You argue that freedom, as an absolute, is a false god. I agree completely. Nearly all of us have too much freedom and choice in many domains of life—although many of the choices offered are quite shallow in substance.
You argue that to get past the mutable cross, one needs to go on the fixed cross. Fair enough, people should confront their emotions head on, and thereby disempower their mutable crosses. If a fixed cross can help with that, perhaps it's a good thing. That said, fixed crosses should be a last resort, hardly something to impose on society en masse, including normalizing the threat of fixed crosses.
In fact, per Girard, the entire premise of Jesus crucifixion was that he was sacrificed so that none of us would have to be scapegoated, as his brutal scapegoating would demonstrate to us all the sinful ways of men that led them to sacrifice him.
But even if we were to endorse some application of fixed crosses, the impersonal technocracy implementing the measures you've mentioned is in no position to offer cardinal crosses to the population. They only offer the threat of mass crucifixion or exile. Claiming otherwise is wishful speculation.
> The idea was that prisoners would be watched by guards 24/7
The idea wasn't that prisoners would be watched 24/7. The idea was that they *wouldn't need to be watched* because they would internalize the prison guard as an introject. This would be psychologically quite damaging, assuming it even worked, which it didn't.
> And that through being constantly observed, the former wrong-doers would learn to change their ways and become better citizens
The panopticon was not rehabilitative. It at-best created learned helplessness in inmates.
> led to Newgate Prison... for 700 years - finally being demolished at the beginning of the twentieth century. **This to me is a good example of how the giving up of personal freedom can create a better society.**
One system of torture (dungeons) being replaced with another (panopticons) is not something to celebrate.
> Jesus Would Approve of Social Credit Systems... Perhaps this is why CBDCs and Social Credit Systems are now emerging in our society.
This essay began as a well-meaning exercise in optimism—but ended in justifying increasing horrors.
I agree that social credit systems have the potential to go pretty horrific, at least in the short term. But I don't think they have to be that way. Having lived the bulk of my adult life communally, I find them pretty intriguing and see the potential for raising mankind's awareness. The people who have ultra-strong neg reactions IMO probably have specific forms of childhood trauma where surrendering to authority has been nervous-system-encoded as life-threatening. Western culture does have a tendency to create such people.
> But I don't think they have to be that way. Having lived the bulk of my adult life communally, I find them pretty intriguing and see the potential for raising mankind's awareness
At a small scale, communal living can be enlightened and raise awareness. It can also devolve into chaos. It can also be repressive and stifling.
Optimism would necessitate believing several things about those imposing these systems:
1. That they are aware of and intend to ensure that the substrate population is able to accept, accommodate and thrive under such communal living in any reasonable time frame
2. That the scale of the systems even applies at the scale it is going to be imposed
3. That they themselves are capable of ensuring these systems are going to be imposed with grace and discernment
4. Etc.
We have every reason to believe none of these things have or will be considered with the population in mind, nor do they matter to those imposing the systems.
Hence little reason for optimism. But also hence not flipping the script and telling those who are negatively reacting that they need to look on the bright side. That's at best a counterfactual with little relation to reality, and at worst gaslighting.
> surrendering to authority has been nervous-system-encoded as life-threatening. Western culture does have a tendency to create such people.
Indeed, western people (among others) have been traumatized by the old world system that is being unilaterally replaced. They have every reason to believe this same system bringing something new is not in their interests.
Just because those 'awakening' everyone claim to care, does not make it so. The worst wolves wear sheep's clothing. And our social credit wolves wear a wool top hat, on Thursdays.
I mean, the bottom line is that it will be the EU and China, plus maybe the UK, that start to trial these systems, be they CBDCs or Social Credit. So how that goes will be important.
Yes, steady state superficial humanity is one possible outcome, I agree. Though I'm not personally convinced it would last so long. The logos tends to find a way to reassert itself and might even thrive in such an environment.
The thing I find is to introspect on what I personally find scary about the Social Credit System scenario. In following various writers who track these things, I notice they just don't do this. It all becomes about humanity, the future, blah blah blah, when, if you ask me, there are specific personal triggers that relate to specific childhood circumstances and nervous system arrangements.
When people are stuck in projecting their personal fears onto the world at large, at some point the world has to act those fears out, to paraphrase Jung.
Because what I see happening a lot is... our mind is triggered by these scary scenarios like CBDCs. But instead of feeling what's going on, we immediately engage the thinking mind to create a long monologue of all the reasons why it's wrong. And then try to "recruit" others to our perspective. We don't give any space to the actual personal feelings we are having.
And because of this, according to Jung's famous adage, the universe has to act out the negative scenario!
Upon on reflection, and to make it clearer, I have changed the title of my article you refer to, to "The Wisdom in Giving Up On Unrewarding Sunk Costs"
You argue that freedom, as an absolute, is a false god. I agree completely. Nearly all of us have too much freedom and choice in many domains of life—although many of the choices offered are quite shallow in substance.
