(Hypocrisy): Some of the kind of constant backwards thinking crap applied frequently, is how the laws of my nation aint administered equally// case by case racists on a day to day basis, prejudging your sentence pending monetary status// practicing immorality and preaching false statements, saying "life is sacred but the state reserves the right to take it" what chu (do you) think I’m stupid? Think again because I can't a afford to fall, victim to a system that digests you in a court of law// and I'll be damned be for I pledge allegiance to those gluttonous elitists, I shrug it off as them being facetious// you could call me anti-patriotic, that shit wouldn't bother me, my ancestors were kidnapped and I don't support hypocrisy// Cause if you lie enough eventually I'll tune you out, so it's a mystery to me why politicians run they('re) mouth// got me feeling like what's the point of voter registration, when 3 comma conglomerates control our legislation// I aint ranting, I need some help to change the situation so I hid some truth between the groves of the wax rotation// fuck ranting, I need some help to change the situation so I hid some truth between the groves of the wax rotation//
ch: let's stop with the pretentiousness and all the second guessing, its time to use this art for more than merely self-expression// I'm putting major aspects of the way we live in question cause its claimed they uphold virtues that were never really present...(repeat)
sometimes it seems like interaction is molded to fit a standard, that decimates our open nature like Mayans to Spaniards// persona non Grata cloaked in artificiality striving to find the real by acting ill but that's a fallacy// bitches condemn dishonesty but yet stay disingenuous, and wonder why this social ignorance remains continuous// its bullshit trying to get respect on the face, of a false front that's more shaky than tectonic plate movement// fools get confused when they're staring at the illusion of conventional religious truth and see its not congruent with benevolence, when suicide bombers blow holes through it, reptilian iron fists use fear to keep control through it// exerting predatory instinct to kill their impotence, dealing judgment without regard for their cogitative dissonance// not to mention their true intentions are always ambiguous, that's more ridiculous than using modern art to twist a spliff// so if you missed it, that's just because the verse's purpose went over the average person's head like the bulk of a circus tent// "those big words are confusing but at least the beat is tight" heads get blinded by the darkness before they can peep the light...
(Insincerity): people are fiends for acceptance, everybody claims they're on some next shit, but all I feel is fake vibes through contrived perspectives// its almost like deception is crucial to socializing, its repugnant, but it really isn't so surprising// sharp minds are quick to see, the ridiculous idolization of shit that's morally contradictory// exemplified from blind patriotism to this generation x commercialized atheism// while common consumers make their decisions based on a vision persuasively given weight all throughout this place that we live in// is this a perfect republic, or a capitalist acid trip when the status quo doesn't know the half of it// come on ya'll! its the 21st century time to wake up, and do something that justifies the space that you take up// gotta comment for my content, put a sock in ya mouth cause you probably don't understand what I'm talking about...
the underground is plagued by insincerity, and the audience is deep in need of clarity// this for my heads who think a level deeper than the next cat, the lies (you won't except that) the bribes...the underground is plagued by insincerity, and the audience is deep in need of clarity// this for my heads who think a level deeper than the next cat, when force fed falsehoods you refuse to except that
simple minded fucks, seem to consider the shit that I'm spitting to be the illiterate gibberish of degenerate but, they're misinformed if they think I got what it takes to be part of a social structure that's content with its complacency// mistakenly placing me adjacent to fake emcees who embrace abrasive behavior and practice it blatantly// (or) legions of falsified independents, potentially influential but hollow when substance is quintessential// (so) my question is, are you victims of twisted messages of oblivious lunacy or is this how you choose to be?// deeply sadistic, sick and animalistic, selfishly unrealistic and mining for time uselessly// paradoxical like priests molesting kids before they practice hymns, more synthetic than velvet flowers with plastic stems// and the worst fact of it all is that people actually listen, but its fruitless when you idols lack the strength of their convictions...
the underground is plagued by insincerity, and the audience is deep in need of clarity// this is for my heads who think a level deeper than the next cat, the lies (you won't except that) the bribes...the underground is plagued by insincerity, and the audience is deep in need of clarity// this is for my heads who think a level deeper than the next cat, when force fed falsehoods you refuse to except that
(Just An Attempt): your pseudo-surrogate older sibling got you under space supervision so look up and smile for the digital lenses// this relentless incursion on your privacy without contrition got you trying to watch your back until your neck's twisted// and there's no message therapy for heresy when post-modernism turns normalcy into parody// creative thought is almost a cultural singularity so those who bare a similarity to irregularity dare to face the isolation of social disparity// when False Evidence Appears as Real its hard for the average cat to find the peace of mind to forge clarity// and see through the fog of propriety-based incumbency that consequently locks our way of life in its redundancy// in other words all the bullshit that you've herd about being normal is absurd but now your vision's blurred by it, submerged in your subconscious you get disturbed by it// rationalizing why you believe in the lies that keep you stranded, claiming what you know but you don't show you understand shit!// hip-hop's a domesticated slave with cataracts, who'd be mute without bitches, blunts, ballin, gats, and battle-raps// yet people follow even though they see its hollow nonsense, fashion models with a mic and trite content are emcees// with world syndication exciting fixation on inviting images of globalization...
