Tag: progressivism

Traditional Values, Traditionalists and Traditionalism

America, Government, History, Morality, Politics, Reason, Religion, Society & Culture

Attributed to the American author Samuel R. Delany is the phrase “Words mean things.” Hijacking words and phrases is a powerful tool in the arsenal of the demagogue. And the twisting of usage and meaning into pretzels has always been a favorite device of politicians and pundits. With this in mind, I thought I should explain what I mean when I refer in my writing to Traditional Values, Traditionalists and Traditionalism.

Look up Traditionalism and you’ll receive a panoply of descriptions and definitions. One of the first articles that comes up from a search is: “a school of thought promulgated by a group of 20th and 21st century thinkers who believe in the existence of perennial wisdom, or perennial philosophy, primordial and universal truths which form the source for, and are shared by, all the major world religions.” Look further and one goes through the looking glass and into a rabbit warren of definitions in the context of societal norms, religion, philosophy, economics, culture, etc.

In 1964 Supreme Court Justice Potter Steward famously described obscenity (or rather, what it is not) as follows:

“I shall not today attempt further to define the kinds of material I understand to be embraced within that shorthand description [“hard-core pornography”], and perhaps I could never succeed in intelligibly doing so. But I know it when I see it, and the motion picture involved in this case is not that.”

Jacobellis v. Ohio 378 U.S. 184 (1964)

Borrowing on that phrase, I will suggest that Traditionalism may be defined in a variety of ways, but in the end, Traditionalists know it when they see it.

However, a shortcut to how I define Traditionalism is: that body of ideals, values and mores that we were raised on by the Greatest Generation.

Speaking of the Greatest Generation, one of the definitions of Traditionalists refers to those who were born between 1900 and 1945. I believe it is precisely because of their espousal of Traditional Values that they were Great!

We Baby Boomers born between 1946 and 1964 on the other hand, are split into two camps: a) those of us who listened to what our Greatest Generation parents taught us, who were grateful for the peace and prosperity they bequeathed to us and who have tried to live our lives by their example and rules; and, b) the prodigals, the “Me” generation of the sexual revolution who grew up to be the radicals of the 70’s and the yuppies of the 80’s, a few of whom have come home to Traditionalism and the balance of whom have become today’s Leftists.

So what do I mean by Traditional Values? Often the term is conflated with “Family Values.” They are similar, but Traditionalism goes beyond Family Values. To me, Traditional Values include support for:

  • individual freedom to live as we wish within the basic constraints of Judeo-Christian principles;
  • the U.S. Constitution and Bill of Rights as they were intended for then and all future generations;
  • fundamental patriotism, including honoring our Flag, national symbols, anthems and emblems;
  • a strong military and national defense and protection of our sovereignty;
  • the right of self-defense and to keep, bear and utilize arms to ensure that right;
  • obeying the Law and supporting those who serve in law enforcement;
  • marriage defined as between one man and one woman (including acceptance of the biological fact that men and women are different!);
  • support for nuclear families consisting of a father and mother and their children;
  • freedom of worship and expression;
  • the Golden Rule;
  • support for and defense of free-market capitalism;
  • equal opportunity, not equal outcomes; and,
  • separation of powers within a limited, and republican government.

Traditional Values also include opposition to: 

  • social engineering and bad (many wouldsay EVIL) social, economic and political ideologies such as socialism and communism;
  • crony capitalism;
  • ‘free love’ and promiscuity;
  • abortion on demand and in lieu of contraception;
  • gender confusion;
  • LGBTQ militancy;
  • fascism masquerading as liberal or progressive free expression;
  • violent protest; and,
  • collectivism, globalism, cultural marxism and so-called “progressivism”.

The Greatest Generation didn’t have to think about or debate these principles – they lived them. They were part of the fabric of their society.

Today, these principles are under constant assault.

I used to teach a lesson in Sunday School using a glass of water and a dropper full of black ink. The water represented our souls. In the context of this article, it represents the reservoir of societal values. The black drops of ink I slowly added to the water represent, for purposes of this article, Progressive/Leftist ideas, norms, habits, values. Add one drop to the water and nothing seems to happen. As successively more drops are added, however, the water starts to turn grey, then greyer, murky, and finally black.

The metaphor aptly describes what’s happening to our country.

I hope and pray I’m joined by the Silent Majority of our Boomer generation and budding Traditionalists of succeeding generations in fighting for a return to the Traditional principles that made us the greatest nation on earth and in the history of the world.

