In all societies there are “minority” groups which exist within the relative “majority.” Because these groups are a “minority,” while they do not always reflect the opinions of the greater society, the opinions and the effects of the opinions of the greater society are more strongly reflected in the actions and reactions of these minority groups because they are subject to the consequences of views held by those who they live around. As such, I believe it is important to pay close attention to the opinions of “minority” groups in American society, for among many things that one can see, by watching these groups one can get a closer view at the problems of the larger society as the problems already there will be magnified in the smaller groups. In the case of America, it is the Hispanic and black peoples.
One commentator I enjoy listening to frequently is a man by the name of David Carroll. From his location in the Cleveland, OH area he runs two YouTube and five Vimeo channels where he discusses issues pertaining to the breakdown of the black family structure and the antisocial behavior that is common in black communities today. While I do not agree with all of his points (he is a agnostic among several), he provides a thoughtful perspective on “black issues” that is seldom presented. One of the issues that he discusses a lot is what he terms the “soft, catty effeminate attitude of black men” who “were reared by single women and so they imitate what their mommas taught them.”
As David points out in many of his videos, and I have taken the time to view other “black commentators” online to see for myself, there is a trend to express anger in an uncontrolled, visceral way and then to lash out at the person making the comment instead of the idea being discussed. Now ad hominem attacks are common and for the most part characterize any debate no matter where one goes, but the level of such attacks has clearly reached a level that is beyond any sort of manageable level. As David points out in black circles, to present a reasoned thought is a rare act, and the modus operandi at all levels is to start calling people names such as “YOU’RE A COON,” “YOU’RE AN UNCLE TOM,” or “YOU’RE A SELLOUT” while actually ignoring the points being discussed and using whatever available means are around to shut down his voice from having a place.”
Now the violence and dysfunction in black America is painfully and pitifully obvious. With most babies born to single women, illiteracy and ignorance accepted as normal and good, drug and alcohol abuse out of control, the rampant spread of sexually transmitted diseases, and social degeneracy praised as a model of behavior while order and common decency are scorned, it is no surprise that the average argument from the average person in black America would be nothing other than merely regurgitating the sewage these people have been nursed on for all their lives. To expect otherwise would be irrational.
But is the discourse of contemporary black America really that different from the rest of America? Not really in terms of essence because the root sources of the dysfunction stems not from circumstances without, but from the dysfunction within the soul. Add to this that the dysfunction that one sees manifest physically is also present in the rest of America, but just structured in such a way that is different so it gives the appearance it is not present when it really is.
Soup kitchen lines in Louisville, KY from the depression of the 1930s. The reality is that the situation now is far worse than the “Great Depression” ever was. However, just like with black America, the way it differs from the past is in the distribution. The bread lines of the 1930s have been replaced with the EBT/SNAP cards of today so that the inability of approximately 20% of the population to buy food for itself is hidden among the other people waiting to check out at the grocery store.
The best way to see into the heart of America’s dysfunction in public discourse is through her politics. As much as people do not want to admit it, politicians are a reflection of the heart of the people of their time because people elect those who reflect themselves. It is the reason why Jesus was killed, and why Christians are constantly warned that while they are “in the world” they must be on constant watch not to become “of the world,” because the disorder in society is a reflection of the disorder of the people. This is one of the many products of a post-original sin world, and will persist until Christ returns. In this sense, there will always be dysfunction that will always have to be controlled in the same way that a gardener has to constantly watch his garden and uproot the weeds or pick off and destroy the malicious bugs and grubs that will come to feast on the tender plants he is trying to grow. The issue is not so much that such pests and problems exist, but as I referred to above with David Carrol’s videos, the issue is the proportion in which these problems exist and what is being done to keep them under control.
The tomato hornworm caterpillar. Just as these rotten bugs (I believe) take pleasure in eating my tomato plants and I have to keep picking them off and feeding them to my chickens (who clearly enjoy eating them), so must a man in society always work against the evil forces and men trying to destroy it. This is a fact of life in any government regardless of time, place, or situation. I cannot stop them from attacking my plants, but I can control their spread. If I did not, they would eat my entire garden.
American politics has always been filled with every sort of disorder one can think of going back to its earliest days. However, that disorder was able to be contained, for the most part, within a certain range of behavior. What has happened today is that American politics has reflected the complete deterioration of the people by reducing what is called “public discourse” to little more than a shouting and name-calling match between two sides who are both as evil as the other, possessing essentially the same views with the same ends but a different means to achieve it.
Politics has no enemies and no friends. It is less about principle and more about the preservation of power.
