Scout: This is very related to another thing I have been musing. I live in the US and our current government is enacting policies which are skewing towards authoritarianism. They are acting abhorrently towards our immigrant populations, attempting to undermine intellectual institutions, and deregulating businesses allowing them greater license to extort, manipulate, and poison our population and environment. Their actions by and large feel very obviously bad for humanity to me, and I have been contending with feelings of intense anger and hatred.
If the people in charge were shipped off to the same terrible prisons that they are sending immigrants to, if they were struck with awful disabilities like the people they are trying to pull social support away from, there is something in me that would be happy to see it. This is malice.
My mind tries to justify it by saying that the function of hate is to eradicate things which threaten our survival and wellbeing. For example, the desire to kill mosquitoes, which spread disease. However it is pretty ineffective here since it isn’t really driving action, it’s mostly just another emotional stressor which exacerbates my symptoms. And people being manipulated by media into hating each other is the whole thing that has led the US to this point. I can’t really pretend there’s anything noble or functional about hatred there. (link)
Hi Scout,
As you wrote this message to Kuba I’ll let him answer it.
I’ll just make one short comment – it helps to research both sides of the political aisle and check on some factual evidence, if possible, of what either side is saying. Politics is a very tribal business and you don’t just want to follow any feelings of loyalty and belonging when you favour one side over the other. While malice and sorrow are prevalent in all human beings, including media and politician, there is also (more rare), genuine good will, common sense and caring for the community.
Cheers Vineeto