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On the Shoulders of Giants
Sir Isaac Newton “stood on the shoulders of giants” so that he could see farther and increase his and mankind’s knowledge of the world. Today’s Left stands on the shoulders of giants so that they can sneer at them. But they can only sneer from the perch created by the giants – from the heights of the visions and ideals that evolved under the aegis of Western Civilization.
For what sins does the Left condemn Western Civilization?
- Conquest
- Slavery
- Racism
- Child labor
- Repression of women
- Environmental damage
On what basis does the Left claim that any of these are wrong? Certainly, not from their ideal of relative morality. Their condemnation makes sense only in a world in which the moral climate is based on Western thought. Conquest, slavery, child labor, repression of women, indifference to the environment were normal, simple facts of life until western peoples decided they were wrong and ended them.
Conquest is still practiced by Russia; China; and, through its proxies, Iran. Slavery is still widespread in the Middle East and in much of southern Asia. Racism is rife around the globe. Child labor is the norm in East Asia and Africa. Women are routinely repressed in the Middle East and Africa. People are indifferent to the environment in South America, Russia, Africa, and China.
To focus their venom on America’s past sins while ignoring those that currently exist elsewhere in the world, the Left must lie, fabricate history, and redefine words. Leftists want to leave their mark on history. They know that they cannot match the work of the giants that came before them, but they can destroy it.
Published in General
This is a truth.
When I hear the Leftist criticizing their country’s history, I always want to ask, “Compared to what?” I have a strong impression that our young people are being taught very little factual history, so they have no basis for understanding what a tremendous leap forward as an example for humanity the founding of the United States of America was and is.
“The monument is unmoved by the crapping of pigeons.”
They always fail to acknowledge we have fixed these things . . .
It seems obvious to me why, RF. American leftists have always, and will always, excuse conquest, racism, child labor, repression of women, and environmental damage in the world’s communist/socialist/Islamist nations because the first priority of American leftists is not relieving misery around the world, but amassing political power here at home. American leftists don’t really care about these atrocities in Russia, or China, or Iran because American leftists can never hold power in those countries. American leftists can only amass political power here in America. Therefore, American leftists orchestrate their lies, fabrications of history, and redefinition of words to slander the America because (they believe) doing so will help them amass political power here. And it is working because three generations of Americans–all now voters–have been been propagandized (by public schools, academia, Hollywood, Big Media) to believe his lies and fabrications.
So why would educated American leftists want so much political power for themselves? The history of what happens to nation states when Western leftists hold unchecked power is one horror show after another. I think part of the reason goes back to your reference to Newton’s observation about standing on the shoulders of “giants.” The “giants” Newton was talking about were not politicians of course, but extraordinarily competent, dedicated, industrious men of science and industry.
Well, for people who are not especially competent, or dedicated, or industrious, and don’t care to become so, where does that leave them? In a free society in which people rise or fall on their own merits, that has limited government and property rights, it leaves them scrounging around for whatever they can find. And their chances at out performing the “giants” that came before them is zero. So what to do?
Take power. Why try to make yourself competent, or dedicated, or industrious in science or commerce? Instead, build a political movement that amasses all the political power it can get, and then use that power to forcibly take wealth from the industrious types–more than would have been possible to earn climbing onto the shoulders of Newton’s giants.
Leftism is all about political power because leftists see political power as the best shortcut through the hassle becoming competent and industrious.
The ginning up of America’s sinful past? Feh! It’s their cover story. It’s all about the power, baby.
When they do acknowledge it, they claim that agitation by Progressives was responsible for fixing them. They believe in what I call the “theory of enlightenment.” According to this belief, terrible moral outrages were the norm until a few enlightened beings pointed out how terrible the practices were. After a few protests raised the consciousness of the rest of society, laws were enacted and utopia reigned.
But these realities weren’t changed by waving banners in street demonstrations. They were changed by the vast gains in productivity brought by free individuals, private property, freedom of contract, and a system of profit-and-loss all operating within a rule-of-law framework.
Free market economists like Adam Smith opposed both conquest and slavery on moral and economic grounds. He pointed out that conquering people is far more costly in terms of life and treasure than is trading with them. Slavery, Smith observed, is an inefficient and wasteful way in which to employ labor. First, resources must be expended to keep slaves from escaping and to recapture those who do escape. In addition, Southern states passed laws against teaching slaves to read for fear that they might read abolitionist pamphlets smuggled in from the North, or that they might be able to coordinate revolts by exchanging written messages. Keeping workers ignorant greatly reduces their productivity.
Free enterprise makes discrimination costly. For example, southern bus companies pushed back against Jim Crow laws that required blacks to sit in the back of their vehicles. Angering customers is bad for business as is having to leave seats unfilled when there are too few customers of the “right” color.
Child labor laws weren’t enacted in the United States until productivity had increased to the point that relatively few children were working. When child labor laws were passed in countries like India, in which productivity had not yet risen sufficiently, children continued to work because the only other option was starvation. Unfortunately, with no recourse to the law, they were exploited far worse than before.
Work weeks weren’t shortened until high productivity had long made 60-hour weeks the exception.
Women couldn’t compete on an equal footing with men until the Information Age made brains more important than brawn.
A clean environment is a “luxury good” that only wealthy countries can afford.
People who want to tear down the world that individual liberty and free markets have built might want to consider what they’d be giving up. Such thoughts could be enlightening.
The problem is not that America’s critics point out our flaws, past and present. The problem is that they judge our country not against other countries of the same time period, but against a utopia which never has and never will exist.