The disorder of the liberals is so obvious and open that one only needs to look at them with a quasi-sober mind to see that something is not right. Having openly redefined itself as a party that openly embraces eugenics, socialism, and the fomentation of aggression over any difference between groups for the purpose of creating a power vacuum into which they use as a level to attempt to gain more power and influence at the expense of others, there is no way to deny where they stand. The joke of it is that these people are so obvious in their positions but they will claim at the same time they are the opposite with a straight face and believe their own words.
The disorder of the conservatives is just as bad as the liberals, but unlike the liberals their disorder is hidden behind white picket fences and gestures of social congeniality. There is still a tremendous amount of sexual abuse, eugenicist ideas, socialism, and the use of violence and division as a tool of influence at the expense of others that is there. People are deceived by the fact that their is no “blood in the streets” in a physical sense- such as when “Pookie” guns down “Ray-Ray” over a pair of Air Jordans- but is just as real and destructive and as such it will be passed over without anybody thinking twice about it.
As mentioned earlier, the ad hominem attacks so characteristic of black American public discourse is no different than that in in liberal circles or in conservative circles. Just like the liberals, when the platitudes that are given by “conservatives” in public discourse as an explanation of policy are criticized or questioned, the immediate response is to start criticizing and even calling people names. Instead of “YOU’RE A COON” it is “YOU’RE A CUCK” or “YOU’RE A CULTURAL MARXIST,” and just like the people who shout “YOU’RE A COON” at the black Americans who present a viewpoint they disagree with not because the person is question actually fits the definition of a “coon” but as a way of shutting people down, these same conservatives use the phrase “YOU’RE A CUCK” in the same way, as a way of shutting people down without actually fitting the definition of the word to the person they criticize.
“Cooning,” as David points out, is a form of anti-social behavior in which a black man does self-depreciating acts in order to gain the attention of another. As he repeatedly says, “cooning is behavior, it is not having a difference of opinion.” Likewise, a “cuck” is a weak man who stays in a submissive relationship to a dominant woman who has sex with other men and even children with them yet demands that he pay for her and her offspring despite him receiving nothing in return. “Cuckholdry” likewise is a form of behavior, not having a difference of opinion. However, the use of these terms is not to address actual issues, but rather to draw attention away from them through the use of ad hominem attacks.
It is very easy, no matter who one is or what a man’s background is, to blame one’s problems on another and to attack another man’s character instead of the opinions he is presenting. Indeed, one should expect that anybody who has a public opinion also opens himself up to public criticism, including that of his person. This is just expected and should be accepted as normal because it is. What makes for abnormal behavior is when one cannot have a discussion about issues without resorting to mockery, insults, and banal comments as the default, basic, and commonly accepted mode of comment and response.
Man is made in the image and likeness of God, and as the Baltimore Catechism has always taught, he is above the animals but just a little below the angels, as we possess a rational mind and an eternal soul like the angels with the corporeal means of generation and physical composition of the animals. Man is unique among God’s creation, for he stands at a middle ground with the ability to look to Heaven while participating with God to bring new life into the world. It is a unique and beautiful place to be, because even though we are tarnished by original sin, God not only became man so that we might become like God through the sacrifice at Calvary, but He has endowed up with free will and a mind that is able to act and think independently so that we might choose to love God and find true happiness within Him.
One of the struggles of humanity throughout the ages is that between man’s angelic and animal sides because of original sin. Like the battle against bugs in the garden, it is a constant struggle that must be continually worked at. However, man is supposed to work to strive to be like the angels, imitating God in his acts and works instead of allowing himself to submit to acting like an animal, driven by base passions and not his true nature, and this is only possible in faithful obedience to Christ no matter how difficult a situation may be.
It is easy to point fingers at others, such as the debased situation in black America, to show how far society has debased. However, the reality is that the situation in black America is for the most part an amplified reflection of the disorder in the larger society that is just magnified because they are a smaller segment of the population as opposed to the rest that while hidden from direct view is made clear in that the language of popular political speech is the same as that between minority groups arguing about similar issues in their own context. Ultimately, the issue is not about race, class, or any of the other superficial differences used as a level to cause division, but it is about the end purpose for causing the division, which is so that people would be unable to reason on even a basic level about matters which affect their daily lives and those of others so that the persons responsible for the division might be able to provide the “answer” to the problems they helped create.
So do criticize others regardless of who they are when criticism is justly due. However, do not lose sight of yourself in the process, allowing yourself to embody and reflect the very same reasons for criticism of these other groups while unable to recognize it in yourself because they are just a reflection of you.