I was just listening to Ari Melber’s interview with Robert Greene. A number of things rang true for me. These things made many events in my life make sense in a way that they never really did before. I’ll share three of them with you.
1.) Those in power have the most fragile egos when one challenges their power because they tie their egos to what they percieve as ‘their’ power.
Those in power will fight dirty to keep that power. As we have seen since the rise of Reaganomics, the fall of the Glass-Steagall Act and the the Citizens’ United decision, is the accumultation of wealth and political influence into an ever-dwindeling segment of our population. Which further enforces the false idea that those born into wealth and power somehow are more deserving of this than the rest of us.
The Republican Party, under the leadership of the incoming administration, has made this idea into a belief, has built a religion around this belief and has annointed a person who was born into wealth and power as it’s top leader. The Democratic Party leadership is showing signs that this is how it wants to proceed and this is a big mistake.
Because our country was founded on the ideal of ‘of the people, by the people and for the people,’ the modern Democratic party needs to exemplify that we work best when power is shared by many. This is best shown in unionized workforces, or, to put it best, in my humble opinion, unions are the ultimate proof in the power of democracy. Unions, ideally, work for higher wages, better benefits (which they wouldn’t have to do if we had socialized healthcare and could instead focus entirely on protecting their members, but, I digress) and safer workplaces.
2.) Those born into wealth and power think they hit a double when, really, they were just born on second base. If one is rich, in this country, one most likely inherited that wealth due to a number of economic factors like our broken tax system. This system is heavily weighted towards allowing wealth to be funnelled upwards instead of being evenly distributed for the betterment of all. Which is why we can’t have nice things like socialized medicine (which would lower the cost of business and raise our standard of living), socialized higher education (which would us be more productive in an economy that is more heavily reliant on an educated workforce), and social safety nets that would protect us when we can’t work or when the economy fails (i.e. natural disasters, pandemics, et al).
Like Robert Greene, I was raised to work hard because it was the right thing to do. You work hard, people will see that and your hard work will be rewarded. But, as Greene pointed out, those in power actually see that hard work as a threat to ‘their’ power. And, they will fire those who work hard. I think that those who fire such workers think that the worst thing they can do is take away financial security and economic power. While being broke is no fun, why should it deter a person from contiuing to do the right thing?
For me, the lesson is less about being fired for being competent and working hard and more about Peter’s Principle. This principle states that one will rise to the highest level of their incompetence. It also highlights the erosion on this country’s meritocractic ideals in favor of the illusion of success and the mistaken idea that if one is rich, one is competent and intelligent.
We, as a society, now view wealth similarly to the old feudal system of government. People are born into wealth and power rather than ‘pulling themselves up by their own bootstraps.’ People who are not born into wealth and power see those born into such positions as inherently ‘better’ than themselves. Hence, the rise of oligarchy and the corruption of our democracy by those whose only claim is that they were born into wealth and power.
3.) Those in power will never willing share their power. Power is taken, shared by more people, the system is then perverted to limit power to the exclusion of many, the many rise up to reclaim their power, rinse, repeat. From the American Revolution to the revolutions across Europe to the Arab Spring to our own country’s Civil Rights era, and all the inevitable backlashes against those struggles toward more equitable societies.
In my own life, I come from a family that spans traditional Alaska Natives and mainstream Americans. Both sides of my family taught me that working with others is essential, that being successful is giving back to my community and that advocating and working for the betterment of all is one of the best things one can do with one’s life. These are the similarities that I focus on rather than the differences in approach that these two drastically different cultures take to achieve similar goals.
My take-away lesson is that I must not ever stop being a competent, hard working individual, I must not ever stop outshining those ‘in power,’ and that I must never stop advocating for a more just, equitable and inclusionary community, state and country.
As we head into this next administration, we must remember that we, the people, hold the power of our government. We, the people, decide how we want to be governed. We, the people, did not cede our power to some wanna-be dicator, incompetent, corrupt, convicted felon, Peter’s Principle dude. Don’t let anyone convince you otherwise.
as an aside: those who threaten violence and those who practice oppression through violence are actually acting out of fear. They fear losing ‘their’ power. They are bullies, cowards and act out of intolerance for inclusion, diversity and equity. We all have power as individuals and when we stand together, we become even more powerful than the bullies. Don’t let anyone convince you that you are powerless.
Illegitimi non carborundum.