The Mall Rat Syndrome

Family, Society & Culture

We’ve all seen them, a group of fluorescent-haired, usually disheveled, radio-antenna-adorned teenagers standing around the entrance to a shopping mall, sometimes huddled and quietly mumbling to each other, sometimes overtly eyeing and loudly denigrating the more normal looking patrons going in and out of the wide doors.

But that was then. This is now.

There’s a more contemporary version of this gathering of “mall-rats”, these to-be-pitied, “other-directed” underachievers desperate for attention and each others’ approval because they can’t get it from individual accomplishments. It exists online, in social media.

Misery does indeed love company. Here, behind a wall of anonymity, the same teenagers band together to cast aspersions on, or worse, mount character assassination campaigns against others whom they secretly envy, or abhor, usually due to the praise heaped upon them for their successes or simply because, they’re what we’d call “normal”.

And here, in social media, the mall rats are joined by supposed adults, who carry on in the same way.

Except they’re not adults. Regrettably, our society is filled with people who chronologically should be adults, but who exhibit all the dysfunctional behavior, or worse, of the mall rats. Raised in an “everyone gets a trophy for showing up” society, where “just do it” (with impunity) is the norm, far too many adults today behave like children. Somewhat surprisingly, there’s evidence that there are some children today who, frankly, behave increasingly like adults, but that phenomenon is still rare and not always healthy. That’s a topic for a different discussion.

Social media was supposed to increase social adhesion, broaden relationships, improve community. Instead, it’s brought isolation, depression, social paraplegia and a veritable explosion of mall rats fearful of missing out (FOMO), all seeking attention and sharing their misery. It’s given a megaphone to those who in other times might have been more sheepish but who can now lash out and shout their frustrations with impunity. And it has amplified the lemming effect as demagogues, both adolescent and adult, lead their followers over the edge of the cliff.

One of my sons, who frequently exhibits far more wisdom at his age than I certainly ever did, recently stated what’s going on quite succinctly: “We have rewired the human condition to subsist on personal validation through social media channels.”

And that has given the mall rats undue power and influence.

To be fair, not all of our generation’s behavior is as bad as that of mall rats. But in small ways the diminution of standards and morals continues to eat away at our societal fabric. For example, I sat at a restaurant just last night and couldn’t help but overhear the conversation between two parents and their college-age son. The topic was adult enough…the son was describing the content of the exams he had recently completed. But the number of “likes” that punctuated each sentence, or more like half-sentences, was nauseating. The parents were, appallingly, every bit as inarticulate as the son, despite between fashionably dressed and ostensibly well-educated and well-to-do.

How are we ever going to remain a light shining on a hill if our people can’t string two grammatically correct sentences together? Yes, yes, I know. This problem exists at the highest levels of our culture and society and in our most visible politics.

But it’s Leftist progressivism, infecting as it has our discourse and society like some noxious gas or metastasized cancer that has given license to adult mall-rat behavior. It’s way past time for adults to start behaving like adults and stop acting like mall rats, or tolerating mall rats for that matter. It’s way past time for parents to start acting like parents, instead of trying to be their children’s best friends. We certainly know better. We just need to grow up.

Nearsightedness

Politics, Reason, Society & Culture

There’s a new narcissism in the land. Too many people view the world through lenses that are two inches in front of their nose. “What does that have to do with ME?”, they either consciously or subconsciously ask. And then they wonder how what’s going on around us got this way.

Some of this nearsightedness is understandable. Those of us with traditional views on hard work, merit, dedication to family, etc. have been too busy to pay attention to, much less do something about what I call Leftist Creep. Except it isn’t creep anymore. It’s a full-fledged tsunami of idiocy: a deafening, shrill assault on values, traditions, norms, fundamental decency and principles that are the bedrock of the greatest nation and force for good the world has ever known.

Some of the nearsightedness is due to self-respect. How could that be? Simple. People who care about their reputations, who truly care about their community and country, who care about how they are perceived by others, don’t seek to draw attention to themselves. They don’t lash out and condemn anyone with whom they disagree with labels and slurs. They’re not activists and community organizers. They’re not loud and noisy and obnoxious. They go to work each day to provide for themselves and their families. They don’t look or ask for handouts. They acknowledge those who truly matter: God, family and friends. They respect the Flag and our country’s position and responsibility as guiding light and standard bearer of freedom and truth to the world. They’re the silent majority. They’re the REAL people of America.

Many are actually clothed in Leftist garb, speak in Leftist terms, and nod when they hear Leftist drivel. But they know something’s terribly wrong with what their leaders are saying. They won’t answer poll questions honestly. To do so would make them outcasts, pariahs, less accepted at cocktail parties where they gush over the latest victim fundraising goals while stuffing their faces with prawns. But they’re the ones who, in the privacy of the voting booth, have the courage and self-awareness to vote for candidates with traditional views and policies that they know made this country great. They are what I call Closet Traditionalists.