spiritual asphyxiation but I'm expected to think its copacetic, anybody that makes excuses for being apathetic is a copper-top// inactive in action, forcing me to fight with these aesthetic subversive verse poetics// that speak to a Utopian potential through kinetic ideation, if you didn't peep it you don't need to sweat it// cause insight can't be purchased with cash, credit, or debit, its a fundamental truth (muthatfucka)that's why I said it// excessive indulgence is the self written prescription for the actualities of man's unbalanced duality// this kind of ominous animal predominance is an underlying systemic venom that poisons our mentality// compounded on top of a (what) intricate lexicon that's made up of institutions and doctrine all to set you on a certain path, extrapolated from a certain math that adapts to how you react like a cognitive serpent trap...
(Dreary Eyed Rhyming): dreary eyed rhyming, my implied title and place remains a mystery to ignoramuses spitting insipidly// dripping with insufficiency, drips dropping like precipitation from cumulus when I'm on the tip of antipathy// opportunistic industry paving the way for a wave of, adolescents with pre-constructed identities// whining on tracks about how their life is wack almost endlessly, trying to fed their fiendish need for attention and sympathy//(you must be kidding me) I'm supposed to take that shit serious, multimedia market it, culture infection spreading through your brain like Parkinson's// got preteens trying to be as hard as men, so widespread even the haters are curious and the fans are delirious// cause this crap is backed by more green than hash fields, unsettling like knowing that you ate your last meal, when your existence is so distant from legitimate you couldn't pass for half real// new age primates, trying to hide their primal side behind the accepted image of a refined mind state// but they aint really shit but chimps with check stubs that reduce love to a neck rub at a sex club on a blind date// fear-driven saturated in indecision, bitch-fabricated to impress ya girl's mom// but flip the card, you're fronting as if you've got no regard for morals, like CEOs at MCI worldcom//equally as tragic as highschoolers with automatics that cause static cause no one care that they're sociopathic// until they clip a clique of kids to show the metal invalids they can't hack it, cue the dramatic tears and cinematics...
(money) we want it so you know we got to have it,(sex) we want it so you know we got to have it, (security) we need it so you know we got to have it when you flash it in our faces all the people want to grab it...(money) we want it so you know we got to have it, (sex) we really want it so you know we got to have it, (security) we need it so you know we got to have it but what happen when the effects of what we want create havoc?
my dreary eyes see the lightning flash, when its overcast I get sorta crass with explosive raps but irrational voices overlap over that// claiming the end is near cause they hear loud thunder, but I see some cracks in the cloud cover// niggas with strong wills and weak minds get smothered by the constant pressure of living with ignorant muthafuckas// disconnected from their core-self compass, directionless intellects always try to deny how they interconnect with others// once they're lost in the void some become frantic, and the seeds of increasing inner-dissension get planted// locked in a cage, created and sustained by their belief in it they can't ascend high enough to see acceptance as meaningless (stupid fucks)// so blame the human race cause your pops neglected you, and throw a fit cause shit doesn't turn out how you expect it to// worship the serpent to gain a fellow cowards respect, disrespect those who refuse to succumb to powerlessness// in this game where we daily role-play in full costume and call it life so truth is like warmth under solid ice...
(Money Dreams): when strung out on self destruction the topic of all discussions is hedonistic consumption till the shit impedes your functions// using amphetamines to regulate the waking dream, simulating a blissful state of being and creating fiends// assimilating seems a valid option wile your copping cash for comfort put your essence on the block for auction// slow degeneration like corrosive rain dropping, veins through(out) your strained brain popping, trying to maintain caution--materially// verbalizing your verbal lies often eventually your mouth will be come the truth's coffin// outcast an honest man for talking his words are contaminants for those who need to suck deceit for relief like a throat losange// who cares to peep the implications of a situation where human interest relations don't reflect a conscience?// and its conditioned continuation through commercialization in a sea of oblivious indecorous nonsense// fuck your horror fantasy with a fake disguise when studio gangsters and street demons get vaporized// images of double-comma checks and fresh promos fade to Hiroshima ground zero burnt flesh photos// isn't it ironic like adultery at church revivals to condone murder yet cling probabilistic survival// those consumed by selfish concerns our fucking dead to us, depth seeking beacons ripping tracks for the incredulous...
ch: money dreams grip cash and stay focused trust no one if you get the thick stash your the dopest, lives are locked to the concept of deceiving themselves into believing, that happiness comes from worshiping objects...seduce me with the kiss of a superficial reality, corrupt my mind, make me blind, give me personality...
refrain: we don't know any different cause they've shown us how to live, restrained us with beliefs of what maybe so now it is--for most--no time for family when your blood's your competition and survival's just a chess game of monetary position...
numb my senses, crush my emotions, sever my essence, destroy my health conditions and revile me in your presence// promise me acceptance through dedicated conformity, then let me alienate myself outside the walls of normalcy// trivialize what lies in my imagination, break my dreams leaving me devoid of any aspiration// my soul doesn't retail to the price of satisfaction, so once I get depleted I'm treated without compassion...
