Weekly Brief
Coming full circle, the rich and the powerful remind humanity who really are the boss.
In review and in prospect
The perception of empowerment “enjoyed” by 21st Century humans is really no more than an illusion of power afforded them by people who hold real power — much like how a collection of fish swim around none the wise about how their “natural” environment is actually the handiwork of a skilled aquarium enthusiast. Due process made complicated that it requires expensive lawyers to navigate, computing power made so cheap that we are compelled to “upgrade” every 12 months, and such vast choice that makes us believe we acquire “value” with every purchase does not make the average schmoe any more powerful than those tropical fish in a well-laid-out fish tank. Power has not really shifted. Modern governance, technology, and commerce just made the powerful more likeable.
The Norman (French) warlord William the Conqueror, subdued his English subjects by slaughtering peasants and laying waste to their villages, because he can — to show the fortunate survivors (who he perhaps spared lest he runs out of serfs to till his fields) who’s the new boss. Suffice to say, he wasn’t a very nice guy, and certainly not likeable by any stretch of the imagination. Indeed, democracy is as rare as it is recent. For most of human history, it was the sword that ruled and it was cruel greedy men who wielded said sword and wore the crown.
Modern “civilisation” has not blunted this sword. It has merely sugarcoated and anaesthetised its blade — packaged it in such a way that its essentially powerless “practitioners” now gladly assume the position and invite it to be thrust in. All the while modern politicians have the bonus benefit of being “liked” by their constituents. It makes their job of screwing their subjects a bit more, shall we say, “civilised” — so much so that while we laugh with Bart Simpson when he quips “eat my shorts”, the irony in his philosophy remains so lost in us.
Last week’s blog posts
Will Ombudsman Samuel Martires Face Impeachment For Suspending NIA Administrator Benny Antiporda?
November 20, 2022 by Paul Farol
"I can only imagine the kind of mettle one must possess to resist and stand up against the lures of money laden crooks in government who are facing cases at the Office of the Ombudsman."
How to make capitalism work in the Philippines?
November 16, 2022 by The Unpopular Opinion
"Despite having a competition commission, the Philippines has a long history of cronyism, thus further structural changes are required to avoid such collusions between companies and their political backers."