Cultural Conflict: A Conspiracy Close to Home

Hello, The purpsoe of this thread is not to present the facts as I see them but rather to present a scenario that will generate some discussion around the duality of cultural conflict that seems to be so prevalent in today's global community. Recent threads have sparked my desire to shed some more light on the subject of societal exclusion over inclusion, that resembles more and more a earlier state of tribalism, or rather a state that hasn't changed at all since its conception.

Why does humanity continue to differentiate and separate itself to the point of violence and suffering? Why do people so ardently defend their customs, religion, and cultural beliefs. At the extreme, that they will sacrifice themselves, or others to overstate their case that they are acting out of some greater good; but in the process cause nothing but pain and suffering?

How can leaders and followers turn their backs so easily on their core beliefs that their blatant acts of hypocrisy is some how defended by their beliefs? (Love peace so much that we're willing to kill for it) How are such perversions acceptable or reasonable at the time the acts are perpetrated but seemingly go against the very foundation of the cause?

Why has culture not evolved to be more inclusive rather than continually putting up walls that reinforce difference? How is humanity to rise above this destructive thinking? What forces are in a people's way that prevent an evolution of inclusion?

Wa Thiong'o stated, "But its most important area of domination was the mental universe of the colonized, the control, through culture, of how people perceived themselves and their relationship to the world. Economic and political control can never be complete or effective without mental control. To control a people's culture is to control their tools of self-definition in relationship to others. "For colonialism this involved two aspects of the same process: the destruction or the deliberate undervaluing of a people's culture, their art, dances, religions, history, geography, education, orature and literature, and the conscious elevation of the language of the colonizer. The domination of a people's language by the languages of the colonizing nations was crucial to the domination of the mental universe of the colonized." (Reference: Asa G. Hilliard; “The Reawakening of the African Mind” pg 159; quoting from source wa Thiong'o, N. (1986). “Decolonization the Mind: The Politics of Language in African Literature”. Portsmouth N.H.: Heinemann pg. 16.).

Every day we see mass media undervalue cultures that differ from the mainstream American paradigm. This is done subtly or blatantly. Our education system is predominantly focused on Anglosaxon culture, history and language. The basic colonization of the native peoples of North America is a stain on our history but clearly all the control, and undervaluing mechanisms were put in place. Hundreds of years later, after 9\11, Islam and Arab culture were devalued, and demeaned and spread around the world to drum up support for an invasion that was defended through lies and perverted Christian values.

Claud Anderson in “PowerNomics” stated, “Since humans rely on culture for survival, culture is an essential empowerment tool. . .Culture usually refers to the norms or systems of behavior and shared values that are passed on from one generation to another. Essentially, culture is a script that is never neutral in its purposes. It either empowers or de-empowers a group. What it does to a group depends in large measure upon the position the group holds in the societal pecking order of acceptability and whether they are in an in-group or an out-group. Culture’s most important function is to promote cohesiveness and trust that bind members together through values such as group loyalty, pride and respect. It is through culture that members of a group know who and what they are, and how to behave.” (Reference: Claud Anderson; “PowerNomics” pg 35).

TPTB need to feel powerful after all they are a Superpower. Creating the "need" for War and war politics results in the masses a sense of cohesiveness, belonging and a sense of purpose that reinforces a position in the pecking global order while solidifying propaganda of differing or undervalued cultures. ("You're either with us or with the terrorists" for example)

To what extent are we still victims of ths colonialistic philosophy? To what extent are these beliefs still in use today by the TPTB/MSM? Is the cultural conflict we see today being manufactured and perpetuated by a lose affiliation between mass media propaganda and her consumers?

So it comes back to how were your grandparents influenced, that in turn was taught your parents and in turn taught to you via your friendly neighbor hood mass media
propaganda machine.

Is there hope at the end of the tunnel via a new inclusive culture that is emerging due to the internet and technology that is faceless and colorless? A kind of culture that has no borders or prejudices. At what cost will in come? Is it sterile and without the good aspects of individual culture, custom, tradition. The language certainly is it's own.