(Know The Deal) Kadence lyrics: on return from the final resting place gotta change course, peep the steam from the water's surface but don't touch or get torched// beats like oxygen when you breathe it you feel the force, turn the light on, the moon reflects what it gets from its source// understand it damn it (I) stay on the move like transiting planets, I see baby-souls stranded inside political ambits// further locked by social dogma to psychological tangents that cycle through lower cognitive worlds obsessed with gambits// Venus meets earth but still the average heart is famished you can disregard your brother but your hunger won't vanish// waste your fucking life for a nonexistent advantage--perspectives hard to digest like a fried ham sandwich// might make right, hype makes tight, will makes ill once skill takes flight// laser-light gangster fronts like a murderous coward--traumatized child tying cope through his lust for power...
ch: and those who don't know are mistaken, excuses waste time yo the game is what you make it, it's all the same keep it real to what we see and what we feel there's no division people need to know the deal...
(Life As): living life as digits on computer screens, impermanent like passing frames in a movie scene// we're just actors in a scripted reality TV sitcom, its all fun and games until after someone gets shit on// the people dishing hits can't see what their position is they seem to think their mission's to build an ego through viciousness// the cats receiving are seeing but not believing it acquiescing to beatings not conceiving what the meaning is// some watch this darkness fall for illusory purity, and let the light of freedom sink deeper into obscurity// distorted facts create a paranoid obsession with the military force in the oligarchy's possession for protection of a hollow-vision coppertops connect with// its all entrenched in the stench of Uranian retrogression a spinning human progression in self-destructive directions, but I'm just an emcee this is just poetic expression...
Living life as a network of highways, which road do you travel on? most take the corporate fork-toughed shortcut exit to Babylon// where self-realization is next to never contemplated, and virtue gets discarded devalued and obfuscated// the jaded once-optimistic lose their vigor at the sight of it, they can't see the hopelessness reflected in their environment// its tiring trying to win against and enemy that fucking faceless, while circumstances constantly shape shift// I'm just an insular subversive verse penciler with a crew of emcees trying to convince the dense to deter from insolence// on soundscapes by a sonic misfit, when mercury brings liquid fire the music hits with the swiftness// can I get a witness? if you claim you aint racist you're fronting if you see someone who looks different than you and make assumptions// (wake the fuck up) you're caught up on superficial projections, its time to free your senses from your iceberg perception...
(For The Fallen): let's take a rhetorical journey into the center of this collective, Insatiability drives our compulsion to be excessive// incessant dissatisfaction's explained by attachment to shallow perspectives, a defensive-protective passive-aggressive essence and a military that spreads its possessive presence// the lunar lit canvas of this picture makes it tough to see the emptiness of the steam on the surging tides of luxury// naturally this illusion is used to subdue us subtlety, witnessing the persistence of this nuance serves to fuck with me// a mystery eurocentric virtual history pervades our education with unexplained inconsistency// how can we hope to see into our present situation if our past is the result of a turbid imagination?// and facts become speculations, passing as explanations preceding gaps in our record that escape investigation// racial separation makes the ethnic identity critical, divided but its claimed our time-line isn't political// "so everybody in the club get tipsy" wile the cold blooded get rich and yall niggas pockets is(are) empty// heads who turn their backs on their brethren but pray to go to heaven, wear a diamond studded platinum plated cross in self-deception// cause they worship their possessions yo its kind of tragic, when we mistake wants for needs cause we believe we've got to have shit, all because we're conditioned to cling to primitive habits...
ch: this is for all my delirious niggas, getting played by corporate egoists for serious figures...
so who wants to peep the social condition? your local disposition as effected by hierarchical cultural impositions// maybe people should look at how many conscious decisions that they're responsible for in the process of daily living// don't think its a given, that reaction's autonomous and common of conformity to authority that's anonymous// in other words if you think for yourself without confusion, how without questioning the fact can you reach a conclusion on it?// you want it you got it be ready to get it this game is lose-lose nigga if you're playing to win it forget it// I aint negative the reality isn't optimistic but shit can change as long as people don't get it twisted// and as for rap, I don't know if backpackers are seeing this, but their music's wack, and the content is shallow and meaningless// with cerebrally balanced soundscapes you can't ignore the beats, when the moonlit evening of active autumn winds restore the peace, to the minds that are deep in thought and contemplation on the aesthetics of truth fuck your retarded conversations and small talk...