One of the insidious strengths of the Progressive Left is that they simply don’t care about what people think of them. They will say and do just about anything to advance their agenda. They don’t care if they make fools of themselves. They’re not even aware that the nonsense that comes out of their mouths or their perverted actions are foolish! They see themselves as righteous social justice warriors, true believers in a utopian fantasy at least. At worst, their ‘leadership’s’ addiction to power and dominion breeds the kind of corruption, anti-American cancer we see advancing day by day.

And because Traditionalists aren’t noisy and obnoxious, and care what others think about us, we have ceded the battleground to the Left. And the Left has taken advantage of our silence and absence, our nearsightedness. The louder and more obnoxious they have become, the more people have been brainwashed by their verbal diarrhea. Even those of us who are focused on what’s right can’t help but slow down and look at the accident by the side of the road. We see the gathering of idiots in the field and the train-wreck happening, and can’t help but be poisoned, even a bit fascinated by the spectacle.

And like the frog in tepid water that remains until it has been boiled…like the death by a thousand cuts, our country is being eaten alive by this Leftist cancer. That’s how we got here. Nearsightedness.

So what do we do about it?

We need to see beyond our noses and have the courage to stand up and throw the BS flag as often and as clearly as needed. We need to strengthen our families and resolve to teach correct principles, to think critically, to not just shield ourselves from Leftist Creep, but fight back against it. It’s nothing short of the war between the between the doers and the slothful, between the producers and the takers, between right and wrong… frankly, between good and evil.

We need 20-20 vision and 24-7-365 action.

Right and Wrong Matter

Morality

One of the greatest casualties of the so-called ‘progressive’ movement and its antecedent, relativism, has been the obfuscation of right and wrong. These used to be obvious. Now, not so much.

Take violent protests for example. Hollywood and the leftist talking heads have created the impression that some violent protests are ok, even justified. Antifa, Occupy Wall Street, the riots at Berkley (choose from the long list)… all are at best excused and at worst condoned because they promote Leftist ends.

Despite the misreporting/outright lie that Far Right violence greatly surpasses Left, violent protest is wrong irrespective of whether it’s engaged in by either side. Yet, you wouldn’t know that by listening to many Hollywood heroes. Madonna, for example, flat out suggested she ought to blow up the White House. Kathy Griffin will forever be remembered for holding up a fake severed Trump head. Snoop Dog wrote a song entitled “Make America Crip Again” with a scene of Trump getting shot.

And the mainstream media and democrat leadership are, to any observer with eyes and ears, no better.

Roll back the clock to the Boomer generation and this kind of rhetoric and behavior was simply…wrong. Not today. It’s all relative, but paraphrasing George Orwell, “Some things are more relative than others.” If it allies with Leftist dogma, it’s right. If it allies with Right (.sic) dogma, it’s wrong, and once again, he who has the biggest megaphone is able to drown out the other side.

As if often the case, someone has said it better than I ever could. In a book titled 1938: A World Vanishing (London: Buchanan & Enright, 1982), Brian Talbot Cleeve contrasted Britain as it was entering World War II and the way it had become in the early 80’s.

“There really was, as nostalgia remembers, an air of greater contentment. Of a sturdier confidence in the future. [People] had a greater stock of moral certainties. Right and wrong were not matters for debate,” he wrote.

He went on to reflect, “To exchange a false morality for no morality at all is not necessarily an exchange for the better. And if, as a survivor of pre-war years, I were to offer an opinion as to one difference between then and now that is for the worse, I would have to choose morality. . . . the morality of believing that there are real and objective standards of behavior, that there are such things as virtues, and such things as vices; that certain things are unarguably good, and others unarguably bad.”

It’s often been noted that democracy carries within itself the seeds of its own destruction. The argument, with which I concur, is that what has happened today is the promotion of democratic ideas beyond reason.

“In our modern eagerness to be tolerant, we have come to tolerate things which no society can tolerate and remain healthy. In our understandable anxiety not to set ourselves up as judges, we have come to believe that all judgements are wrong. In our revulsion against hypocrisy and false morality we have abandoned morality itself. And with modest hesitations but firm convictions I submit that this has not made us happier, but much unhappier. We are like men at sea without a compass.”

And what was evident to Cleeve in 1982 is even more evident today.

How can we survive as a civilization if even right and wrong are confused and unclear? I believe the answer is, “We can’t, unless some outside shock brings us all down to earth again, causing us to focus on the basics.”

Right and wrong matter.

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