Although a classless society sounds, to an egalitarian like me, to be the ideal - it'll never happen. It has never happened, never could happen, no matter how advanced or enlightened we consider we have, or will become, in the future.
Why?
In my opinion, and I believe this is backed up by some research, humans have a built-in competitive desire for domination (at some level, major or minor) and a natural bent towards controversy, more pronounced in some than others.
The planets and zodiac have stood for centuries as symbols of human nature. All human life is there, including the factors which will forever deny us the ideal of a classless society. Astrologically the desire to dominate connects to the Sun, Mars, and possibly Jupiter. Among the zodiac signs, Leo Aries and Capricorn contain the seeds of domination and/or leadership. Karl Marx had a vision, but his society wouldn't have been completely classless; certain individuals would have risen to positions of power and domination. Human nature always wins.
But, because a classless society is a pipe dream for some of us, that doesn't negate the urge to strain to attain it. There's another aspect of nature, not necessarily human nature but- I dunno - cosmic nature? A desire for balance. Some have been willing to suffer and even to sacrifice their own lives in the cause of attaining a more balanced society.
Uprisings of serfs against masters, slaves against owners, peasants against the aristocracy, women against a patriarchal society, workers against employers, minorities against segregation, are scattered throughout world history. Each effort brought some small movement away from inequality, but none came anywhere near to removing an imprinted hierarchy in human society. Class struggles will continue. Keep watching.
I'm resigned to the fact that there'll always be a "ruling class", but what I'm not resigned to is that they would allow levels of poverty develop, and continue to to exist, in a fully developed nation. To that I shall never be resigned.
At a more petty level I'll never be resigned to, for instance, class distinction in travel - air travel, rail travel. I haven't used either for six years, so have avoided the frustration this can bring on. An entry at a blog titled A Source of Fascination reminded me of that frustration:
Why?
In my opinion, and I believe this is backed up by some research, humans have a built-in competitive desire for domination (at some level, major or minor) and a natural bent towards controversy, more pronounced in some than others.
The planets and zodiac have stood for centuries as symbols of human nature. All human life is there, including the factors which will forever deny us the ideal of a classless society. Astrologically the desire to dominate connects to the Sun, Mars, and possibly Jupiter. Among the zodiac signs, Leo Aries and Capricorn contain the seeds of domination and/or leadership. Karl Marx had a vision, but his society wouldn't have been completely classless; certain individuals would have risen to positions of power and domination. Human nature always wins.
But, because a classless society is a pipe dream for some of us, that doesn't negate the urge to strain to attain it. There's another aspect of nature, not necessarily human nature but- I dunno - cosmic nature? A desire for balance. Some have been willing to suffer and even to sacrifice their own lives in the cause of attaining a more balanced society.
Uprisings of serfs against masters, slaves against owners, peasants against the aristocracy, women against a patriarchal society, workers against employers, minorities against segregation, are scattered throughout world history. Each effort brought some small movement away from inequality, but none came anywhere near to removing an imprinted hierarchy in human society. Class struggles will continue. Keep watching.All history has been a history of class struggles between dominated
classes at various stages of social development.
Friedrich Engels.
I'm resigned to the fact that there'll always be a "ruling class", but what I'm not resigned to is that they would allow levels of poverty develop, and continue to to exist, in a fully developed nation. To that I shall never be resigned.
At a more petty level I'll never be resigned to, for instance, class distinction in travel - air travel, rail travel. I haven't used either for six years, so have avoided the frustration this can bring on. An entry at a blog titled A Source of Fascination reminded me of that frustration:
While waiting to board at Manchester International Airport ...... we were treated to the announcement “First and Business Class passengers may now board through the carpeted lane.” Seriously. The “carpeted lane”. They didn’t quite say “Economy scum – crawl over the broken glass and be grateful that we permit you to rest your fetid gaze upon our magical metal flying bird” – but it was definitely implied.In my mind such experiences are not far removed from segregation.....they are differentiated only by $$$$$$, rather than by colour of skin.
Let him who expects one class of society to prosper in the highest degree, while the other is in distress, try whether one side of the face can smile while the other is pinched.
Thomas Fuller (1608-1661) British clergyman and author.
Swami Suchabanana: I tried to reply before (3x) but these primitive people at Google want to sell me (for free, they say, without saying that that brings them money as well...) my own blooging stuff!
ReplyDeleteNo thankyou, Google. Just let me reply, as I am used to to my friend T.
GP: And now, I notice they use my real name. Jerks. Enyone else may just call me Swami or Suchabanana, or Banana! It's getting as bad as at Facebook here. No discteetion at all...
ReplyDeleteGP: My comment is: You Westerners (I am being careful to spell it with Capital W) have not understood that it's part of God's game to have things not all equal. Look at the birds: Their males are distinctly more beautiful, the female needing to protect their nests.
ReplyDeleteWith humans it became the reverse, usually it's the women which are pretty. But that has another reason.
As to flying first or tourist, I cannot really answer. I so easily swich places on my flying carpet that I don't notice even that there were others standing in line to board, to whatever class that maybe...
Swami: To be precise, on a flying carpet we prefer having tourist/economy passengers boarding first as they have to sit in front. They protect us from having to receive the flies ourselves in our faces.
ReplyDeletePS. A flying carpet is "open space" if you have never flown on one
Gian Paul/anonymous/suchabanana etc etc etc
ReplyDeleteSorry Google is giving you the run-around today.
We "Westerners" - or some of us - Mr. Suchabanana, say inequality is for the birds, whose differences in appearance are superficial only, as are differences in human genders.
What we have here is something else entirely.
You carpet flyers are in a class of your own, unused to the rough and tumble of life. Y'all could use some sharp lessons, and be forced to travel on a scratchy old piece of carpet with holes in it - see how far you'd get on that !!!