(End of Discussion): (tragic) precious metals plush premium fabric, H-D-T-V viewed from a memory foam mattress// (static) every boy and girl's an actor or actress, lights camera action on the stage with no practice// (savage) civilization's a farce to demand integrity, wile letting those who stay themselves be persecuted heavily// (senseless) a world system increasing its immenseness, proceeds to leave the third world economically defenseless// some use a weak see-no-evil approach to cope with this, plastic smiles disguising alienation and hopelessness// repression of depression leads to inner dissension, and discontinuity of attention// so while you bounce as sambo niggas let it rain, you don't notice the intelligence leaking out of your brain// it doesn't matter remember its all a game, we don't care what we're losing as long as we're entertained// (yo) these undereducated brothers earn their part of the blame, they think this neo-blackface bullshit is a part of the game, they don't see how where we have been and where we are is the same, or how the emcees who ball out must rap retarded and lame, or how at best your rhymes must be innocuous or inane, they take the money run/blackout/or strait up swallow the shame(repeat 2)...
the invisible hand of the market needs visible hands to spark it, (the) culture industry engineers market-cultural-darkness// if this is true what could the future hold possibly, a brave new word of new world idiocracy// the corpse of the real becomes hyper-real imitation, inside a resonating envelope of information// the result of global media saturation, opening a seductive fetishistic fascination// but also opening new conceptions of normalcy, similar to communistic absolute conformity// one should be able to decent if they choose to you should defy your parents if they try to abuse you, take away your rights/exploit/or try delude you// this probably ain't the type of thinking your used to, (but yo) some governments be having kids making new shoes// (and) some niggas in the states rob people wearing them, back in the days they would kill for a pair of them// the black mind haunted by slave ghosts, east to west ghettos might as well be the same coast// the motherland is starved/parched/and tired, left with the legacy of colonial empires// niggas who view their situation as a mystery, need to get the fuck up on their history...
(Ode to Modern Pop): Attention to all my people who still believe that the evil rooted in the hearts of cowards is vulnerable to upheaval// (raise your voice) silence is lethal to the cause, and compliance with the beast will lead you into its jaws for keeps// this shit's too cryptic and vague for those infected with a plague that turns active thinkers into indifferent cynical wage slaves with sterile brain waves// many with different faces play the same game, some in different places with changed names and make up// is the a reflection of what we're headed for, soulless sluts and poets who've never herd of a metaphor?// pompous pretentious con-artist imprints of false prophetic notions left seeming intrinsic// to heads who know not, they think its so hot, candy-ass rap shit made for suckas like blow-pops// the nigga last to pull a gat is first to instigate a fight for an image so fake that I can see the fucking laser light// its hunting season as long as the paper transitions, so the weaker primates end up with their face and hands missing// but that's the price of material ambition, in a world that drowns your ears with sound until you can't listen...
ch: put you hands up shake ya ass, throw a fit like somebody try to question your class, move! like you saw a gangster with a weapon to blast, that values ya life less than collecting his cash...
feel this like suppressed anxiety in the mind of an egoist that's frivolous and amoral in intellect but admirably diligent in action// he walks a line as fine as a filament between the depraved indifference and apathy instilled in us// you and me are observers and initiates of compassion the former of which radiate ill-intent// whether inadvertent or not its still exibited, and seemingly derivative of a notion that's primitive (selfishness)// dis ya fam keep your money close nigga (selfishness)go bed to bed like a hungry ghost//selfishness creates a mold that people get caste in and deems those at the bottom as worthy of getting blasted// manipulated flickers keep the forked-toughs richer which falsely delineates a socially Darwinist picture// in other words the more you lust for cream, the more you justify the M O of twisted fascist regimes (know what I mean?)// a hollow-vision painted with glamor and gleam got my people losing their live for a fucking marketing scheme// un-evolved earth psyches misinterpret greed as practical, maternal cancer Bodhisattva words remain factual// emcees compensate for small dicks with big egos, substituting fabricated persona's in place of deep flows// I'll smash that shit with the force of a ford Taurus, if you didn't peep the verses shake ya ass and sing the chorus like...
Tuesday, October 18, 2011
Pertinent Quotes
There are no rich people in the world, and there are no poor people. There are just people. The rich may have lots of pieces of green paper that many pretend are worth something—or their presumed riches may be even more abstract: numbers on hard drives at banks—and the poor may not. These “rich” claim they own land, and the “poor” are often denied the right to make that same claim. A primary purpose of the police is to enforce the delusions of those with lots of pieces of green paper. Those without the green papers generally buy into these delusions almost as quickly and completely as those with. These delusions carry with them extreme consequences in the real world.--Derrick Jensen “Endgame” Premise Twelve
Friday, May 13, 2011
Rational, Irrational and Anonymous Authority
A brief look at Erich Fromm's social theory of authority
"I follow Erich Fromm in distinguishing carefully between rational, irrational and anonymous modes of authority. These modes of authority are described in three of his books; Escape from Freeedom (1941), The Sane Society (1955) and The Art of Loving (1956). . .
Let us start with rational authority. According to Erich Fromm, rational authority is a relationship between two (or more) people of unequal age, experience or status, where the person in authority seeks to abolish their differences in status eventually by bringing the student up to his (or her) own level (Fromm,1941, p. 186.) The person in authority here is recognized as someone who possesses knowledge rooted in their training and experience, or "expertise," and is therefore authorized to set goals and standards that students must strive to emulate. While equality is the ultimate goal of rational instruction, the achievement of such equality presupposes respect and discipline on the student's part. In order to master a skill or a body of knowledge, the pupil must follow the master's instructions, and practice diligently. The teacher, in turn, must teach by example, providing a model for the student of how to practice, and derives satisfaction from the student's progress, because it confirms his knowledge and ability. In the event that the student matches or exceeds the master's level of knowledge and proficiency, the friction of competing egos is presumably contained and diffused by a disinterested love of the craft that they both share.