You argue that to get past the mutable cross, one needs to go on the fixed cross. Fair enough, people should confront their emotions head on, and thereby disempower their mutable crosses. If a fixed cross can help with that, perhaps it's a good thing. That said, fixed crosses should be a last resort, hardly something to impose on society en masse, including normalizing the threat of fixed crosses.
In fact, per Girard, the entire premise of Jesus crucifixion was that he was sacrificed so that none of us would have to be scapegoated, as his brutal scapegoating would demonstrate to us all the sinful ways of men that led them to sacrifice him.
But even if we were to endorse some application of fixed crosses, the impersonal technocracy implementing the measures you've mentioned is in no position to offer cardinal crosses to the population. They only offer the threat of mass crucifixion or exile. Claiming otherwise is wishful speculation.
> The idea was that prisoners would be watched by guards 24/7
The idea wasn't that prisoners would be watched 24/7. The idea was that they *wouldn't need to be watched* because they would internalize the prison guard as an introject. This would be psychologically quite damaging, assuming it even worked, which it didn't.
> And that through being constantly observed, the former wrong-doers would learn to change their ways and become better citizens
The panopticon was not rehabilitative. It at-best created learned helplessness in inmates.
> led to Newgate Prison... for 700 years - finally being demolished at the beginning of the twentieth century. **This to me is a good example of how the giving up of personal freedom can create a better society.**
One system of torture (dungeons) being replaced with another (panopticons) is not something to celebrate.
> Jesus Would Approve of Social Credit Systems... Perhaps this is why CBDCs and Social Credit Systems are now emerging in our society.
This essay began as a well-meaning exercise in optimism—but ended in justifying increasing horrors.
I agree that social credit systems have the potential to go pretty horrific, at least in the short term. But I don't think they have to be that way. Having lived the bulk of my adult life communally, I find them pretty intriguing and see the potential for raising mankind's awareness. The people who have ultra-strong neg reactions IMO probably have specific forms of childhood trauma where surrendering to authority has been nervous-system-encoded as life-threatening. Western culture does have a tendency to create such people.
> But I don't think they have to be that way. Having lived the bulk of my adult life communally, I find them pretty intriguing and see the potential for raising mankind's awareness
At a small scale, communal living can be enlightened and raise awareness. It can also devolve into chaos. It can also be repressive and stifling.
Optimism would necessitate believing several things about those imposing these systems:
1. That they are aware of and intend to ensure that the substrate population is able to accept, accommodate and thrive under such communal living in any reasonable time frame
2. That the scale of the systems even applies at the scale it is going to be imposed
3. That they themselves are capable of ensuring these systems are going to be imposed with grace and discernment
4. Etc.
We have every reason to believe none of these things have or will be considered with the population in mind, nor do they matter to those imposing the systems.
Hence little reason for optimism. But also hence not flipping the script and telling those who are negatively reacting that they need to look on the bright side. That's at best a counterfactual with little relation to reality, and at worst gaslighting.
> surrendering to authority has been nervous-system-encoded as life-threatening. Western culture does have a tendency to create such people.
Indeed, western people (among others) have been traumatized by the old world system that is being unilaterally replaced. They have every reason to believe this same system bringing something new is not in their interests.
Just because those 'awakening' everyone claim to care, does not make it so. The worst wolves wear sheep's clothing. And our social credit wolves wear a wool top hat, on Thursdays.
I mean, the bottom line is that it will be the EU and China, plus maybe the UK, that start to trial these systems, be they CBDCs or Social Credit. So how that goes will be important.
Yes, steady state superficial humanity is one possible outcome, I agree. Though I'm not personally convinced it would last so long. The logos tends to find a way to reassert itself and might even thrive in such an environment.
The thing I find is to introspect on what I personally find scary about the Social Credit System scenario. In following various writers who track these things, I notice they just don't do this. It all becomes about humanity, the future, blah blah blah, when, if you ask me, there are specific personal triggers that relate to specific childhood circumstances and nervous system arrangements.
When people are stuck in projecting their personal fears onto the world at large, at some point the world has to act those fears out, to paraphrase Jung.
Yes, kind of. I mean to at least acknowledge it.
Because what I see happening a lot is... our mind is triggered by these scary scenarios like CBDCs. But instead of feeling what's going on, we immediately engage the thinking mind to create a long monologue of all the reasons why it's wrong. And then try to "recruit" others to our perspective. We don't give any space to the actual personal feelings we are having.
And because of this, according to Jung's famous adage, the universe has to act out the negative scenario!
Upon on reflection, and to make it clearer, I have changed the title of my article you refer to, to "The Wisdom in Giving Up On Unrewarding Sunk Costs"