I’d like to take a moment to thank Der Trihs. Thank You.
He says most of what I am thinking for me, thus relieving my temptation to post. I don’t know where he gets the energy to keep crushing his head against that wall, but Og bless him for it, people need to hear it. Sometimes he takes it further than I might, but for the most part, you can all consider everything he says seconded by at least one other person out there. I think it takes a particularly enlightened mind to see things from such an objective angle, and to take that hard look in the mirror.
Allow me to elaborate. In my mind (in fantasy-idealism-land), we are not Americans, or Iraqis, or black, or white, or Christians, or Atheists, or what-have-you. We are simply human beings. There is only one population to consider: Humanity. With our habit of drawing imaginary lines across our planet, claiming our Nations, Cultures, Religions, and Races, we are simply defining Us vs Them. This is an animal instinct. Having a Them increases the bond among Us.
I am an American (aged 30), and I have been fed certain truths about America since childhood, including very solid definitions of Them (always being updated, it seems). I know that if I had been born in some other spot on the globe, I would have been fed entirely different truths, which everyone around me (maybe even including me) would hold just as sacred. I would have an entirely different definition of Them. When confronted with some issues, wrapped in this team-mentality, I have to step back and consider how that issue might appear from some other angle, minus the preconceptions. It seems to me that most other people in the world do not posses that ability in the same measure. Indeed, a frightening amount do not possess it at all, and actively work to destroy it anywhere they see it. Certainly Dopers in general are ahead of the curve, but Der Trihs has it in spades. Behind every one of his “attacks on America”, I see an objective perspective. More than almost any other poster. America has its virtues, to be sure, but also plenty of flaws, and even our most honest and humble posters will sometimes gloss the flaws over due to the fact that “Hey, that’s my hometown, I gotta pull some punches.” No. There is no “hometown”. There is only Humanity. And we should all be measured by the same stick.
A few ways we differ … For one, I long ago gave up trying to participate or change what people do, where it seems Der Trihs is still willing to stand up with some hope to awaken them. (Yes, I just called him a hopeful person, stop laughing!) I see humanity as more or less doomed. IMHO, societies above about 100-150 individuals will all succumb to treating other people like crap. (Yes, I read that monkey brain thread, and have also encountered the idea elsewhere.)
Second, I am not inclined to condone violence. That may not be fair, as I don’t quite think he would either if it came down to abstract morality, but I can see how many readers would come to the conclusion that he would condone violence. He might say “Everyone in the twin towers was part of the machine and deserved to die for it.” (Please stop me if that is too far, Der Trihs.) I would say “Attacking America was a provoked, retaliatory action, but violence is simply inexcusable under any conditions.” Inexcusable even at the ridiculous hypothetical extremes … What would Jesus or Gandhi really do? Yes, I realize that is fantasy-land thinking, but it is only fantasy because more people don’t choose make it real.
I’ll stop cheerleading now. There are many other posters I admire here, who hold many of the same virtues, and will point out the hard truths just like Der Trihs. Thanks to all of you. But having lurked at The Dope for years now, time and again, I see him standing above the crowd, taking it to the top, and never relenting, in spite of how much crap everyone loves to give him for it. I just wanted to chime in as a long time lurker to post: “What Der Trihs Said.”
(Disclamier: I have no personal association with him or any other Doper in any way. I just think he is under-appreciated.)
(Not sure if this should be in IMHO or in MPSIMS, feel free to mod me. I’d be honored.)