Introduction
In our highly advanced and incredibly prosperous Western liberal democratic societies, we have come to believe that we are entirely self-made beings who have mastery over life, death, and creation. This belief is largely due to the scientific and technological advancements we have made over the centuries, which have positioned us as a 'superior' civilization. This belief, coupled with the rapid secularization of Western societies and the mainstream acceptance of cultural relativism, has led many to believe that God is dead, as Friedrich Nietzsche famously stated, and that the transcendent order of the Greco-Roman and Judeo-Christian cultures is no longer relevant.
The Modern Western Paradigm
The prevailing modern Western paradigm appears to be that we are beholden only to ourselves and the laws, institutions, and applications we have created around the now 'superior' homo technicus. Human progress and control by any means necessary is the reigning order, and for the sake of enabling its unstoppable ascent, all else becomes either secondary or entirely discarded. This includes the search for the truth of what it means to be human, within the stable pre-political framework of transcendent measurements highlighted by the 20th century's most influential political philosopher, Hannah Arendt.
The Conception of Law
Arendt points out that a conception of law that equates what is right with what is good for the individual, the family, the people, or the majority becomes inevitable once the absolute and transcendent measurements of religion or the law of nature lose their authority. This predicament is not solved even if the 'good for' applies to mankind as a whole. It is conceivable, and even within the realm of practical political possibilities, that a highly organized and mechanized humanity could democratically decide that it would be better to eliminate certain parts of itself.
The Role of Conscience
Our conscience, which requires the uninhibited ability of truthful speech for its public expression, dialogue, and subsequent development, is the innermost realm of the individual human being. It is where we discern between good and evil, just and unjust, and how we should respond to any given situation where the tension or collision of these two opposites takes place. Our conscience is where our understanding of nature and our ability to reason are at work, guided by our religious or philosophical principles and convictions, and triggered by the concrete realities and responsibilities we encounter daily.
The Threat of a Living Conscience
Why is the individual conscience – provided it is recognized and carefully cultivated by its host – and its exclusive rootedness in what Hannah Arendt called “the absolute and transcendent measurements of religion or the law of nature” perceived as such a threat so often in the history of political systems and their governing of nations? The relationship between the governing and the governed tends to be fraught, especially when it comes to the balance between state power and individual freedom or communal autonomy and responsibility.
From the Rule of Law to the Rule of Power
The outbreak of Covid-19 and our response to it is a tragic example of the homo technicus overplaying its hand. Through the instrumentalization and weaponization of fear, measures were implemented by governments that would normally not pass the litmus test of parliamentary and judicial scrutiny in relation to proportionality, constitutionality, and respect for human rights. As a result, the Rule of Power, which too many leaders gave themselves based on real or imagined dangers to public health, quickly replaced the Rule of Law.
Conclusion and Remedies
Apart from the continued human suffering and economic destruction the policies relating to Covid-19 and other current 'permanent crisis' issues such as climate change have brought us, it has also fast-tracked the process of the State, along with its voluntarily captured partners in the world of corporate and non-governmental institutions, in many cases becoming an overbearing leviathan that increasingly takes upon itself the role of the arbiter of truth and the manager of our whole lives.
Bottom Line
The most important and urgent task is that we learn and live again the true meaning of freedom. Freedom is not, as we are being told by the ideology of unlimited progress and control, that we can do what we want, when we want it, and how we want it. Freedom is something else entirely: it is the unimpeded ability to choose and act upon what is right and just and to reject what is not.
What do you think about this article? Do you agree or disagree with the points made? Share this with your friends and let's start a conversation. Don't forget to sign up for the Daily Briefing, every day at 6pm.
Introduction
In our highly advanced and incredibly prosperous Western liberal democratic societies, we have come to believe that we are entirely self-made beings who have mastery over life, death, and creation. This belief is largely due to the scientific and technological advancements we have made over the centuries, which have positioned us as a 'superior' civilization. This belief, coupled with the rapid secularization of Western societies and the mainstream acceptance of cultural relativism, has led many to believe that God is dead, as Friedrich Nietzsche famously stated, and that the transcendent order of the Greco-Roman and Judeo-Christian cultures is no longer relevant.
The Modern Western Paradigm
The prevailing modern Western paradigm appears to be that we are beholden only to ourselves and the laws, institutions, and applications we have created around the now 'superior' homo technicus. Human progress and control by any means necessary is the reigning order, and for the sake of enabling its unstoppable ascent, all else becomes either secondary or entirely discarded. This includes the search for the truth of what it means to be human, within the stable pre-political framework of transcendent measurements highlighted by the 20th century's most influential political philosopher, Hannah Arendt.
The Conception of Law
Arendt points out that a conception of law that equates what is right with what is good for the individual, the family, the people, or the majority becomes inevitable once the absolute and transcendent measurements of religion or the law of nature lose their authority. This predicament is not solved even if the 'good for' applies to mankind as a whole. It is conceivable, and even within the realm of practical political possibilities, that a highly organized and mechanized humanity could democratically decide that it would be better to eliminate certain parts of itself.
The Role of Conscience
Our conscience, which requires the uninhibited ability of truthful speech for its public expression, dialogue, and subsequent development, is the innermost realm of the individual human being. It is where we discern between good and evil, just and unjust, and how we should respond to any given situation where the tension or collision of these two opposites takes place. Our conscience is where our understanding of nature and our ability to reason are at work, guided by our religious or philosophical principles and convictions, and triggered by the concrete realities and responsibilities we encounter daily.
The Threat of a Living Conscience
Why is the individual conscience – provided it is recognized and carefully cultivated by its host – and its exclusive rootedness in what Hannah Arendt called “the absolute and transcendent measurements of religion or the law of nature” perceived as such a threat so often in the history of political systems and their governing of nations? The relationship between the governing and the governed tends to be fraught, especially when it comes to the balance between state power and individual freedom or communal autonomy and responsibility.
From the Rule of Law to the Rule of Power
The outbreak of Covid-19 and our response to it is a tragic example of the homo technicus overplaying its hand. Through the instrumentalization and weaponization of fear, measures were implemented by governments that would normally not pass the litmus test of parliamentary and judicial scrutiny in relation to proportionality, constitutionality, and respect for human rights. As a result, the Rule of Power, which too many leaders gave themselves based on real or imagined dangers to public health, quickly replaced the Rule of Law.
Conclusion and Remedies
Apart from the continued human suffering and economic destruction the policies relating to Covid-19 and other current 'permanent crisis' issues such as climate change have brought us, it has also fast-tracked the process of the State, along with its voluntarily captured partners in the world of corporate and non-governmental institutions, in many cases becoming an overbearing leviathan that increasingly takes upon itself the role of the arbiter of truth and the manager of our whole lives.
Bottom Line
The most important and urgent task is that we learn and live again the true meaning of freedom. Freedom is not, as we are being told by the ideology of unlimited progress and control, that we can do what we want, when we want it, and how we want it. Freedom is something else entirely: it is the unimpeded ability to choose and act upon what is right and just and to reject what is not.
What do you think about this article? Do you agree or disagree with the points made? Share this with your friends and let's start a conversation. Don't forget to sign up for the Daily Briefing, every day at 6pm.
