Sunday 9 August 2020
Another art of the plausible
The idea of ownership may be worth adding to the previous post. It is not possible to own truth but it is possible to own untrue or dubious narratives in the same sense that it is possible to sustain an allegiance to false gods. The ownership aspect of implausible narratives is important in that it also conveys a sense of inclusion which truth cannot sustain.
In other words, governments find dubious narratives more useful and more powerful than truthful narratives ever could be. This seems to be an essential difference between the political and apolitical outlook in that the political outlook cannot be a truthful outlook. Truth doesn’t work well politically because it excludes political ownership and in excluding ownership it must forego all but the most casual and conditional allegiance.
This may be one reason why socialism manages to be both inherently atheist and inherently untruthful. It has to gravitate towards atheism because it cannot grapple effectively with owning the eternal which ownership of truth would at least suggest or imply. The alternative is to gravitate towards untruthful or dubious narratives simply because they are untruthful or dubious and political ownership of them becomes more feasible.
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4 comments:
All of which backs up the old Q and A: how do you tell whn a politician is lying? His mouth is open.
The test of truth is does it sound good.
I think this is why some Catholics and others find Socialism to be literally diabolical. It is based upon a renunciation of truth and the worship of expediency in gaining power. Of course, there some socialist intellectuals who say that arriving at their communist destination, all metaphysical problems will be solved. But they are very keen on smashing everything in order to get there - including all the benefits of our culture which has enabled freedom and prosperity for larger numbers than any other system. Statue-smashing, subversion of education, and the perverting of the police and civil service are all part of the show.
Jannie - In the Lords that may also mean he's asleep.
James - because truthful = good.
Sam - I find it difficult to disagree with those Catholics. Socialism is diabolical in the way it offers a diabolically appealing contract of unearned largesse in return for a longer term moral decay which is very much like losing one's soul.
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