This is the third installment of the series on culture. If you haven’t read the first two, I highly recommend you read those first. Here are links to those: Culture: The Death of Humanity and You Can’t Have Culture Without A Cult. This article will focus on culture and the State. As terrifying as religion causing human sacrifice is, the State has much more power. Religions, especially modern religions, have infinitely less power than governments. Let's briefly go over the power of religion.
Let's Talk About Religion Again!
In the old days, religion ruled the lands. However, you couldn't be forced to be religious. There would certainly be consequences of leaving a religious cult, but you could leave. Maybe people would think you were possessed by evil spirits. Maybe they wouldn't talk to you. Who knows? It really doesn't matter, because they couldn't force you to do anything. Obviously, there are the extreme examples of things like the Spanish Inquisition and Salem Witch Trials that showed more force from religion. These are important to note for a historical perspective, but don't translate well to modern religion.
Let's Talk About Religion Again!
In the old days, religion ruled the lands. However, you couldn't be forced to be religious. There would certainly be consequences of leaving a religious cult, but you could leave. Maybe people would think you were possessed by evil spirits. Maybe they wouldn't talk to you. Who knows? It really doesn't matter, because they couldn't force you to do anything. Obviously, there are the extreme examples of things like the Spanish Inquisition and Salem Witch Trials that showed more force from religion. These are important to note for a historical perspective, but don't translate well to modern religion.
Modern religions hold almost no power. If a Christian decides he doesn't believe anymore, no big deal. Worst case scenario, his overly religious family dislikes his choice. That is one of the reasons why I focus on religion so much. It is so easy to walk away from. No one can force you to be religious. You can walk away from the insanity at anytime.
The State
Now let's talk about the State. You can not walk away from the state. You can not opt-out of taxation. You can't stop having contact with the government. You can't move away (you can move to another country, but that's just another government). The State controls anything and everything. You can not escape. That is one reason I don't discuss government issues as much as religion. You can escape religion, but you will never escape the state. The only way for that to happen is for the state to collapse.
So, how does the state (I can't decide whether I like it capitalized or not) influence culture? Let's talk about laws. If the government outlaws something, anyone that does that thing is obviously evil. So, if the government makes marijuana illegal, then anyone who uses it is immoral. During the prohibition of alcohol, anyone that drank was immoral. Then alcohol was allowed again, so it was perfectly moral to drink. The government says you must pay taxes, so it is immoral not to.
This also leads to more brutal parts of our culture. War is somehow, incredibly not seen as evil. The 'troops,' aka paid killers, are honored. Going to another part of the world and killing people is somehow connected with protecting our freedom. Dropping two nuclear bombs on Japan is a good thing. Somehow it even saved lives (not kidding, people actually make this argument). This is the world we live in. A world where up is down and black is white. As George Orwell said in 1984, " “War is peace. Freedom is slavery. Ignorance is strength.”
In the last article, I ended by encouraging people to break from the religious cults they may belong to. Here, I can not do that. There is no breaking from the state. Just like with religion, it will take many years for people to begin to see that the state is nonsense. How long did it take to convince people that the world is round? How long did it take to convince people that witches don't exist? How many people still believe in fairy tales? After thinking about these questions, ask yourself, how long will it take until people stop believing in the state?
The State
Now let's talk about the State. You can not walk away from the state. You can not opt-out of taxation. You can't stop having contact with the government. You can't move away (you can move to another country, but that's just another government). The State controls anything and everything. You can not escape. That is one reason I don't discuss government issues as much as religion. You can escape religion, but you will never escape the state. The only way for that to happen is for the state to collapse.
So, how does the state (I can't decide whether I like it capitalized or not) influence culture? Let's talk about laws. If the government outlaws something, anyone that does that thing is obviously evil. So, if the government makes marijuana illegal, then anyone who uses it is immoral. During the prohibition of alcohol, anyone that drank was immoral. Then alcohol was allowed again, so it was perfectly moral to drink. The government says you must pay taxes, so it is immoral not to.
This also leads to more brutal parts of our culture. War is somehow, incredibly not seen as evil. The 'troops,' aka paid killers, are honored. Going to another part of the world and killing people is somehow connected with protecting our freedom. Dropping two nuclear bombs on Japan is a good thing. Somehow it even saved lives (not kidding, people actually make this argument). This is the world we live in. A world where up is down and black is white. As George Orwell said in 1984, " “War is peace. Freedom is slavery. Ignorance is strength.”
In the last article, I ended by encouraging people to break from the religious cults they may belong to. Here, I can not do that. There is no breaking from the state. Just like with religion, it will take many years for people to begin to see that the state is nonsense. How long did it take to convince people that the world is round? How long did it take to convince people that witches don't exist? How many people still believe in fairy tales? After thinking about these questions, ask yourself, how long will it take until people stop believing in the state?