The great cultural civil war, with its
polarisation of society groups and poisoning of the public square, continues.
As we learned last month, this ‘war’ is nothing new - it is at least half a
century old. Yet, the flare-ups that we witnessed during and after the 2016 US
presidential campaign, shows us the need to understand what’s going on. After
all, when you understand a problem, you are halfway towards a solution
(Proverbs 4:7).
Remember, this is similar to the ‘Cold
War,’ where there is not so much an exchange of bullets and weapons fire. What
we have instead is an acrimonious public discourse, an abundance of legislation
and regulations, the tyranny of political correctness, and a divided public.
The two sides of the culture-war are:
1. On the Left: Secular Progressives (often called ‘Liberals,’ but
best to stick to SP), influenced by cultural Marxism and old-fashioned
socialism;
2. On the Right: Traditional Values Conservatives;
Ultimately, this war is about western
civilisation - the one that gave us democracy, individual freedom, economic
opportunity. Will it survive as is or is fundamentally transformed, or even
destroyed. In order to discern what this war is about, let’s learn what the two
sides stand for.
In this article, we will look at the
first group, the left-leaning Secular Progressives.
SECULAR-PROGRESSIVISM (SP)
In order to have a better society there
needs to be ‘justice,’ and ‘equality.’ Be careful - these terms do not mean
what you think. The proposed route to such a utopian society is by large
government - and the bigger, the better. This government will provide
cradle-to-the-grave entitlements and, if possible, will even be responsible for
people’s prosperity and happiness. Because of its benevolent intentions, SP
demands complete conformity and anyone who resists their ‘moral’ agenda will be
dealt with. After all, ‘big government
knows best.’
Equality: SP believe in equality of outcomes, meaning that
everyone one will receive the same, despite differences in work and
contribution or condition.
Justice: This is thought mostly on economic terms. Wealth
re-distribution is a key plank. As a former US President put it, ‘We want to
spread the wealth around.’
SP can vary in degree and intensity, for
example, views on private property or personal assets (extreme view deems the
people’s property really belongs the state’s, which is classic Communism). Not
all left-wing people are SP and not all supporters of the mainstream left-wing
political parties would approve of the complete SP agenda. It is estimated that
15-20% of the population is hard left.
Worldview: SP political philosophy is limited to material and
monetary matters. Morality as described in the Bible is replaced with a ‘new
morality’ which is made up as they go along. Since postmodern style relativism
has made a splash, one-sized moral code does not fit all. Though many SP
embrace the ‘sexual revolution’ and the ‘new morality,’ SP see their cause as ‘morally
superior’ and despise conservatives who oppose them as being ‘immoral’ and ‘evil.’
While people love the notion of
entitlements, minimising risk, and having someone ‘look after them,’ rarely do
they consider the implications of larger government:
• It means more taxes, to help fund the entitlements;
• It means more regulations, since society needs to be
channelled into just path;
• It means more state and national debt, because
government spending for ‘economic justice’ outstrips income by taxation;
• It means more intrusion into personal lives, since big
government wants to ‘take care of you.’
• It means more corruption.
In history, the greatest wars and
highest death tolls have not come ‘religious institutions,’ as is often stated.
They came from huge, totalitarian, secular governments, like Hitler’s Germany,
Mao’s China, Pol Pot’s Cambodia, and Joseph Stalin’s Soviet Union. The 10s of
millions of people who perished through their policies are the end result.
Progressivism is the predominant
worldview of the mainstream media, academia, entertainment industry, some in
the judiciary, unions, and, yes, even big business. Nearly a century ago
Vladimir Lenin, founder of the Soviet Union, was quoted as saying big business
is selling us the rope by which we will hang them. The United Nations and
European Union are strongly progressivist, and even the current pontiff has
been known to issue ‘progressive-pleasing’ statements. And the Nobel Peace
prize committee? When was the last time a conservative won this prize?
Secular progressives have a strong hold
on culture. It is so extensive that even if conservative parties hold
majorities in the executive and legislative branches of government, they can do
nothing to stop the SP agenda. In part, this is also because we, the general
population, are seduced by the notion of getting something for nothing,
having someone else take care of us, and reducing personal risk?
Paul Kelly in The Weekend Australian,
August 27-28 2017 (page 16), made these comments:
‘The paradox is that while the public hates
politicians, it re-embraces the old Australian default stance of looking to
government to solve nearly all its problems - economic, social, emotional, and
family. It is a recipe for dysfunction and long-run grief.’ TO BE CONTINUED
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