race relations. It is most important to note that the USA has developed in the economic and moral sense “out of” or from a fundamental origin set in slavery, which is the idea of materially owning another human being to commercially exploit them for your personal benefit.
In your comment you write: “The only solution seems to be what is happening — the corruption of all facets in the original system into one that better serves the commercial classes in their reach for empire.”
I believe that America and Americans along with what is called its “western allies” have become so decadent, corrupted and immoral that they have gone beyond slavery in their exploitation and conditioned self delusion to a new virtual state. While the slave owner had a very direct and personal relationship with his slaves; he valued them, considered their well being, as one might for livestock of any kind, yet what has been created of late is a new concept of a faceless indentured peasantry, mindless hoards of consumers, always on the edge of economic insecurity, having endless desire for material that can never be satisfied, but in their vain attempt they create more and more “debt”. As economists will tell you, in a fiat, fractional banking system, by the creation of debt is the creation of assets and more money. So the wealth of the 1% is assured by usury and feeding the insatiable material desires of the masses, so much so that the actual identity, traceability, and control of the 21st C peasantry is tied to his or her “credit”, he or she is a number. And that 1%, the Goldman Sachs and the likes of this world never made anything, nor risked anything of their own, even the assets they use are the debts of others.
Such an economy is not the building of wealth, but requires constant growth, and repeated depression and war. Constant growth in a finite ecosystem is impossible. So as they reach out for more resources abroad they see the yellow, brown and black people who’s resources these are as only more peasants to be incorporated into this debt machine, and if they resist, they must be made to serve the empire or be eradicated, hence the School of the Americas, Vietnam, Afghanistan or Iraq, the endless War on Terror, etc.. Iran and North Korea must still be brought to heel. There is always another enemy.
Although the proponents of this system will tell you that this dominant predator system is some how natural and therefore righteous, they just want to justify greed and self serving sociopathy. In fact humans are essentially a gregarious and social species, and our greatest joys are in giving, sharing and realizing compassion. Our deepest satisfactions come from belonging to, and being acknowledged for our sacrifices for a family or a larger group and contributing to its betterment.
America’s dilemma is that they think they “own” there own lives. What they cannot fathom is that even their existence is just fleetingly temporary and a borrowed gift, and rather than encumbering and mortgaging that which is borrowed, they have an unique obligation that can give them true happiness, using that life to build a sustainable life style in cooperative harmony with their fellow beings.
There is hope but for now though, they cannot give up the idea of slavery.