..out of the dark

"So tell me: how come the russian intellectuals are so admired in Turkey? If you forgive me for saying so, my thinking is drawn towards the idea that there is some glorification of their systematic doctrine involved, and not..."
- "Yes, yes. But consider how they produce their experts - from a very early age, poor and rich compete for grants and opportunities to study more, and always push harder to evolve their abilities - until the point where those left, among one in a hundred thousand, are veritable geniouses. These become career- intellectuals in various roles, serving simply to further their country's well- being and success. Just think,..."
"..the epitome of intellectual, yes, I understand. What are they used for, though? Do you know? What kind of tasks are you suited for performing, once you owe your status as intellectual solely on the system, and the self- perpetuating culture inherent in it?"
- "You think it's possible that kind of intellectual would become beholden to the political structure, for instance? That knowledge and studies in itself would not be enough to change the system from within to become better?"

(note how my Turkish acquaintance may well have glorified his own intellectual angle against his own country's culture, more than the russian one. I went on.)

"They would not. It never is. The russians I know who still cling to their russian superiority, even after their grandparents and parents should've been cured from it, are more like rockets on rails, than..."
- "[laughs] I see your point."
"So how much creativity would be involved outside the constraints they are given? This is dependent on what those constraints are, and should be examined."
- "...true."
"And one should ask oneself why the belief that intellectuals, or presumably reason and knowledge, should be able to change a society shows up.. I imagine some sort of reaction towards what is considered irrational might be involved..?"
- "Yes - and it's more than that. Ignorant people are defending policies defended in the name of stability and cultural integrity. While it's no more than political trickery aimed at nothing more than preserving power in the hands of the few."
"And how do you know they are not right?"
- "What?"
"How can you tell what they are doing is not the wisest course?"
- "...".
"Your opposition to their political message is very much intertwined with your belief in reason and knowledge, then, even at the superficial level, long before any issues are actually taken into account?"
-"Now you're being unfair - we are speaking generally about these issues, not..."
"Ah! And once you're properly educated and high enough to be an authority on things, how do you expect the general public to react to you? With genuine support for your point of view, or with respect for your position in society alone?"

We drank a mouthful of our glasses, I apologized, and we shook hands.

To extend the point a bit, consider the following piece of timeless wisdom: ideology is cheap. There's nothing cheaper and more easy than passing something off as glorious and great. Unless there's some tribe living somewhere who are culturally conditioned to expect their leaders to become meek, self- flagellating wimps, there will be an element of hope and expectation that can be tapped into. And this goes for either conservative or progressive elements.

What, then, is the purpose of this excercise. From the dialogue above, and the current ongoing nightmare that is the political discourse in the United States, it's easily found that the purpose of it all is to keep it going. Which way it turns is not important, of course - the important part is to keep power concentrated. Or from that point of view, to ensure that progressive thinkers do not translate their radical ideas into the ruin of the system.

But is that all? Can we really look at the society from this point of view and at the same time say anything useful about it? Think about it, nurse your hatred for unquestioned authority, why don't you, and I'll say no more.


Next, "On why cultural superiority and moral relativism goes hand in hand".