When the "We" Makes an Insignificant "Me"

Ayn RandThe word "We" is as lime poured over men, which sets and hardens to stone, and crushes all beneath it, and that which is white and that which is black are lost equally in the grey of it. It is the word by which the depraved steal the virtue of the good, by which the weak steal the might of the strong, by which the fools steal the wisdom of the sages. Anthem, Chapter 11

All humans live amongst others, but their attitude about life and what makes for meaning is what makes for the differences. Some see the "We" as an attitude of "Comaradie", "Team", "Care", which make for "society", "company", and "organization". But such thinking can enable, as much as enoble, when individuals are not taking their own responsibilty for and about their life. Instead, they compromise, or ignore their own values so that others might not be "left out". But, in doing so, they loose their own distinctiveness. And soceity suffers for it.

The other night we watched a movie about a woman that pursued a Pulitzer by publishing a story about another mother in her child's school, who was a CIA agent. In the process, she went to jail for not revealing her source and lost her marriage. Her lawyer suggested that she could "go free" if only she would hold the "traitor" accountable. One wondered during the film why she didn't take his advice, but understood she was standing on the principle of "free speech"! She didn't want to set a precedent against "free speech".

Where do the lines lie in "free speech" versus "national security"? These are questions that concern Contitutional Law.

Should she have gained her freedom and hold the informer accountable? Or should she have held to her ultimate value for her journalism career, of "free speech"?

If this character had been "the concerned citizen", or the "soceital moralist", then she would have had a "focus" on the "we". This is all well and good, but there were more important issues in her mind to uphold for the nation and for the media, in general. Freedom of the Press is of pivotal import to maintaina free society!! So, I applaud her courage, determination and conviction!!!

The Good, The Bad and the Ugly

I should have titled my last post, "The Good, the Bad and the Ugly". Why?

As Ayn Rand stated "Ayn Rand


‎"Let there be no misunderstanding about me. If it is now the belief of my fellow men, who call themselves the public, that their good requires victims, then I say: The public good be damned, I will have no part of it!"
“The Moral Meaning of Capitalism,” For the New Intellectual, 98.

I believe that another's framing of your world is considered the "good" by in them and this is what makes it Bad. But, what is the Ugly?

The ugly is when our purposes are at odds and there has been no negotiation, which is oppression or tyranny. Or, there hasn't been an understanding of co-operative effort, which makes for conflict. And whenver conflict happens, there is ugliness!

Soms well meaning souls would think this an opprotunity to defy ugliness and rise above the base and senseless reality of being human.; of defying one's hopes and dreams for the "greater good" or "common will", or "God's will". These think that sacrificing oneself on the altar of another's hopes or dreams is what "love" is all about. This is what Christ did to redeem the world, after all. So, we should not begrudge the opportunity to DIE. No our lives are worthless apart from their sacrificial utility! Our lives are not valued in and of themselves. We were only born to die an untimely death for God or some public interest.

Most of the time when individuals are included in on the vision, or purpose of an organization, and one finds a place of belonging, then there will be co-operation, or a finalization of the relationship to the organization, as there are cross purposes, or conflicts of intersts. Understanding such realities is only good leadership principles.

So, I think that defining the 'good" for everyone else, becomes the bad, because it dismisses individual choice and value, and that is when things can get ugly indeed! People do not like to be pawns.