Various dictionary definitions of the word cynic include the following:
- a person whose outlook is scornfully and often habitually negative
- a person who believes that people are motivated purely by self-interest rather than acting for honorable or unselfish reasons
- a person who questions whether something will happen or whether it is worthwhile
Well, that certainly sounds like me. Regarding the first definition, I think America is on a downward spiral toward second world status -- possibly third world status. The Japanese, Koreans and Chinese all seem to work harder, produce more and care more than we do. The poorly named Protestant Work Ethic has been severely eroded in this country. People used to be nicer to each other; we used to be a more civil society. Now it's all about me getting my way and you getting out of my way. We keep getting fatter, louder, and less considerate. Fewer than 10% of us went to a classical music concert last year. Baseball used to be the national pastime; now it's football with its mind-numbing brutality. How is any of this different from Rome in its decline? Just substitute the New Jersey Meadowlands for the Roman Colosseum.
As for the second point: I absolutely believe that self-interest is the prime motivator. Look at Wall Street, look in the halls of Congress, turn on the TV. Yes, of course there are good people doing good things for good reasons, but that's the exception, not the rule. How else do you explain the fact that there's a higher percentage of poor people in this country than there was in 1964 when the "War on Poverty" was launched? As a nation, we pay lip-service to doing good; what we truly serve is the accumulation of wealth.
Finally, yes, I certainly question whether things will happen, at least good things. I voted for Obama and would do it again, but did I believe his promises? Hell no. Even if he wanted to do all the things he said he did, I knew he couldn't.
Maybe the best way to describe me is that I am a global cynic and a local realist. That is to say I think I can do some good things locally -- very locally, as in my home and within my small circle of acquaintances. But globally, I think we're screwed. And not just us in America, but us as in all of us. We're killing the planet and not enough of us care; we're killing each other and not enough of us care; we're killing our culture and damn few of us even notice.
A cynic? Absolutely!
(Title quote and image of George Bernard Shaw)
(Title quote and image of George Bernard Shaw)
I, for one, do not think your observations here have betrayed the title of the blog. There is an idealist side of you which would like to see good things happen. Your upbringing, your experience with good people and such allows you to inform your opinion as to the possibilities.
ReplyDeleteYour experience with the world in general has led you to cynicism. The realities are people have always been motivated by self-interest. When that is enlightened, good things happen. When it is not, something else happens.
Yes, there was a time earlier when we were generally more civil. This civility covered a multitude of sins, however, from racism (we treat uncle john like a member of the family) to spousal abuse to child abuse to alcoholism (things that were not talked about in polite company).
The bad part is we are, as a society, a bit less civil. The good part is things which were swept under the rug (see Catholic Church) are now being discussed and dealt with, on some level or another.
When JFK had mistresses, even the press who knew of it said nothing. When Warren Harding was caught with a woman in a closet in the White House, nothing was said. Now, unfortunately we know WAY too much about such things. But times have changed.
Every generation has said "this is the end of civilization as we know it". On one level, as change is constant, they are all right. On another, only the last generation before a total collapse is right.
When someone decided Wall Street, that Casino of Capitalism, was in charge of the economy, we started slipping. When manufacturing went overseas because it offered better profits, the inevitable slide into second class (or even third class) status started. If you cannot make it yourself, you are at the mercy of those who can. It has always been so.
I think you are a cynic who wishes for better, who knows it is possible. This makes the vision of what is all the more bitter.