To summarize, then, rational authority is based on competence, experience and mutual respect, and entails the possibility of equality, and indeed, perhaps, of deep and sustaining friendships, depending on circumstances. By contrast with rational authority, irrational authority is designed to perpetuate or intensify conditions of inequality through the use of force, or the threat of force, and/or the use of deception, secretiveness and/or the manipulation of interpersonal relationships. Though often disguised as benevolent paternalism, such authority is really motivated by greed, fear and/or the desire to dominate and humiliate others. Instead of teaching by example, it is blatantly hypocritical, saying: "Do as I say, not as I do." Those who embody and exercise irrational authority feel threatened by the prospect of genuine equality, and habitually distort the truth, though they may enjoy a kind of sordid intimacy with others--which Fromm variously called "sadomasochism" or "symbiosis"-- to alleviate their loneliness and to consolidate their hold on power. So while rational authority promotes the growth of reason, or critical thinking, and of ethical autonomy, irrational authority tends to stifle intellectual independence and sound ethical judgment, though it may promote the acquisition of certain adaptive skills, and a kind of cunning or facile intelligence.
Now consider the disparate meanings which words like "mastery", "obedience" and "disobedience" have, depending on whether they are invoked with reference to rational or irrational authority. For rational authority, "mastery" signifies a degree of knowledge, skill or self-command achieved through disciplined and dedicated effort, usually with the help of a "master" who consents to share his accumulated wisdom. Indeed, that is his primary function and raison d'etre . In this context, obedience to authority entails a commitment, not to the teacher qua teacher, but to the craft or discipline, and the goal of becoming a skilled practitioner in one's own right. Disobedience, by contrast, denotes an act or state of immaturity, because when voluntarily embraced, rational authority promotes gradual progress towards equality and autonomy.
When applied to the exercise of irrational authority, however, the word "mastery" means dominance, plain and simple. Dominance of this kind is sustained through force, intimidation or deception, rather than moral authority. Here obedience to authority means abject servility, which erodes the person's self-respect - although this fact need not be conscious, particularly when this servility is disavowed or covered up by neurotic pride and/or compensatory tendencies to idealize "the master." Conversely, disobedience in this context signifies a healthy attempt to sunder the bonds of oppression that masquerade as disinterested care and guidance.
Before we discuss anonymous authority, note that the concepts of rational and irrational authority Fromm outlined do not hinge on the content or domain of knowledge that is sought. On the contrary, it hinges on how that knowledge, skill or experience is imparted. In other words, it denotes what Fromm called a mode of relatedness between teacher and pupil. This is extremely important, because during the Enlightenment era, and much of the 19th and 20th century, spiritual or religious authority was construed by "progressive" thinkers as the very embodiment of irrationality, while science was thought of as inherently "rational."
Fromm did not think that way at all. Before training as an analyst, Fromm considered a career in the Rabbinate, and was not naïve or narrow minded enough to embrace this positivistic way of framing these issues. Even if he had been, fascism shattered that misconception, at least for Fromm and his contemporaries. After all, Hitler and his followers espoused a virulent irrationalism combined with an unbridled enthusiasm for science and technology. The two are quite compatible, as Theodor Adorno, and Zygmunt Baumann never failed to point out. (1)
Anyway, to repeat, rational and irrational authority are not domain or content-specific. Whether the subject being taught is botany or the Bible, cosmology or cooking, dentistry or Divinity, a teacher may address his or her pupil in a manner that embodies rational or irrational authority --or both, in some measure. Whether, or to what extent, rational or irrational authority are ascendant depends on cultural norms and on the style and personality of the teacher. And despite their manifest differences, rational and irrational authority share one important similarity. Unlike anonymous authority, rational and irrational authority engage those affected by them in a highly personal manner. As Fromm noted in Escape From Freedom:
In external authority it is clear that there is an order and who gives it; one can fight against the authority, and in this fight personal independence and moral courage develop. But . . . in anonymous authority both command and commander have become invisible. It is like being fired at by an invisible enemy. There is nobody and nothing to fight back against (Fromm, 1941, p.190).
So unlike rational and irrational authority, where differences in power, knowledge or status are freely acknowledged, or even rigidly insisted upon, anonymous authority is an attitude that fosters conformity or compliance that is diffusely present in groups of nominal equals. It is not backed by overt demands, or by threats and coercion. It manifests itself as bureaucratic anonymity or slack conformity in groups whose members share a collective identity, or a common project, but lack a deeper communion with each other, resulting in a perpetual sense of insecurity; a fear of being isolated, or merely "different." The consequent reliance on convention and public opinion, rather than on genuine principle, tends to erode the growth of humanistic conscience, rendering those subject to it prone to apathy or opportunism (Fromm, 1941, chapter 7). And unlike rational authority, which tries to raise the inexperienced or untutored mind to new levels of competence, anonymous authority tends to drag everyone down to the lowest common denominator.