;-)
Banana: At times you lack humor, T. Except when you wish for me flying on a carpet with holes in it...
ReplyDeleteBut seriously, this thing with airlines announcing that their classy passengers will board first and on a red carpet is not so much for them, but for the lesser ones to start "work harder so they also one day will walk on a carpet..."
Why is Obama playing golf these days??? (and quite a lot)...
Banana: Google gobbled up part of my comment. Differences are not just for the birds. Ever roasted a hen and a cock on the same grill, same spices, same care and attention?
ReplyDeleteThere is a taste difference for even lesser gourmets to be be detected.
Banana: Poverty ain't no laughing matter, Big-banana. Ever tried it? By the way, don't forget to pack a parachute.
ReplyDeleteGP ~ the red carpet treatment ~ I see it as stroking their egos more than anything else. Giving them the illusion/delusion that they are better than the peasant class.
Only the truly deluded will think that working harder, earning more money, would allow them to be accepted into that inner circle of supposed superiority.
Don't know why Obama is golfing a lot. Could be he realises that come 2013 he'll have a lot more time to play, and is intent on improving his game. ;-)
Banana ~ No. I'm no kind of gourmet at all, Big-Banana. I haven't roasted any wee birds on a grill. I seldom eat flesh, and would eat it even less if I had to deal with the preparation and cooking of it from raw. I'll take your word for it that there's a difference in taste.
ReplyDeleteWhen considering class in the context of chickens, hens, roosters etc etc, we'd have to consider the pampered birds who are free to roam or fed lovingly by their owners, with the best of grain etc. compare them with the poor things cooped up in batteries of thousands, fed by robot, never knowing what life could be like for them outside of the battery.
That's a type of class system for chickens is it not?
Banana: It's a never ending story: If you hand - feed your chicken you end up not wanting to kill them. The foxes adore that!
ReplyDeleteRe. Obama: you may be right. But others are right too in observing that to be "more compassionate with his people" (or at least give that impression), he ought to play simpler games. But that's why hi's now out of favor...
Banana ~~ Never ending story is right - because then that fox who stole the chickens could (well, in some places, it used to be so in England)could be chased by some yahoos on horses, in fancy red coats, with dogs along, trained to run down the fox and tear it to pieces, would put an end to that chapter of the story.
ReplyDeleteAs someone (maybe Oscar Wilde) once put it: "the unspeakable in pursuit of the uneatable"
Needless to say, there is so much to address here. To do it justice, Twilight, it will be a post appearing at 6:00 in two days. ;-)
ReplyDelete[You don't normally get political like this.]
Banana: If T. got "political like this" it's because I was commenting "beyond normal parameters", and probably irritating her a bit.
ReplyDeleteAnd if that happened it's because a politician (Brazilian one) screwed me (I had just discovered) - and Google today upset me on top of it!
PS. To be clear: the politician here secured a good chunk of the money I offered and candidly paid for a new X-ray apparatus in the local hospital for not less than his own pocket. And Google, being a still very young outfit, is not any better than Facebook...
PPS. At least T. now calls me "Big" Banana... and we are having some fun!
James Higham ~~ Don't I? I thought I did, from time to time - but probably more about particular US politicians than politics in general.
ReplyDeleteI'll look forward to seeing what you have to say, then, James.
Better sharpen my wits (and claws?)
;-)
Anon/Gian Paul/Big Banana ~
ReplyDeleteOh dear! No wonder you're feeling a tad tetchy today, GP. I'd feel the same in your place.
I enjoy "parrying thrusts" (in a fencing context you understand) with you, because I know it's all done with no ill will involved, and probably with a grin on our faces as we type. :-)
Please do not stop "being political", especially about this topic. I think the latest recession was brought about in part because when wages were rising and employment was down too many of the unwashed were able to go to the places and do the things the rich enjoyed and we can't have that, can we?
ReplyDeleteDiane ~~ What you suggest is very very likely to have played a part in bringing about the current situation. Two things "They" don't like: the hoi polloi muscling in on their supposedly exclusive territory; and the hoi polloi getting wind of what they're up to and starting to become rebellious.
ReplyDelete"They" should be starting to get nervious anytime soon..... there are a lot of us and few of "Them".
;-)
Yes, I can't resist the odd rant on politics. Husband thinks I ought to do a separate blog on the topic, but that could get messy.
Astrology is part of everything, I tell him - politics an'all.
GP: Think your husband is right. Why not launch a "Learning on the Politic"?
ReplyDeleteGood- heartedly you helped O. being elected in 2008. And now there are some regrets. As I learned my lesson helping a hospital. It's not enough to have good intentions. If that were so any archer would be world champion at least!
Anonymous/Gian Paul ~~
ReplyDeleteI've thought about doing that. I'm not really well-enough informed to be writing about US politics in any great depth, though. There are so many others doing it so much better than I ever could.
I like your idea of a title
- maybe extended to "Learning Curve on the Politic" GP - politic and ecliptic are not so far apart!
Maybe I could reserve the weekends for posts on politics - with that sub- title writ large above the post(s) ?
I'll chew on it! :-)
GP: Without stressing yourself, you should do that. Most politicians being ambitious amateurs at the beginning themselves, e.g.if Axelrod had not convinced O. - or was that his wife?) Hillary probably would be President, and even quite certainly for another 4 years.
ReplyDeletePolitics is about believing in human power to steer the destiny of nations or lesser entities. You may have to segregate between what you perceive as being fate or shear imagination by making such an attempt. That might give you a very special "eagles-view".
Anon/Gian Paul ~
ReplyDeleteI'll give it a go, GP. A post I've prepared for the weekend qualifies, more or less, so will head it with the new sub-heading - thanks for the idea!
:-)