Wednesday 24 June 2020

Utopianism

About thirty years ago, I got into a discussion with a guy who I respected and we were discussing German virtues.....one of which is Utopianism.

To break the word down....it's basically a group of people on some dream-fantasy level....searching or designing a place where everything is perfect or ideal.  Streets are lined with wonderful shade trees.  City parks are evident every half-mile.  Trolleys pick up people and transport them across the city in minutes.

Yeah....things that basically unrealistic or just plain idealistic.

You see this a lot in various cultures and societies but the Germans tend to take this to the peak of thinking.  You can fix every problem....if you just have enthusiasm and willpower.

I look at this Minneapolis effort to disconnect the police and go without them.  It's basic Utopianism.  On paper, it makes sense to dump them.  But the reality is.....you will invent something that either closely resembles what you dumped, or you create massive chaos.

Some folks would agree on dismantling the police, but then handling everyone pistols and shotguns.....to ensure 'peace'.  Their idea is that if someone couldn't behave or be halfway ''nice"....the threat of a weapon would be the corrective measure.

Some other folks think that each patrol should be made up of a real police guy, and a social worker (unarmed).  In this case, I'd go and predict that in an average year in Minneapolis....at least a dozen social workers will be assaulted or killed, with the accusation coming up that the accompanying policeman refused to 'protect' the poor social worker. 

Thats the thing about Utopianism....it just sounds so good on paper, or in some university classroom, but it never works in the practical sense. 

Mask Story

I noticed this in the news today....about Lincoln County, Oregon. It's on the coastline of the state, and fairly 'rural' by most standards.

The county commission met and issued a order.....ONLY white people are to wear masks in public.  Non-whites don't have to wear the mask.  The NY Post is reporting this, so I consider it somewhat reliable.

The thing about Lincoln County....I spent two days there on a 'beach' stop in the 1980s.  It's a great area of the US.

So the one thing that stood out while I was there....it's just a lot of plain white people in the county.

I went to look at the official demographics data.  Whites make up 90-percent of the population.  Latinos?  Second, with roughly five-percent.  Blacks?  .3-percent.

Trying to establish some type statement?  Hard to say.  The whole county maxes out at roughly 50,000 residents.

Flag Chatter

Various groups have jumped on the Mississippi 'wagon' in recent days and said that they need to dissolve their Confederate-looking flag, and replace it.  There is some history to this....around 20 years ago, they actually had a state vote, and confirmed the flag.  By the way the wording was done on this vote.....it's awful hard to bring this topic up again.

So this 'woke-nature' of things is causing a problem.  I sat and pondered upon it....wanting to help the poor people of Mississippi.  So this is my solution.

There is no law saying you can only have one single flag.  So you could go and have seven flags, if you desired. 

First, I would create a SEC football flag, with a fine hunting dog stitched into a red background....lifting his leg slightly and peeing on this tree stump that has the letters SEC on it.  It would send a message, and also be acceptable to the anti-confederacy flag folks.

Second, I would create the same type of flag as the SEC flag, for the NCAA.....just with NCAA on the tree stump, and the dog peeing on that stump as well.

Third, I would create the same type of flag as the SEC flag, for California.....just with California etched on the tree stump, and the dog peeing on that stump.

Fourth, I would have a state-wide contest yearly for students to create other 'acceptable' flags, and hand out 1,000 dollar scholarships to the dozen-odd winners. 

Then I'd let everyone know that they can have their cake and eat it too.....Mississippi would comply with everyone, in a special way, and flags would be created for all occasions. 

I should note here....before 1861, they had NO flag.  They existed from 1817 to 1861, with NO flag.  Why?  I think they had better things to do, and flags didn't seem that urgent.  Some folks would suggest they were too busy hunting and fishing....to waste time on flags.

This current flag?  It's been around since 1894 (126 years). 

BLM Chatter

I noticed this little six-line item come up....a fairly influential black capitalist (it's accurate to say everything he touches....is a success), who was interviewed on BLM.  What he said, was a bit curious.

He suggested.....since BLM is all powered-up....they should remove themselves from the Democratic Party, bring blacks to the movement, and develop themselves solely as a third-party. 

So you sit and ponder upon this.

The top twenty BLM folks are probably freaking out because this is NOT the script, and they don't want the movement to get any funny ideas like this.  These are the people who are actually paid to run around....chat on BLM and form movements.  They get paid real money for their purpose. 

Behind that twenty, there are another hundred guys who occasionally see a small bit of cash, and they are probably thinking....'YEAH, we could form our party and edge those stupid Democrats out'.

The Democrats?  They are shaking their head....they can't afford to lose the black vote, and have it run off unattached. 

The reality here?  Personally, I don't think more than 30-percent of blacks really see the BLM movement as something they'd attach themselves to.  The vast majority of blacks (particularly working-class).....don't want Marxism or some radical movement running their lives. 

So, you'd end up with one-third of blacks attached to the GOP, maybe 40-percent attached to the Democrats, and 30-percent attached to BLM's little party.  In simple terms, the black vote would be marginalized.  At this point, you understand the black capitalist guy and his 'talk'.  BLM would be marginalized and ineffective....but it'd hurt the Democrats in a serious way.