Another crucial difference between anonymous authority and other varieties is that it is a relatively recent phenomenon. In Escape From Freedom, Fromm traced rational and irrational authority back to feudalism and the early capitalist milieu, when the modern university first took shape. Many of the customs, conventions and norms of academic life that emerged then persist, in attenuated form, today --more so in older universities that are conscious of their history and traditions. But increasingly the attitudes and expectations of those bygone eras are morphing into different rituals or attitudes, or merely crumbling in the tide of anonymous authority.
Fromm discussed anonymous authority in Escape From Freedom, noting that this, and not the fascist mentality, is the mentality that is characteristic of industrial democracies. But Fromm's focus in that book was the eclipse of rational authority under fascism, so it was not until Man For Himself (1947) and The Sane Society (1955) that Fromm addressed anonymous authority with the seriousness it deserves. In Man For Himself, Fromm attributed the diffusion of anonymous authority to the growing impact of the market place on human values and behavior. Why? Because unlike a country fair or a medieval market, the modern market is not a place of meeting - a place where consumers know the producers of goods, appraise their wares carefully, and negotiate directly. In modern (or "mass") markets, producers and consumers are utterly disconnected from each other, encircled on either side by armies of "middle men" whose market machinations out the price and destination of commodities entirely beyond the control of producers and consumers alike. Moreover, in mass markets the packaging, presentation and advertising of goods assumed unprecedented importance. Since they cannot trust individual producers, whose work and products they know intimately anymore, people tend to rely on brand names and labels, and in due course, image and perception overshadow reality in the judgment of most consumers.
While preferable to fascism, obviously, anonymous authority poses formidable threats to democratic norms and institutions. Why? Because it erodes our capacity to think critically, and then to act on our thoughts and convictions. And by critical thinking, Fromm meant the capacity for "rational doubt" - or healthy skepticism - not intelligence as measured by I.Q. tests. According to Fromm, a person can be highly intelligent, highly successful and still lack the ability to think deeply, freed from conventional prejudices and beliefs. The primary prerequisite of critical thinking is an emotional ability to question prevailing beliefs and practices, which requires moral courage, and a willingness to court disapproval or punishment (Fromm,1955, pp.64-66, pp.152-155). And this sort of clarity and courage are discouraged by prevailing cultural trends and expectations. In effect, Fromm said that by eroding our powers of judgment and action, anonymous authority was transforming active, responsible citizens into mere consumers."-Daniel Burston, "Modes of Authority and the Crisis of Higher Education"
"I follow Erich Fromm in distinguishing carefully between rational, irrational and anonymous modes of authority. These modes of authority are described in three of his books; Escape from Freeedom (1941), The Sane Society (1955) and The Art of Loving (1956). . .
Let us start with rational authority. According to Erich Fromm, rational authority is a relationship between two (or more) people of unequal age, experience or status, where the person in authority seeks to abolish their differences in status eventually by bringing the student up to his (or her) own level (Fromm,1941, p. 186.) The person in authority here is recognized as someone who possesses knowledge rooted in their training and experience, or "expertise," and is therefore authorized to set goals and standards that students must strive to emulate. While equality is the ultimate goal of rational instruction, the achievement of such equality presupposes respect and discipline on the student's part. In order to master a skill or a body of knowledge, the pupil must follow the master's instructions, and practice diligently. The teacher, in turn, must teach by example, providing a model for the student of how to practice, and derives satisfaction from the student's progress, because it confirms his knowledge and ability. In the event that the student matches or exceeds the master's level of knowledge and proficiency, the friction of competing egos is presumably contained and diffused by a disinterested love of the craft that they both share.
To summarize, then, rational authority is based on competence, experience and mutual respect, and entails the possibility of equality, and indeed, perhaps, of deep and sustaining friendships, depending on circumstances. By contrast with rational authority, irrational authority is designed to perpetuate or intensify conditions of inequality through the use of force, or the threat of force, and/or the use of deception, secretiveness and/or the manipulation of interpersonal relationships. Though often disguised as benevolent paternalism, such authority is really motivated by greed, fear and/or the desire to dominate and humiliate others. Instead of teaching by example, it is blatantly hypocritical, saying: "Do as I say, not as I do." Those who embody and exercise irrational authority feel threatened by the prospect of genuine equality, and habitually distort the truth, though they may enjoy a kind of sordid intimacy with others--which Fromm variously called "sadomasochism" or "symbiosis"-- to alleviate their loneliness and to consolidate their hold on power. So while rational authority promotes the growth of reason, or critical thinking, and of ethical autonomy, irrational authority tends to stifle intellectual independence and sound ethical judgment, though it may promote the acquisition of certain adaptive skills, and a kind of cunning or facile intelligence.
Now consider the disparate meanings which words like "mastery", "obedience" and "disobedience" have, depending on whether they are invoked with reference to rational or irrational authority. For rational authority, "mastery" signifies a degree of knowledge, skill or self-command achieved through disciplined and dedicated effort, usually with the help of a "master" who consents to share his accumulated wisdom. Indeed, that is his primary function and raison d'etre . In this context, obedience to authority entails a commitment, not to the teacher qua teacher, but to the craft or discipline, and the goal of becoming a skilled practitioner in one's own right. Disobedience, by contrast, denotes an act or state of immaturity, because when voluntarily embraced, rational authority promotes gradual progress towards equality and autonomy.
