This segment is to provide you with an overview on the content of the “Nihilism: Good or Bad?” series. In my judgement Nihilism is a word that describes the challenge coming from Social Justice activists in our country today, who are having a great deal of success. Most, if not all of these challenges emanate from college campuses. Some of their challenges are good and some bad dependent on your viewpoint. This series is not about making that good vs. bad judgment. Instead, it is about informing you which of our society’s values and beliefs are under attack and to delineate the reasons behind the challenges. That information will be provided via excerpts from subject matter books on some of the values and beliefs being challenged. You will have to make any judgments on which are good, and which are bad. To redefine the word Nihilism, its defined as “a viewpoint that traditional values and beliefs are unfounded, and their existence is senseless and useless.”
My Takeaways on the Overview: The series is organized using the same three categories that this segments author, Ben Shapiro, used in his book How to Destroy America in Three Easy Steps: American History, Philosophy, and Culture. My takeaways on the overview are as follows: [Note: the regular font below describes my takeaways on the traditionalist views and the italicized font describes my takeaways on the social justice activist views].
AMERICAN HISTORY America has faced many challenges but has always emerged victorious in meeting such challenges. We are an imperfect union but have met those challenges in a way that has strengthened and grown our nation in the process, to the point we can claim and take pride in America’s exceptionalism.
The America of the past has to be left behind. Its philosophy was corrupt, exploitive and driven by white supremacy. Its culture was racist and cruel. Its history is a litany of abuses punctuated by sporadic wars directed at overthrowing its philosophy and culture which still needs to occur, as little has changed.
AMERICA’S PHILOSOPHY The philosophical principles of the United States include: (1) inalienable rights, created and bestowed by our creator -- not the government, (2) equality of human beings before the law and relative to their rights, and (3) government exists only to protect natural rights and enforce equality before the law per the Declaration of Independence. Further to avoid tyranny, America’s philosophy embraces the Constitution and its system of checks and balances.
Natural rights do not exist. The only rights that exist are those granted by the government. Further, equality before the law and equality of individual rights is insufficient in today’s world. The Social Justice Advocates seek equality of outcome, e.g. income, wealth, respect, treatment, etc. Further, they see the system of checks and balances as barriers to progress and view the current governmental system as a construct instituted by the top of the hierarchy to reinforce its own control. In their view this must be changed.
AMERICA’S CULTURE Culture is ultimately what binds us-- all the citizens of our culture -- together. The major values and beliefs that have historically resulted in this bonding include personal responsibility, meritocracy, free enterprise, cultural assimilation, and capitalism in concert with the same rights and similar understanding and respect of our history by the mass majority of our citizenry.
The social justice activists are challenging many of these cultural aspects including: (1). Failures are no longer seen as being individual but systemic, so personal responsibility is a secondary concern, (2). Meritocracy is viewed as discriminatory given the history and state of being of our society, (3). Capitalism has its roots in slavery and support of capitalism enhances white supremacy, (4). Each of the social justice activists defined groups, of which there are many, desires its own culture and seeks their own segregated institutions and communities, (5). Free Speech must be accompanied with hate speech regulations which protects each societal grouping, (6). Freedom of Religion must be replaced with secular universalism.
Social judgment activism is present throughout the country, but it is particularly evident on college campuses where it originated (including in our most elite universities). I refer you to the attached syllabus to see how the series is constructed to investigate its genesis and the thinking behind these various challenges.
Next Much of the challenge to American tradition, values and beliefs emanates from the Critical Race Theory movement, part of the Social Justice activism endeavor. Both have their origins in American Academia as well as much of their continuing support and activism. Segment 2 is to provide some understanding of Critical Race Theory via excerpts from four different books.
Happy Learning, Harley
NIHILISM: GOOD OR BAD? – SEGMENT 1 TRADITIONALISM VS. SOCIAL JUSTICE ACTIVISM– EXCERPTS
PREFACE TO THIS OVERVIEW OF THE SERIES: The stated objective of the social justice movement is to improve the conditions of marginalized and oppressed peoples in our society. Such efforts have been numerous since the 17th century by devising political programs to achieve such an objective. This endeavor, however, is much more expansive in that. It wants to discard the past and start fundamentally anew. [Note: I found the author’s headline terminology of Unionism vs. Disintegrationism rather pejorative, so, I have changed it in this segment’s title to “Traditionalism vs. Social Justice Activism.” However, to maintain the integrity of the excerpts I maintained the author’s exact language in the body of the segment.] From: How to Destroy America in Three Easy Steps by Ben Shapiro
THE ELEMENTS OF UNIONISM PHILOSOPHY: What, exactly, has allowed America to stay a country? And why should we continue to do so today? There are three elements that make America America. First, American philosophy. The philosophy of the United States rests on three basic principles: first, the reality of natural rights, which preexist government, inalienable and precious; second, the equality of all human beings before the law, and in their rights; and finally, the belief that government exists only to protect natural rights and to enforce equality before the law. American philosophy believes these propositions are “self-evident,” in the words of the Declaration on Independence. The founders attempted to implement American philosophy through a unique set of institutions. The constitution of the United States was a compromise document, designed to enshrine American via a limited government system. That constitutional system’s enumerated powers balanced the necessity for action embodied in the legislative power with the necessity to avoid tyranny; the constitutional system’s checks effectively balanced the requirement of an executive, powerful enough to respond to threats and enforce the law with the requirement to avoid despotism embodied in checks and balances.
