Education and Democracy
Sometimes it almost seems as if modern democratic representation is designed specifically to instil a particular elite in power. The Lawyer MPs, those who went to Eton, Oxford, Cambridge, anywhere where the ideas of the ruling class dominate, anywhere where they can hone their (narrow) political arguments to confuse the confusable into believing that they alone are superior to us mere mortals. Us mere mortals, who have only the ability to recognise “our betters” and thus vote appropriately.
To begin again, our elected representatives often come from privileged backgrounds, with the benefits of private education. The problem begins when, first, those with a private education are significantly more likely to enter the halls of power, and secondly, those same individuals are expected to administer and oversee the institution of public education.
As, by definition, only a minority can rule, it would also make sense from the politician’s perspective that only a minority should be taught to rule while the majority are taught only to be governed. Thus, universal suffrage combined with universal education creates a servile caste taught to obey, but being the majority of the population, or, more correctly citizenry, expressing its supposed will through the filter of representative government, it can continue to “enjoy” the illusion that it is free and is in fact in charge despite being “everywhere in chains”.
When Nationalism is brought into the equation, the game takes on a darker dimension, for what makes Nations different when they are all democratic? The Government then becomes the apparent will of a democratic volk and thus Blood becomes connected with State. With the state being conceived of in organic terms, any individual or collective dissent from legislation can be considered as a cancerous cell to be removed for the common good, regardless of morality. Of course, the question remains: if a policy is the national will, why is government needed? This is of course turned around by government; any dissent is going against the national will and is therefore unpatriotic.
Sometimes it almost seems as if modern democratic representation is designed specifically to instil a particular elite in power. The Lawyer MPs, those who went to Eton, Oxford, Cambridge, anywhere where the ideas of the ruling class dominate, anywhere where they can hone their (narrow) political arguments to confuse the confusable into believing that they alone are superior to us mere mortals. Us mere mortals, who have only the ability to recognise “our betters” and thus vote appropriately.
To begin again, our elected representatives often come from privileged backgrounds, with the benefits of private education. The problem begins when, first, those with a private education are significantly more likely to enter the halls of power, and secondly, those same individuals are expected to administer and oversee the institution of public education.
As, by definition, only a minority can rule, it would also make sense from the politician’s perspective that only a minority should be taught to rule while the majority are taught only to be governed. Thus, universal suffrage combined with universal education creates a servile caste taught to obey, but being the majority of the population, or, more correctly citizenry, expressing its supposed will through the filter of representative government, it can continue to “enjoy” the illusion that it is free and is in fact in charge despite being “everywhere in chains”.
When Nationalism is brought into the equation, the game takes on a darker dimension, for what makes Nations different when they are all democratic? The Government then becomes the apparent will of a democratic volk and thus Blood becomes connected with State. With the state being conceived of in organic terms, any individual or collective dissent from legislation can be considered as a cancerous cell to be removed for the common good, regardless of morality. Of course, the question remains: if a policy is the national will, why is government needed? This is of course turned around by government; any dissent is going against the national will and is therefore unpatriotic.
posted by Legal Smeagol at 11:49 AM
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