When applied to the exercise of irrational authority, however, the word "mastery" means dominance, plain and simple. Dominance of this kind is sustained through force, intimidation or deception, rather than moral authority. Here obedience to authority means abject servility, which erodes the person's self-respect - although this fact need not be conscious, particularly when this servility is disavowed or covered up by neurotic pride and/or compensatory tendencies to idealize "the master." Conversely, disobedience in this context signifies a healthy attempt to sunder the bonds of oppression that masquerade as disinterested care and guidance.
Before we discuss anonymous authority, note that the concepts of rational and irrational authority Fromm outlined do not hinge on the content or domain of knowledge that is sought. On the contrary, it hinges on how that knowledge, skill or experience is imparted. In other words, it denotes what Fromm called a mode of relatedness between teacher and pupil. This is extremely important, because during the Enlightenment era, and much of the 19th and 20th century, spiritual or religious authority was construed by "progressive" thinkers as the very embodiment of irrationality, while science was thought of as inherently "rational."
Fromm did not think that way at all. Before training as an analyst, Fromm considered a career in the Rabbinate, and was not naïve or narrow minded enough to embrace this positivistic way of framing these issues. Even if he had been, fascism shattered that misconception, at least for Fromm and his contemporaries. After all, Hitler and his followers espoused a virulent irrationalism combined with an unbridled enthusiasm for science and technology. The two are quite compatible, as Theodor Adorno, and Zygmunt Baumann never failed to point out. (1)
Anyway, to repeat, rational and irrational authority are not domain or content-specific. Whether the subject being taught is botany or the Bible, cosmology or cooking, dentistry or Divinity, a teacher may address his or her pupil in a manner that embodies rational or irrational authority --or both, in some measure. Whether, or to what extent, rational or irrational authority are ascendant depends on cultural norms and on the style and personality of the teacher. And despite their manifest differences, rational and irrational authority share one important similarity. Unlike anonymous authority, rational and irrational authority engage those affected by them in a highly personal manner. As Fromm noted in Escape From Freedom:
In external authority it is clear that there is an order and who gives it; one can fight against the authority, and in this fight personal independence and moral courage develop. But . . . in anonymous authority both command and commander have become invisible. It is like being fired at by an invisible enemy. There is nobody and nothing to fight back against (Fromm, 1941, p.190).
So unlike rational and irrational authority, where differences in power, knowledge or status are freely acknowledged, or even rigidly insisted upon, anonymous authority is an attitude that fosters conformity or compliance that is diffusely present in groups of nominal equals. It is not backed by overt demands, or by threats and coercion. It manifests itself as bureaucratic anonymity or slack conformity in groups whose members share a collective identity, or a common project, but lack a deeper communion with each other, resulting in a perpetual sense of insecurity; a fear of being isolated, or merely "different." The consequent reliance on convention and public opinion, rather than on genuine principle, tends to erode the growth of humanistic conscience, rendering those subject to it prone to apathy or opportunism (Fromm, 1941, chapter 7). And unlike rational authority, which tries to raise the inexperienced or untutored mind to new levels of competence, anonymous authority tends to drag everyone down to the lowest common denominator.
Another crucial difference between anonymous authority and other varieties is that it is a relatively recent phenomenon. In Escape From Freedom, Fromm traced rational and irrational authority back to feudalism and the early capitalist milieu, when the modern university first took shape. Many of the customs, conventions and norms of academic life that emerged then persist, in attenuated form, today --more so in older universities that are conscious of their history and traditions. But increasingly the attitudes and expectations of those bygone eras are morphing into different rituals or attitudes, or merely crumbling in the tide of anonymous authority.
Fromm discussed anonymous authority in Escape From Freedom, noting that this, and not the fascist mentality, is the mentality that is characteristic of industrial democracies. But Fromm's focus in that book was the eclipse of rational authority under fascism, so it was not until Man For Himself (1947) and The Sane Society (1955) that Fromm addressed anonymous authority with the seriousness it deserves. In Man For Himself, Fromm attributed the diffusion of anonymous authority to the growing impact of the market place on human values and behavior. Why? Because unlike a country fair or a medieval market, the modern market is not a place of meeting - a place where consumers know the producers of goods, appraise their wares carefully, and negotiate directly. In modern (or "mass") markets, producers and consumers are utterly disconnected from each other, encircled on either side by armies of "middle men" whose market machinations out the price and destination of commodities entirely beyond the control of producers and consumers alike. Moreover, in mass markets the packaging, presentation and advertising of goods assumed unprecedented importance. Since they cannot trust individual producers, whose work and products they know intimately anymore, people tend to rely on brand names and labels, and in due course, image and perception overshadow reality in the judgment of most consumers.
