Let me clarify first that the
word liberal is not as defined in contentious bickering partisan political space wherein
meaning are fixed polarized binary nor is it as appropriated by neoliberals. Liberal
means a space for individuals to express and pursue what they want to. They have
their rights and rule of law to protect them. In a liberal space everyone debates,
discuss and exchange ideas, to be better versions of themselves and a tolerant
progressive society. It makes us understand and tolerate different views,
culture and faiths. There are very few liberal spaces in the world. US surely
has liberal space and means to safeguard; there is a reason why most people
around the world want to migrate to US (atleast till recently). Liberal spaces
around the world are diminishing with increasing intolerance, preconceived notions
through misinformation and disinformation -that gives credence to conspiracies,
lack of open mind and inquisitiveness, and superficial understanding of things.
Limited attention is not providing simplified version but simplistic version that
undermines complexities and nuances of the matter. Liberal space has degraded into
polarized zones with arguments meant to assert one’s atavistic connections and consolidate
primal emotions lacking thinking or understanding of contemporary reality. Liberal
space is increasingly lacking humanity or compassion of the human condition.
Liberal spaces are not a given or
a gift from nowhere but evolved spaces that are achieved after efforts and sacrifices
of generations of brilliant compassionate people from across the world. It is
collective conscience of humanity for a better world. These spaces have to
protected and nurtured if humanity has any chance to progress. Herd churning systems
are emboldening as they misuse and connect through the latest technology, lacking intellectual
vigor and primed in values of exceptionalism and supremacism they degrade with their
presence. As long as it is in the platform of views and expressions we can wince
and tolerate. Liberal space provides for questioning and defending and even ridiculing.
Herd churning systems use liberal space to assert into power and control. Even this
is tolerated afterall it is political expression of people. The problem starts when
they use it to control and diminish liberal space. This is beginning of the end
unless defended with rule of law and asserted with humanity.
The urge for spiritual and faith to
anchor one’s tribulations is an individual matter. What is not individual is
when it is asserted and expressed through systems that alienate one from surrounding
into fantasy hence easily manipulated by devious forces. It becomes sinister
when it replicates understandings (and fractures) that bypass human progress
and increased complexities of contemporary world. Simplistic versions take away
responsibility and fertile human agency into fatalism and fixedness of religion.
This horrendous degradation and dehumanization is an urgent threat to liberal
space and humanity itself.
**Debating from position of power
and entitlement has problems. When your views diminish lives of others, especially
vulnerable, as also seeks the fractures of history (like race) to assert claims that
dehumanizes other then there are consequences. The consequences are always borne
by the vulnerable as the society has not evolved (considering that liberal
space is a modern value system of evolved humans, it takes time to percolates into
individuals and cave dwellers minds). You can even have horrible views like a
child facing sexual abuse should give birth (as is ordained in a twisted
understanding of pro-life in the miracle book) but one has to understand that
these have serious real life consequences on vulnerable and make life miserable.
These regressive values severely undermine and undervalue human progress and
seek to take us back to caves. Ideally basic ethics and common sense should
deal with these fantasies of anachronistic systems that find expressions
through herd. If not, liberal state must step in with protection that asserts liberty
and freedom. If you support guns, and are least bothered about gun violence unleashed
on the community as children and innocent vulnerable die horrendous deaths, then
that view is based on your entitlement -indeed racist, the self-assuredness,
from the comfort that is blind to plight of others, that doesn’t even conceive oneself at the receiving end of the barrel. Well as it turns out you are wrong. You could
also be sacrificed to appease the gun god! In polarized US guns are great equalizer.
There is a bleak hope that this killing will bring sense for stricter gun regulations.
On 9/11 US is again on momentous crossroad.
