American Psychosis: What happens to a society that cannot distinguish between reality and illusion?

Originally posted by Tayesin
Most I see aren't interested in a future, most are only interested in "What can I get for myself next"... that instant gratification that is so obvious these days.

Thank you for your level headed approach and sharing. I appreciate your understandings.

Thank you too!

Yeah. And that is kind of a perverted "carpe diem" attitude. While living in this moment is totally fine, yet the attitude with many is infected by this totally reckless culture.

I guess the only thing we as parents can do, is the best we can to resist this culture of "mass hysteria" and "insta-bliss" and try somehow to raise our kids so that they understand that what might be fun today, may later have even disastrous effects.. I think that you are probably pretty good parent and do the best you can with your adolescent child. Personally I am trying figure out a way how to raise and educate my daughter when she gets older.

Only if my own example would be sufficient, I'd be happy - but it is as you said, that peer groups are important factor in lives of adolescents.. And in that point of their lives, parents can only partly affect what the kids to do when they are amongst themselves. This is why they definately need a ability to consider things by their own. If they can do this, then maybe they are able to pick friends that are less stupid.

It has of course to be said, that no matter what we do, there's always the chance that things start to go wrong. We can just give our kids best possible resources to make a way in their own lives, rest is pretty much out of our control. Being a parent is indeed very complicated thing

-v

Quite an amazing read. Thanks for bringing it to ATS.

While I do not agree with most of Hedges's politics (at least what I learned of them from this article), I believe his description of the social state of affairs of the U.S. is dead on. It is truly becoming a society that cannot distinguish between reality and illusion.

I found this paragraph particularly disturbing, and unfortunately all too true:

Our culture of flagrant self-exaltation, hardwired in the American character, permits the humiliation of all those who oppose us. We believe, after all, that because we have the capacity to wage war we have a right to wage war. Those who lose deserve to be erased. Those who fail, those who are deemed ugly, ignorant or poor, should be belittled and mocked. Human beings are used and discarded like Styrofoam boxes that held junk food. And the numbers of superfluous human beings are swelling the unemployment offices, the prisons and the soup kitchens.

It is apparent, right here on ATS, by what I see as a decrease in civil debate and an increase in "belittling and mocking", by some who cannot factually support their illusory opinions.

Another frighteningly accurate observation, in the article, was:

It is the cult of self that is killing the United States. This cult has within it the classic traits of psychopaths: superficial charm, grandiosity and self-importance; a need for constant stimulation; a penchant for lying, deception and manipulation; and the incapacity for remorse or guilt.

"The incapacity for remorse or guilt." That statement sends chills up my spine, mainly because I have witnessed that psychosis (I may be stretching the use of that term a bit) on numerous occasions. Does that phrase bring to mind that despicable Johnny Fairplay, for others as it does for me? Talk about the complete absence of a moral compass.

Again, Tayesin, nice find and thanks for sharing.

Originally posted by TheRemedial
It was back in the 1990's when I wrote something along these lines. I basically stated that the intense focus on celebrities, consumerism and dependence on technology would lead to the eventual downfall of North America. I can honestly say that the last decade has left me cynical as a deep thinking individual. I have run around looking into many of the different statistics and compared them, even stretching as far as relating the mood of music listened to by the majority noting it as seemingly indicative of the mood/morale of the people.

The focus of the people (majority) seems to be the -self centric- emulation of "stars" (Despite the vast majority of them leading hap hazard disastrous train wreck lives). The gadgets and hype have people so intoxicated and distracted that they literally do not have the time to think critically, the schools are not helping and so here we are in a dark age of sorts; heading down the downward spirals march to disparity.

There is a poison in our nation, the poison is the ignorance, the ignorance to the facts, the statistics but MOST IMPORTANTLY THE COMMON SENSE (THE COMMON GOOD)... But this ignorance is also the answer as people rather ignore such problems rather than deplete there morale which too is poisonous in its own right.

Distraction is good but inaction is detrimental. And so ignorance is blissfully a downfall for if we deny what we see, we deny what we are and if that happens we can never be what we aspire to be, collectively or individually.

edit on 30-11-2010 by TheRemedial because: word change

Nice, especially the last few paragraphs are very poetic and true. I feel like I need to memorize them.

reply to post by Oneolddude


The article suggested that:

The more we retreat from the culture at large the more room we will have to carve out lives of meaning, the more we will be able to wall off the flood of illusions disseminated by mass culture and the more we will retain sanity in an insane world.

Well by definition I guess this would mean we come to ATS to "kibitz" in a liberal democratic environment. Still trying to visualize the "walling off" part though.

I have seen the exact same article posted before on this site. Basically the article brings up good points but blames capitalism for all the faults. Pretty much the same message socialist who don't know squat about capitalism continue preach.