The stupidity of absolute belief


THE STUPIDITY OF ABSOLUTE BELIEF

The stupidity of absolute belief is an opiate that undermines the power of critical thought.  It is better to err in excessive disbelief than to be numbed by faith, an example of belief taken to extremes.  While the irrationality of faith is innocent enough in matters of religion and spirituality, it is diabolical in matters of American political life in 2018.  This hypothesis, of course, must be tested by  gathering of empirical evidence.  Otherwise, a person marinates in bad faith.



As I waited for a conversation between Representative Cedric Richmond and Senator Elizabeth Warren to begin at Dillard University on August 3, I read several chapters of Chaim Perelman's The Realm of Rhetoric (Notre Dame: Notre Dame University Press, 1982).  His philosophical arguments about rhetoric could possibly put iron in my resolve to avoid being deceived by talk, however progressive the chatter might be.  Warren and Richmond were obligated to appeal to people who attended Netroots Nations 2018 conference in New Orleans ; thus, they had to justify their loyalty to the status quo of the  Democratic Establishment, to persuade me and other doubters that they were not faking solidarity with people who might question whether their talk about saving democracy is more than charming hot air. Remember they were in a city that must deal each day with bad air from the funky butt of the Establishment. It is necessary to know what the limits of rhetoric are.



Warren and Richmond are skilled orators.  Listening to them live was certainly more satisfying than just listening to stylized sound bites from television.  The blood and flesh presence of politicians who are most often images on a screen counts for something.  Warren was on Richmond's turf, and I admit she talked about the right issues with appropriate energy.  She was forthcoming in saying, for example, that the American criminal justice system is racist, that unions are necessary,  that China invests more in dealing with infrastructure than does the USA,  that the rich and powerful are the domestic "enemies of the people" who exploit the poor and the declining middle class, that our educational systems are broken, that health care and Social Security are at risk, that the America that enabled her to become a senator is vastly different from the America that accommodates the circus promoted by the PLOTUSA , his amoral/immoral friends, and his death-oriented base.  Despite her obligation to produce a "feel good moment," Warren did demonstrate a modicum of sincerity that Richmond orchestrated with dignity.  I did feel she was sincere in saying the American people must fight and vote to resume control of shaping what democracy will be in a future.



What did not make me feel good about the conversation was the failure of Richmond and Warren to step outside the box of the black/white binary and to demonstrate depth of knowing what a complex,  changing world order actually includes. Perhaps in due time before the mid-term elections on November 6, 2018 they will do so.  Perhaps. Let us be cautious about placing bets on "perhaps."   But until the time arrives when Congressional talk is identical with Congressional action (if such time can arrive), the stupidity of absolute belief prevails and endures.



Jerry W. Ward, Jr.            August 4, 2018

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