It was thought-provoking, to glance up at the power lines in rural venues, and observe its joint, occupation by six or so, perching, birds, and then, suddenly, to see one of them fly away, only to observe the rest of his group, thereupon, follow suit in the same direction. At a given instance, the perception of the dynamics of the experience, might lend itself to some thoughtful, analogous observations, on empirically, known human behavior and its consequences.
Charles Darwin, in his, “Origin of the Species,” observed that the existence of living organisms is dependent upon their innate ability to adapt to the environment. While he chose not to dwell further on the subject, Darwin did briefly, manage, to discern an analogy, between the successful societal advancement of humankind, and its willing ability to learn and adapt from consistent experience.
As to the six blackbirds on a power line, there appears to exist a noticeable contrast, between the American meme, extolling the uniquely, independent, will of the intelligent and informed, citizen, and the actual empirical reality, which seems to reveal less popular, self- reliance than desirable. We have written, on the subject of the societal epidemic, consisting of the formation of opposing tribes of “group think,” the latter, based upon, (a) the populist’s, understandable, diffidence, toward the worth of his personal views, presumably, the consequence of his refraining from efforts toward self- growth and advancement, and (b) the failure to develop a secure, independent, persona (self-image) and resultant, lack of confidence in his own judgment.
Our present theme, however, is specifically limited to a statement of our perception of the ultimate, damage or impact, of the referenced failure to exercise one’s capacity for individual reason, with a manifest emphasis on the popular expression, “If you don’t use it, you lose it.”
We have often declared that we consider, as the salient concomitant of reason, the developed capacity for freedom and self-determination. Unhappily, the personal, exercise of reason has, apparently, been abandoned by many, contemporary, American citizens, in their self-effacing, cultist thrall to the despicable, Donald Trump. As a consequence, of his total incapability for the highest office, his aberrant and immoral behavior, together with his (unexplainably), mesmerizing effect on the populist citizenry, during his single, four year term, the Nation was perceived as demoted, from its reputed, iconic, and admirable, status, to an avatar of incapable rule and acute divisiveness.
An inventory of the Trump Administration’s myriad of astounding failures and unlawful, immoral and unconstitutional behavior, we judge, has been sufficiently, accomplished in our past essays. The theme of this writing, is otherwise, namely, the metaphysical impact and atavistically, bizarre, consequences of the Trump sycophants’ apparent, surrender of, individual will and use of reason.
The many long eras in the advance of humankind’s empirical learning and evolutionary development of human reason, gradually, and beneficially, resulted in the supplanting of belief in natural deities and irrational, atavistic and superstitious agents. Fears of the latter had previously, required the diplomatic intercession of holy men, favored with spiritual access to the Spirits, or rituals, believed to placate their anger and implore their benefits, i.e., good harvests, victory over enemies.
It appears that it was lessons learned from empirical experience, which enabled the Homo sapiens, to develop in rationality, and, thereby, effect a supersession of the need for magic incantations and the supplication of the fearful Spirits. This existentially, important, stage of development was the direct and proximate result of the exercise of the potential of evolution’s generous gift to humankind of an advanced brain. The latter specifically, significantly, characterized the Homo sapiens far more than his structural development. Were the facility and use of reason, taken away, Mankind, in such event, would merely be another, competing, feral inhabitant of the forest, like the timber wolf and the bear. Relevantly, there would, predictably, be a reprise of atavistic fears of the natural gods, and a return to primal thoughts and superstition.
For some time, we had been amazed and genuinely puzzled, by the publically accepted, right-wing inclination to bizarre conspiracy theories. Under alternative circumstances, avowed belief in such delusional ideations as, government sponsored, hidden, tracking, mini-computers in vaccine, Israel launching rockets at the Earth from outer space and liberal-minded citizens being child abusers and traffickers, would be diagnosable as paranoid schizophrenia and, appropriately, subject to medical intervention. Notwithstanding the foregoing prognostication, many right wing Americans, inclusive of elected government officials, have publically and determinatively, subscribed to such pathological, ideations.
The right-wing, Republicans, who chose to venerate Trump and accept his concept of “alternate facts” and his subjective distortions of the empirical truth, were, thereby, manifestly, obliged to vulnerably, and unhealthily, abandon or reject personal observations and factual understandings, consistent with their objective observational experience, as the steep (and psychological) price, for their tribal loyalty, and acceptance of the rationally, deprived, unreality of Donald Trump.
Despite our lack of profession expertise, we are taking the liberty by logical analysis, to presume, that such dedicated and principled suspension or abandonment of reason, analogous to the effects of the disuse of the heart and skeletal muscles, ultimately, leads to their unhealthy atrophy. In like fashion, it is our presumption that the suspension, or regular disuse (or, non- use) of the rational properties of the brain, leads to its degradation and self- control, ultimately, opening the door to atavistic fantasies and fears, as was true of Early Man; again, “if you don’t use it, you lose it. Analogous,() but usually short-term), aberrations are seen in mob behavior, panic reaction, fear and uncontrolled, anger. Unlike that of mob behavior and uncontrolled anger, we wonder whether the normal equilibrium, of the irrational believers in right-wingnut, Mad Hatter conspiracy theories, will, at some time in the future, be capable of reprise.
-p.
plinyblogdotcom 