We have got to untangle race and culture and words like "morality" and "degenerate".
Guinevere L. Nell
My hubby has his own definition of racism — he is the sweetest person I have ever known, and I’m pretty sure most good people who meet him, or know him, agree. But most probably would not easily agree with his definition or at least they would say “but most people share a different definition”, or worse if they heard his definition without knowing him might think him a racist.
He might even say that he is, using his own private definition.
They might assume he was a racist, for example online: because he said so, not realising he really truly means something different than you would likely mean. He says even admitting there are difference in race is racism; vs. pre-judging based on race, which is, I guess, pre-judging. I would argue back that most people call the pre-judging person a racist, and so the word has come to mean that.
But he can show me scientistic examples with his definition. Both definitions have merit — being from different cultures one is raised with one or the other, and one is emotionally attached and reads connotations into things, based upon their definition, itself understood based on connotations.
Corrupt = taking advantage of good systems for selfish reasons or working to make that legal or acceptable. Corruption=bad.
And many saw the system is corrupt — perhaps blaming different people — and so were, are, proudly degenerate.
And being “away from your race or kind” on these things or similar things , and so being a “degenerate” — one should, perhaps must, be proud to be a degenerate who disagrees with people willing to be corrupt.
Truly, as unlikely as it seems, this might be our best strategy to get through to some good people on a bad path, bring them willingly and happily over to the side of democracy, diversity, and compassion.
The dictionary definition of “degenerate” — something an old friend once called me, with very little evidence, if any, as I recall, is:
“Immoral”, “corrupt”, “declining” either”mentally” or”morally”
But also “away from” your “race or kind” — and what if there is something wrong with the policy and social understanding of what is “immoral” or “corrupt” either “mentally or morally”? What if you are only “degenerate” because “your kind” was wrong in what it called “immoral”?
We know we have changed our minds over time about what is “degenerate” — most Americans used to say homosexual acts were degenerate, now most Americans think it’s no worse that eating X on the wrong day, if they are (a certain type of) religious; and it ain’t your business if they are not (a certain type of) religious.
This was the punk movements and the like — rock n roll, soul, ska, reggae, jazz, and their ancestors and their descendants have been trying to say. Yeah we degenerate — we gotta be.
Be proud to be degenerate by being against a bad definition of the words used to describe “degenerate” — don’t become bad because you are scared to be a “degenerate” if the words are not properly defined: many religious extremists think that many things are immoral today and are willing to use violence against people who do them.
Being moral one has to be unloving and with no compassion? I’d rather be immoral, thank you, if that is what “moral” means — to be without compassion for the lives of others.
But in many “moral” churches which say abortion is now suddenly immoral, homosexuality is immoral, and immigrants… They are pre-judged based on their skin — or for many of the corrupt, who are not true believers or acting ‘in good faith’, these claims are just used and abused because it is possible and good for them — the judge, the privileged.
So we must untangle race and culture and words like “morality” and “degenerate”….
There is a cult -like faith and a religious faith that Trumpists are moral, and out to save themselves and their own. I wrote recently about this fairy-tale they seem to share, and the communities — real communities — built around it. It can be very hard to leave a cult, knowing that you will lose your community. Here is a quick primer on Trumism being a cult (made pre-2020 election, only a couple mins long).
The way to ensure we can get on the same is to define our words — kindly, with love and compassion, and with: (1) the will and strength to face ourselves and understand forgive & change our own roles, (2) to forgive each other the other’s role, and (3) to fight for what’s right.
Kind of like: control the things you can, accept the things you can’t, and have the wisdom to know the difference.
We must ensure that society defends against corruption and ensure that corruption is illegal and socially unacceptable. And that we are moral by caring about life, for all people and races, for all ages and genders.
…. And that we don't abuse language and trick people into scams, in so doing become rich and powerful and then make monetary corruption legal and accept both these wrongs as fine. This creates a divide in justice — no more equality before the law — at all. What an idiocracy of a short-term plan. Be corrupt and immoral now, and destroy the chance for a good future for you & yours. Yeah, it’s always gone on: but so let’s expose that, and take charge of this new narrative. No cynicism, let’s all get on the same page about this, and let’s make that change.
Yes, right now: the rich man avoids jail while the public infringes the tiniest bit and they are in prison or dead, and often because of their race, which for many is connected to the culture entwined with that race or a culture they were taught to connect to that race, a fictitious one.
Either way, it don’t matter. They may likely not believe any of the that, but the system rewards it. That is how it’s got to change. The system must reward being good, using good definitions, which can include degenerates — degenerate against a bad system.
My husband pre-judges nobody, and the only other person I knew who assumed the best in people more than him is my (late) mother, who saw the best in the very worst people and only grudgingly admitted their (temporary — ‘people can change’, she would always insist) flaws.
Anyway recognising difference in race vs. pre-judging based on race. Difference between cultures and ways of being raised vs pre-judging based upon cultural differences, which one might have wrong, attached to an assumption based on race.
And then people trying their best to attach race and culture and misrepresent — and they might even use a definition similar to the one my husband Dan uses proudly. “But I’m just saying people X ain’t like us!” …
So, who is using his definition, who is using it in good faith? Is there a spectrum for everyone?
So we must untangle race and culture and words like "morality" and "degenerate".. then maybe we can answer the question from above: is there a spectrum, who is choosing which definition and why? Who acts in good faith?
And how & why do you know this or think this or believe this? What scientific proof do you have? Show me the evidence.
