Liberty Papers (3) — Philadelphia Evening Post
To the People of the Tri-State,
At every place in history, if we take a macro-view, each era has certain cultural products borne out from the prevailing scientific and philosophic discoveries of the time. Classical antiquity was the birthplace of philosophy, geometry, and democracy; their art reflects idealism, perfect proportion, and virtuous heroes undermined by a tragic flaw. The Renaissance rediscovered the classics which allowed for Leonardo da Vinci, the Tragedies of Shakespeare, and Naturalism in aesthetics. The 18th century bears heavily the mark of Newton whose ordered universe gave rise to the Enlightenment and refined man, placing the emphasis once again on science and reason. Man left behind the divine right of kings and its cultural products were the Declaration of Independence, the United States Constitution, and the Bill of Rights. Who are today’s tragically flawed heroes? The millions of youths growing up in ignorance of these achievements who suffer under the cultural products of 20th century philosophy. Heroes because they still believe in equality and justice, and are willing to fight for it, but tragically flawed in relying on Industrial Age notions of class struggle and central planning to achieve it. It wasn’t until the late 19th century that progress in the social sciences began to diverge from that of the physical sciences. As the two struck off down very different paths, what was philosophically responsible for modernity was left behind while the physical sciences continued in the tradition that built Western Civilization. The relationship between philosophy and culture is reciprocal. Take a look around you, examine today’s cultural products and ask yourself what kind of philosophy could be responsible for it. I will leave it to the reader to evaluate the major themes of today’s popular culture and to draw your own conclusions.
“Hamilton said in the Federalist, in his speeches, and a hundred times to me that factions would ruin us and our Government had not sufficient energy and balance to resist the propensity to them and to control their tyranny and their profligacy.” — Chancellor Kent to Daniel Webster, Letter in New York, January 21st 1830
In a modern state, surrounded by the incredible progress of technology, our political aims should be all the more achievable. The channels of communication have never been wider, disseminating information over fiber optic cables, connected at the speed of light — yet our protests fail to speak. From Occupy Wall Street to the hordes of politically correct, we use the language of universal rights but fail to see how our messages contradict the concept of rights. A modern government is defined by its impersonal institutions. When we ask to be recognized as groups politically we undermine the integrity of that system — opening the flood to any mob that can effectively exercise pull. We are all individuals and must remember that artificially drawn lines around groups of people refer to no one in particular and thus can be no benefit to anyone. Most can agree with the separation of Church and State, and by the same reasoning we should advocate for a separation of personal identity and the State. Before we can fix our political problems, of which there are many, we need to get our philosophic houses in order. It is only ideas that have ever roused the human spirit to unite and only to the extent in which those ideas were common to all. No matter how great our means of communication, the medium is not the message. We cannot allow for the dogmas of either party to frame the debate, concealing fundamental principles by only arguing their effects. We stand at the center of history and tragedy; we must realize the causes of our past success and live up to our technological progress. In the 21st century our chief value is no longer physical labor but ideas, and the time it takes for an idea to take hold is wholly dependent on the substance of its content. What we need now is not a cultural revolution but a renaissance.
+Tacitus
@nwsonsofliberty (twitter)