Then there is a strain of thought. Throughout American history, this strain of thought has emerged victorious. This strain of thought runs from the founding fathers through Abraham Lincoln through the civil rights movement. This strain of thought championed reason and universal morality above passion and tribalism and emerged with a belief in the value of democracy and individual rights – principles that were always true, but never properly applied. This strain of thought suggests that America is always an imperfect union, but it is indeed a union – and that we are always in the process of strengthening and growing that union, built on the foundations of founding ideals.
THE ELEMENTS OF DISINTEGRATIONISM PHILOSOPHY The America of the past has to be left behind. American philosophy was corrupt and exploitative; American culture was racist and cruel; American history was a litany of abuses, punctuated only by sporadic revolutions directed at overthrowing her philosophy and culture. Disintegrationists claim that natural rights do not exist – that no rights are discoverable from human nature and reason, because neither human nature nor reason exists. Instead of equality before the law, or equality in individual rights, Disintegrationists seek equality of outcome. Finally, Disintegrations see government not as a guarantor of individual rights and equality before law, but as an overarching cure-all, available to change the hearts and minds of men. Disintegrationists oppose the doctrine of enumerated powers as insufficient to meet the need of citizens; they oppose checks and balances as barriers to progress; they oppose federalism as a framework for oppression. This philosophy of division is a philosophy of power politics, a philosophy that paints America as a mythical construct, instituted by those at the top of the hierarchy to reinforce their own control.
THE ELEMENTS OF UNIONISM CULTURE The American culture is characterized by four distinct elements. First, a tough-minded tolerance for the rights of others, particularly when we don’t like how others exercise their rights – we have to agree to disagree, and to get over it. Second, our culture prizes and cherished robust social institutions, which create a social fabric that allows us to trust one another in the absence of compulsion from government. Third, American culture has always carried a rowdy streak in defense of liberty: we must be willing to stand up for our freedom and that of others. Finally, American culture has always celebrated and rewarded those with a sense of adventure – the pioneers, the cowboys, the inventors, the risktakers.
THE ELEMENTS OF THE DISINTEGRATIONISTS CULTURE American culture is under attack, with Disintegrationists claiming that rights themselves are a threat to the common good. Free speech must be replaced by hate speech regulations, with hate itself left undefined. Freedom of religion must be replaced by secular universalism. Freedom of association and contract must be prohibited, so long as that freedom cuts against the appropriate standards of ethics, racial, or sexual diversity (under this standard, for example, an all-black school is considered diverse, while a police department that doesn’t represent ethnic populations proportionately is considered discriminatory, even if that police department staffs based on meritocracy concerns). Due process must be supplanted with mob rule, private property with public need.
THE ELEMENTS OF THE UNIONISM HISTORY American history has traditionally been read as a story of ever-improving fulfillment of American philosophy and culture through proper exercise of American institutions. These three elements – America’s philosophy of reason, equality, liberty, and limited government; America’s culture of individual rights, and social duties, and America’s shared history – define our country. One missing element leaves America in dire straits. Without America’s philosophy, reason collapses into tribalism; without America’s culture, individual rights collapse into collectivist tyranny or duties collapse into libertinism; without American history, the symbol that unite us divide us.
THE ELEMENTS OF DISINTEGRATIONISM HISTORY America’s history is under severe threat. The Disintegrationist claim that America’s traditional history is a myth: that the true story of America is a story of exploitation, that the ideals of the Declaration of Independence were a self-flattering parody when written, that the Constitution of the United States was meant to enshrine power hierarchies, as well as bigotry of all forms. America has been an imperialist monster hell-bent on world domination; a propagator of rapacious capitalism a faux democracy. In this view, there is no history to bind us – in fact history separates us. When the Disintegrationist view becomes the majority view in the United States, the United States will no longer be united.
THE STRATEGY OF DISINTEGRATIONISM So, how have Disintegrationists succeeded in convincing millions of Americans that America’s philosophy, culture, institutions, and history are worth overthrowing? They’ve provided a subversive but seductive view of America as an evil actor. That all disparity represents a form of discrimination. Since disparities have existed between all groups at all times, such disparities cannot disappear. But by convincing Americans that any unexplained disparity is the result of the American system. Disintegrationists have a succinct and irrefutable argument in favor of tearing down the system. Any evidence of disparate treatment becomes an argument against Unionism. This is an emotionally resonant pitch. Traditional Americanism suggests that while our system has never been perfect, it has grown increasingly so – and this means that it should be easier to succeed today, without the obstacles of bigotry that have plagued our history, than ever before.
If, however, all disparity can be chalked up to the system, then personal responsibility becomes a secondary concern. Failures are no longer individual, but systemic. America’s traditional reliance on reasoned conversation is itself polarizing. Scientific investigation is deemed bigoted, and meritocracy itself derided as discriminatory. Belief in free markets is evidence of America’s roots in slavery. Every failure becomes an additional brick in the wall of evidence against America. The only solution then rests in coalitional politics designed to rewrite the American bargain. Stripping away every piece of connective tissue in American life is happening constantly around us. We cannot watch a football game without being confronted with politics; we cannot pick up a celebrity magazine, attend a church service, or even go to a restaurant without first considering politics. This is effective. It’s effective because it’s exhausting. It is meant to be. It is meant to convince Americans to throw up their hands and simply comply with the dictates, or to force Americans to divide up every element of daily life politically. Source: How the Destroy America in Three Easy Steps by Ben Shapiro