"Until this moment, Senator, I think I never really gauged your cruelty or your recklessness.....Let us not assassinate this lad further, senator. You have done enough. Have you no sense of decency?" Attorney Joseph Welch to Senator Joseph McCarthy
“The fact that so many successful politicians are such shameless liars is not only a reflection on them, it is also a reflection on us. When the people want the impossible, only liars can satisfy.” Thomas Sowell
Politicians have always exaggerated and stretched the truth, but today they are shameless in telling demonstrable lies that make them look good and their opponents look terrible. They succeed in this by choosing their audiences and forums so that they can never be confronted on those lies in a meaningful way. And for many, it works- they win elections. Corporations have always pushed boundaries to make profits, but it seems like those boundaries are getting harder and harder to enforce. Large companies are willing to break the laws and get sued, figuring that paying the smaller penalties is worth the higher extra income. What's going on with our moral compasses? Do the ends justify the means, or do they corrupt us more than we realize?
One of the great moments in public shaming came in 1954 when Joseph McCarthy was publicly confronted by a lawyer for attacking one of his colleagues over a guild membership. McCarthy had spent four years attacking people over suspected communist party ties, using shady and ruthless tactics. He destroyed careers and drummed up paranoia and became a star. When Joseph Welch finally called him out, the audience applauded and within months McCarthy was censured by the full Senate and out of power. I think about that moment of moral clarity more these days when there seems to be no shame anymore for bullying, lying, or character assassination.
The last US politician to be publicly called out for misdeeds was Richard Nixon in 1974 with the Watergate scandal. Nixon denied wrongdoing but his recordings said otherwise, and he was forced to leave office and public life. Since then, presidential scandals have amounted to mostly a shrug from the press and public. Ronald Reagan sold arms illegally and lied about welfare moms. Bill Clinton lied about an affair with Monica Lewinsky. George W. Bush lied about nuclear weapons in Iraq and John Kerry's swift boats, and Donald Trump has set the record for over 30,000 lies (according to the Washington Post) during his four years as president.
The 21st century has seen such a rise in disinformation, much of it from internet sources with an agenda, that agreeing on the truth of anything has become an existential struggle. This has led to a general lack of trust throughout society, causing problems in many areas. If you don't trust the government, your employer, the media, science, higher education, your friends or even your spouse, who can you trust?
Marriage rates have been in decline because couples are cheating on each other more and few relationships have a chance to mature. Shoplifting is rising because people feel less of a stigma about it and think it's okay to "stick it to the man". People cheat on their taxes so much that the tax gap, (amount of tax owed versus what's actually paid) is the highest it has ever been, topping $700 Billion dollars. Paranoid thinking has given rise to conspiracy theories that point to shady elites who are responsible for everything that goes wrong. And the elites are in league with the boogeyman of the day, (these days illegal aliens), that threatens everyone's safety.
The justice system seems anything but just when Supreme Court justices openly accept bribes and embrace partisan politics. It's taken for granted that wealthy people get off easy when they commit crimes, while those without means bear the brunt of the criminal justice system. The cynical nature of this dismay became apparent to me when I saw multiple Tik Tok videos of people proudly proclaiming "I'm voting for the felon."
The Covid epidemic exposed our lack of trust in each other. People ignored medical advice during an unprecedented and unfamiliar pandemic. They came up with fake cures and turned against immunization itself- the one medical miracle that has saved more lives than any other throughout the last 100 years.
Mind you, a healthy skepticism of the establishment- whether government, corporate, justice, or medical is a good thing. No system is perfect and some are downright clueless. But the goal of a healthy society should be a functioning establishment that is accountable and responsive to the needs of all, and not just the lucky few at the very top. Somehow we need to be able to have a strong level of trust in each other.
No wonder loneliness is at epidemic levels according to the surgeon general while gun ownership continues to climb. The only thing that seems to bond people together are agreements on who to blame or who to hate.
Most people want to think that they are one of the "good guys", and they try to live their lives by some sort of moral code. But moral codes are out of whack today, and moral license is making horrible acts seem okay. Moral license is the idea that good and bad deeds are like a scorecard. If you do enough good deeds, like exercise, you are entitled to a few bad ones, like eating a quart of ice cream. Most people seem to think that their good deeds- going to church, earning a living, raising a child entitle them to do many bad deeds- lie, cheat, steal, bully and even murder. The good deeds are inflated in each mind, and the bad deeds are minimized ("they deserved it") to keep the balance going.
So what can we do about this? How can we convince the liars and bullies that we need to trust each other again? Their deceptive tactics may work for the short term, but are like a cancer in the long term. Shame used to work, as it did in 1954. but we are past that, I think. The level of polarization has risen so high that it's impossible to shame anybody as long as they have their own safe space to retreat to.
The answer, I think, is in rebuilding trust through honesty and relentless kindnesses. People are at their best in times of struggle- natural disasters, wars, diseases, and crises. Just show up for them. When someone behaves badly, call them out firmly and provide a good example. Hatred is contagious, but so is love. It's harder to hate someone who shows up and builds trust. Sooner or later, the forces of love and trust always prevail. We need each other much more than we will ever realize.
The 21st century will be one of the most impactful in human history. I have written about the Four Horsemen of the Wokealypse previously. These four enormous changes- diversity, gender, religion and energy are stoking a lot of fear in those who don't like change and have enjoyed the fruits of the past 200 years. Climate change can be ignored for only so long, and then meaningful actions will have to be taken- actions that will transform entire economies. White privilege will lose its meaning in a multiracial society that is evolving. Men will need to adjust to a stronger voice for women as they keep realizing their potential. And religion will have to evolve into something more inclusive and meaningful as more and more people turn away from the past orthodoxies.
For many people, this transition is scary, and they prefer to listen to lies and retreat to information bubbles rather than confront it. But that can only work for so long. Reality has a way of breaking through.
It's a lot to take in, even over 100 years. But it is much bigger than any one of us, and hopefully if we keep our humanity and stop fearing the truth, it will bring a world that's a much better place for our great-grandchildren.
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