In what direction are we as a global community headed??

reply to post by sparrowstail

Recent threads have sparked my desire to shed some more light on the subject of societal exclusion over inclusion, that resembles more and more a earlier state of tribalism, or rather a state that hasn't changed at all since its conception.

Why does humanity continue to differentiate and separate itself to the point of violence and suffering? Why do people so ardently defend their customs, religion, and cultural beliefs. At the extreme, that they will sacrifice themselves, or others to overstate their case that they are acting out of some greater good; but in the process cause nothing but pain and suffering?

if I may focus on one small part of your post...

Humans are tribal by nature. We do indeed tend to gravitate to our own kind. As for why? It is probably as primitive as it is instinctive, as a means of insuring the survival of the group.

This instinctive call to croup or clan, recognizes that there is safety in numbers. Over the many millennia, this same tendency led to the formation of nations and then later, unions of nations.

And your own words point out another reason; because we are all different. You may not agree with those who think a certain way and so too, those who disagree with you will wonder how you arrived at your position. You will find a common ground with those who agree with you, while not grasping why anyone might not.

It begins with family, then moves on to immediate community, region and nation... and each bearing some degree of subdivision within. It even goes so far as to be a part of our biology as we do not mix Type B blood with Type A.

But to tie this all up, I do think there has been and still is a very gradual merging that is happening and that is the reason for so much discord. It may well be that someday, the human race will have discarded things like wars and ethnic hatreds based on instincts that have followed us from our dark caves in the past. But like birth, it will be painful until we finally emerge into the light...

Cheers

reply to post by redoubt


I find it odd that in a world of such wonder, technology, creative will, and capability that we still have to count on primitive thinking and apply it to modern day. I agree that thousands of years ago, I counted on my clan or tribe to out think, out fight, out survive the other competing clans. At what point will our commonalities out weigh our competitive differences? I like to think that at a neo-grass roots level we can do better, while celebrating our differences, and sharing/learning from our experiences.

Are there too many forces working against our ability to trust?

reply to post by sparrowstail


I think of it more as a means of natural selection.

Man's artificial social environment is probably unnatural but it is those within it, that control its destiny. It will be the human factor that guides social evolution, not the social engineers that guide humanity.

I often find extremism and purposeful divisiveness very unhealthy but... I also feel that these are either a part of the natural flow and growth of the species or they are outside of it and therefore doomed to natural extinction.

I don't think we can resist the drives of change and evolution. we may not always realize it, but we are basically on a ride that is going somewhere and those that try to survive outside of the rollercoaster buggy, are just eventually left to watch it from a distance.

Ever see those old B/W films of the Keystone Cops? In particular, the ones that have a gaggle of them chasing a big, open-top 1920’s sedan?

That’s humanity all over. The vehicle is human evolution and there behind it in utter mayhem… that’s us. We think we are in charge but, whereever that cars goes, so do we… until someday when we finally catch up to it, and therefore ourselves as well.

At that final moment, we will all clamber into the car and ride along within instead of without.

Originally posted by redoubt
reply to post by sparrowstail

 

It will be the human factor that guides social evolution, not the social engineers that guide humanity.

... natural flow and growth of the species or they are outside of it and therefore doomed to natural extinction.

...I don't think we can resist the drives of change and evolution. we may not always realize it, but we are basically on a ride that is going somewhere and those that try to survive outside of the rollercoaster buggy, are just eventually left to watch it from a distance.

I humbly disagree with some of this, Over time we have had many social engineers that promoted positive growth. Jesus took us from throwing slaves and peasants to the lions for entertainment, to loving thy neighbor as thyself.
Ghandi through peaceful engineering resisted and won the respect and admiration of billions and made lasting change.
Martin Luther king had a similar effect.

Mind you Hitler had a negative effect on the same engineering tree. But it was human spirit that acted out against him. I am glad that his natural flow and growth was disrupted by social engineers that ruled out genocide as an acceptable evolutionary course. Hitler thought he was doing humanity a genetic favor.

If we are no more than animals on a Darwinian struggle against the tides then that doesn't say much about the human spirit. And how like Commander Data, or the hologram doctor from Star Trek, we can strive to grow beyond our natural evolutionary programming.