Look inward, and nowhere else
Years ago, I stopped referring to myself as a liberal. This was because I started to see what the term really meant—not according to conservatives—but according to radicals, and according to me. I won’t go into detail about all of the qualities that liberals have that I don’t, because that’s not what this post is about. This post is about a specific liberal quality that drives me absolutely up the wall.
Do not play the blame game. As a recent post articulated on the liberal site that I belong to, Care2:
…We want to fix something that we perceive as terribly wrong. When this happens we look immediately to find someone to blame. But in doing so, we sidestep taking responsibility.
Really? As I stay up-to-date with the current events of this world, I see people in power, politicians and corporate executives, fucking over people and communities. I do not see it because I am attempting to put blame on someone besides myself. I see their actions first, and realise that those actions have an effect. And that effect is bigger than the effect my actions would have, simply because I am not as powerful an individual as a politician, and my community isn’t as powerful as an entire government or corporation.
This isn’t the first time I have heard this type bullshit from liberals. Liberals are not as individualistic as conservatives, but they still have some very individualistic beliefs. The view about blame is very similar to another view that I despise, which is far more “spiritual” in nature: You must fix yourself before you can help anybody else in the world. As if the two aren’t connected. As if helping others doesn’t also help fix you as well.
Everybody, especially everybody who has been born into privilege, does have a certain amount of responsibility. But a lot of our responsibilities lie in the fact that we allow a corrupt system to continue. That is not the same as making a system even more corrupt.
If activists are trying to stop an organisation from polluting the air, it is because they are blaming that corporation for polluting the air. Should the activists instead leave that organisation alone and allow it to continue polluting, all because they don’t want to place any blame on anybody but themselves?
Basically, my point is that it is possible to blame more than one person or group of people for a problem. But it is a good idea to put things into perspective, and understand who is most responsible for causing what problem. In other words, in order to find a solution to anything, it is important to understand cause and effect. If you refuse to blame anyone for causing the problems of this world, regardless of whether or not they actually did, you are ignoring a crucial step towards remedying those problems.
Words in bold italics are defined in the glossary.
Like this:
~ by sitakali on 11 January, 2010.
Posted in Social Environmentalist
Tags: humanity, individualism, society
From the post and the other comments it looks like this is the sort of woo-liberalism that permeates the Huffington Post. The other commenters sound like mindless new age idiots
Deepak Chopra also writes on there. Though I have to say, it’s a bit more progressive than Huffington, more action-oriented, and there were a couple comments on that post that I liked.
Hey there is plenty of blame to go round, just find the right balance.
Exactly my point.
Yes but on the other hand the trouble often is that many people never think they or the group they identity with are part of the problem. Usually some cognitive bias steps in making it hard to see our hand in things.
BTW for what its worth I think there is the mainstream Left and the Radaical Left and as far as I’m concerned only the latter still get it.
On the other hand, we also spend too much time blaming ourselves and each other for things that more powerful entities are responsible for…e.g. blaming the poor for welfare benefits while mega banks get billions in welfare.
I agree, the radical Left are the ones who get it.
Overall I agree. My thoughts have always been that unless movments address who has the power you are wasting your time.
Its just I have my own focus on bias, in that the more people look to blame others they are IMO less critical of their own side and then go on to make their own mistakes.
I also think that even sincere people won’t always know what is the ‘right’ stance to take. I would guess you and I agree on much from the radical left -not to mention both having a thing for vampire fiction
- but would the differ fundamentally on at least one other thing. But no ones perfect:)