Galileo, Darwin and Sigmund Freud
like most other pioneers first in suffered the slings and arrows of their
detractors so outrageous were the initial pronouncements regarding their new discoveries. Kierkegaard and Nietzsche both were 100 years ahead of the
psychological curve so perceptive was their genius. We see throughout history
many examples of great minds that time would be needed to vindicate.
Fast-forward
to 2013 and we are well into another renaissance, not genius so much, but
tremendous strides are being made in the field of bullshit! And if this is
something in your wheelhouse America 2013 is the place to be.
Living
in America is like trying to earn your junior lifesaver’s certificate by
treading for 10 minutes in a tank full of crap. Picture yourself making the
required arm and leg movements that constitute treading, but instead of water
you are making these movements in fecal matter!
This
crap is generously provided by all of the politicians, corporate spin-doctors,
religious clergy, talking heads and anyone else with an agenda and the leverage
to promulgate their bullshit. This goes on hour after hour, day after day, year
after year until genuine outrage has been reduced to “what’dya gonna do?”
Q: How much bullshit am I actually
talking about here?
A: Enough to sink the whole goddamn
planet!
Sigmund
Freud for all of his great early contributions, most of which have been
refuted, none-the-less made one great discovery that is probably the basis for
more acceptance of bullshit by the public and the world at large than any
single thing in the history of human civilization…his discovery of the
phenomenon of transference.
According
to Wikipedia: Transference is a phenomenon characterized by unconscious
redirection of feelings from one person to another. One definition of
transference is "the inappropriate repetition in the present of a
relationship that was important in a person's childhood." 1) Another
definition is "the redirection of feelings and desires and especially of
those unconsciously retained from childhood toward a new object. 2) Still
another definition is "a reproduction of emotions relating to repressed
experiences, especially of childhood, and the substitution of another person
... for the original object of the repressed impulses. 3) Transference was
first described by Sigmund Freud who acknowledged its importance for
psychoanalysis for better understanding of the patient's feelings.
The
patient in our case is John Q. Public a malleable, amorphous clod of Play-Doh
that can be molded into any shape by any reasonably skilled, self serving,
public bullshitter.
Crackpots
from Representative Steve King who recently declared this about immigration: “For
everyone who’s a valedictorian, there’s another 100 out there that weigh 130
pounds and they’ve got calves the size of cantaloupes because they’re hauling
75 pounds of marijuana across the desert.”
…to
congressman Michael Burgess offering this about the unborn male: “This is a
subject I know something about ... Watch a sonogram of a 15-week baby, and they
have movements that are purposeful. They stroke their face. If they’re a male
baby, they may have their hand between their legs. If they feel pleasure, why
is it so hard to believe that they could feel pain?”
…to
congressman Todd Akin who famously uttered these words: “If it’s a legitimate rape, the female body has ways of shutting that
whole thing down!"
Antediluvian
cretins each, but the people buy this bullshit, their loyal constituency never
questioning or calling these men to the carpet. When reason is abdicated,
the transference is complete which permits the easy
purchase of the hearts and minds of the citizenry.
When
the public knows shit about Shinola, I’m speaking about basic history and current
events of the country they live in, the country is ready to be boarded by
pirates. If the quality of our elected officials is any indicator it has
already happened. The best and the brightest know that it has nothing to do
with innovative ideas or the public good. It is all about who can stay for sale
the longest.
Because
of the acceptance of bullshit, personalities like Bill O’Reilly, Rush Limbaugh,
Chris Mathews, Bill Maher and even the President of the United States ascend
into the pantheon of great intellects in the public’s collective mind. Real
intellects end up marginalized by the marketplace, the marketplace having
usurped reason as the coin of the realm.
A
culture is often defined by its heroes, but if these minds are the best the
culture has to offer then the word “freedom” so precious to the history of this
country has become the new code word for bullshit.
…which
reminds me of a joke:
A
missionary goes to deepest darkest Africa to spread the gospel. He travels from
village to village speaking to the natives:
“and we
will bring education to your village!”
Whereupon
the villagers respond “oomgowa!”
“and we
will bring electricity to your village!”
…the
villagers respond “oomgowa!”
“and we
will bring a loving god to your village!”
…again
the villagers respond in kind “oomgowa!”
As the missionary packs up his things he says to the village elder, “Can you please
tell me how to get to the next village?”
“Yes, yes
it if very easy. Proceed 5 kilometers north, then 2 kilometers east, but watch
out…don’t step in the oomgowa!”
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| Still Life With Vegetables |
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