While preferable to fascism, obviously, anonymous authority poses formidable threats to democratic norms and institutions. Why? Because it erodes our capacity to think critically, and then to act on our thoughts and convictions. And by critical thinking, Fromm meant the capacity for "rational doubt" - or healthy skepticism - not intelligence as measured by I.Q. tests. According to Fromm, a person can be highly intelligent, highly successful and still lack the ability to think deeply, freed from conventional prejudices and beliefs. The primary prerequisite of critical thinking is an emotional ability to question prevailing beliefs and practices, which requires moral courage, and a willingness to court disapproval or punishment (Fromm,1955, pp.64-66, pp.152-155). And this sort of clarity and courage are discouraged by prevailing cultural trends and expectations. In effect, Fromm said that by eroding our powers of judgment and action, anonymous authority was transforming active, responsible citizens into mere consumers."-Daniel Burston, "Modes of Authority and the Crisis of Higher Education"
Wednesday, September 8, 2010
Kadence vs Samiaym (Kadence lyrics)
(I Want More) Lust touch beauty, family fam kin, that feeling of power when I'm on top and in//needing to build a love the means devotion for ever, with the strive and the drive to provide for the weather// recognizing my lover as a being-for-herself, (with a) subjectivity of universal wealth// bonding like cells in the tissue of the world-ghost, knowing we can't separate if we were once close// seeing that love has regenerative capacity, abusive, and neglectful, is not how it has to be//I'm gentle cause I know that you've been terrorized, I'm sincere cause I know before me there were lies// I'm tender cause I'm generally aware of guys and since I've got perspective girl I have no use for their disguise// I'm your animus, your my anima, passive active yin and yang leader-follower...
(Homecoming/Return) hopeful life visions, broken and bad dreams, glossy photo-shop queens in opened magazines// channel one philharmonic on sixty its Gucci-mayne globalized consumer choice, to quote Tomas Payne//”none are more hopelessly enslaved” then those who walk around reppin freedom in mental chains, this shit is not a game// to those who know the real quote, sorry I paraphrased, I’m rigid with my bar-lines, angsty and very blazed// let’s stay on topic have a baby and get engaged, stifle the baby’s mind raise their spirit inside a cage// pervert the only model of romance that they’ll ever have, brutally suppress their will and hope that they’re never sad// and pray that they’re never mad, but make it a guaranty by group-thinking your way through life love and parenting// (out of fear) blindly reproduce these cultural memes without ever exploring what living authentically means// distract yourself from all the evil you’re seeing, with uppers downers sports cars and HD screenings of dyed blond fashion bitches in sweatshop jeans// reptilian iron-fists’ll leave this craft useless striping its veins and draining its organic juices// replacing its living parts with auto-tune circuitry its not just a random trend, they do this shit purposely to lessen the effect of expressions that aren’t surface deep// (I’m just) another paranoid doom-and-gloomer, to those dumb enough to think that power seeks informed consumers// …the ghetto-minded are the real losers, too busy proving they’re self made to see the real rulers// at most ignorant-bliss is what they’re gonna get, cause happiness is more complex simple rewards and punishments// and that’s a truth that you can take from here to Africa or any other land, effected by the Diaspora//
Ch: (return) to the nothingness before there was form, (return) to the place that felt safe when it stormed, (return) to that time before losing and winning when all you needed to know was that the earth was still spinning…(return) to the place where the bass and the kick, made you feel if you didn’t move you might get sick, (return) to a place that felt free of deceitfulness filled with trust light love warmth and peacefulness…
Deep Cold
(Homecoming/Return) hopeful life visions, broken and bad dreams, glossy photo-shop queens in opened magazines// channel one philharmonic on sixty its Gucci-mayne globalized consumer choice, to quote Tomas Payne//”none are more hopelessly enslaved” then those who walk around reppin freedom in mental chains, this shit is not a game// to those who know the real quote, sorry I paraphrased, I’m rigid with my bar-lines, angsty and very blazed// let’s stay on topic have a baby and get engaged, stifle the baby’s mind raise their spirit inside a cage// pervert the only model of romance that they’ll ever have, brutally suppress their will and hope that they’re never sad// and pray that they’re never mad, but make it a guaranty by group-thinking your way through life love and parenting// (out of fear) blindly reproduce these cultural memes without ever exploring what living authentically means// distract yourself from all the evil you’re seeing, with uppers downers sports cars and HD screenings of dyed blond fashion bitches in sweatshop jeans// reptilian iron-fists’ll leave this craft useless striping its veins and draining its organic juices// replacing its living parts with auto-tune circuitry its not just a random trend, they do this shit purposely to lessen the effect of expressions that aren’t surface deep// (I’m just) another paranoid doom-and-gloomer, to those dumb enough to think that power seeks informed consumers// …the ghetto-minded are the real losers, too busy proving they’re self made to see the real rulers// at most ignorant-bliss is what they’re gonna get, cause happiness is more complex simple rewards and punishments// and that’s a truth that you can take from here to Africa or any other land, effected by the Diaspora//
Ch: (return) to the nothingness before there was form, (return) to the place that felt safe when it stormed, (return) to that time before losing and winning when all you needed to know was that the earth was still spinning…(return) to the place where the bass and the kick, made you feel if you didn’t move you might get sick, (return) to a place that felt free of deceitfulness filled with trust light love warmth and peacefulness…
Deep Cold
Tuesday, September 7, 2010
Tuesday, July 20, 2010
Monday, June 28, 2010
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