Roots

For some time, I have felt that I need to go back and re-learn a lot of things that I have forgotten. Due to my very large and annoying capacity to store information, I feel like there are quite a few cobwebs in some of the corners of my brain. This evening, I was doing a little research on the beginnings of man. Now, regardless of whether you subscribe to the Theory of Evolution or not, I was simply looking at what is accepted to be natural history. And while doing this... I came across a word.

Egalitarianism.

I had heard this word before, but did not know what it meant. So, of course... I used Wikipedia :D Love that tool...

Anyways. I looked it up and this is the definition I came up with.
Egalitarianism: defined either as a political doctrine that holds that all people should be treated as equals and have the same political, economic, social, and civil rights, or as a social philosophy advocating the removal of economic inequalities among people. Egalitarianism asserts that all people are of equal value and should be treated the same irrespective of their birth.

Now. What do you see as a problem here? It was not immediately evident to me but maybe you the reader can see...

Is this not the definition by which both Socialism and Capitalism stem?

It's true. Look at it. Look at the roots. Socialism preaches that all members of society are of equal rank in every aspect. Interesting thing is... so does capitalism.

The main difference is that socialism dictates this equality remains constant. Capitalism is based on what you can achieve in life. It says that everyone starts out equal, but it depends on what YOU DO yourself to improve your condition that determines where you end up.

Now. A socialist will say that capitalism essentially turns away from egalitarianism. By their logic, because the society does not remain equal, capitalism holds that people are not equal.

Is that logic sound?

No. Look at the definition. "All people SHOULD be treated as equals and have the same political, economic, social, and civil rights, or as a social philosophy advocating the REMOVAL of economic inequalities among people." Capitalism promotes both of these. But instead of Pacifist ideology, capitalism instead promotes Darwinianism.

See... the essential difference here is in your mindset. Look at America. Believe it or not, we all start out with all the same basic rights, have the ideology that all people are to be treated equal (AS LONG AS THEY DO NOT CONTRIBUTE NEGATIVELY TO SOCIETY), and that YOU can remove the economic inequalities for YOURSELF in society. Socialism, on the other hand, says that all of these things must come about through the hands of the collective.

Is that really a good thing?!

Who would want socialism as defined this way? What would we do then? THere would be no sense of self. Think of any legend in which a hero does a good deed. All of those have to be wiped away by socialistic standards. Why? Because HE or SHE did it. WE did not do it. THEY did not do it.

This is where these two philosophies originated from, but in their split it is essential that we look at the difference. This is why the two are polar opposites. One says that all must be treated equal TO START, and from there YOU decide your fate. The other says WE AL have to contribute CONSTANTLY to the equality, and anyone who rises above or below must be cast out from society.

Think I am exaggerating? Watch. The. News. Ever hear this administration use the term "I"?
The only time I have heard it was in the campaign speeches. Since this administration began, EVERYTHING is about the collective. We will make change. We will all have healthcare. We will all work in our communities. We will all work together to create a sense of belonging in our neighborhoods.

Call me loony, psycho, anti-social, whatever, but... If I want to go and move to a mountain somewhere and run around in a big house BY MYSELF.... I have EVERY RIGHT to do that. I contribute to society because I WISH to and because I realize that treating people fairly is something good to do. I punish those in society who hurt or harm others because they did not treat someone with respect. But I set them aside. I do not punish the collective. I do what I wish because I realize that I am not OBLIGATED to. I do it because I CHOOSE IT. If you choose not to be a part of society.... THAT'S YOUR CHOICE!!!!!! As long as it does not effect me negatively, GO FOR IT! We all have a CHOICE in the matter. One system says this is... ONe system says this isn't.

I post this tonight because I feel we need a little return to basic principles. It is about time that we remember our individualistic roots, and where we came from. It is about time we stop messing around and realize that, while our system may have problems, the alternative of socialism is taking away the very essence of what it is to be an individual. And this does not just go for America. Tribes in Africa are not collectivist. They keep together to survive. But they do it by CHOICE. Socialism WILL NEVER work because it takes away your rights.

Just keep that in your mind, folks. Remember your roots.