I oppose corruption.

Oppose corruption. Stand for free speech.

Corruption comes in many forms: racism, sexism, bribery, fraud, bigotry, etc. It’s the manipulation of a system to elevate yourself or your group above others.

Corruption is based on an idea that you, or your group, are more important than others and thus don’t have to play by the rules.

Concurrently, assigning a value to another person, or to oneself, based on a group into which one fits (skin color, political ideology, religion, etc.) is a corruption of the mind – it’s unhealthy, misguided, and it only leads to more division and hate. 

In fact, go ahead and argue all you want about the relative merits of various ideas, forms of government, or which Beatle was your favorite, but as soon as you start assigning different degrees of ‘value’ onto people or debate the deservedness of their having a voice, you’ve taken the first steps toward genocide.

I am not without color, you are not without color, but we are more than the color of our skin. 

I am not without gender, you are not without gender, but we are more than the genitalia we possess or the people to whom we’re attracted.

I am not without political ideas, nor are you – but we are more than our preference in how much government we want in our lives.

What I do stand by is the inherent value of a human being, and the potential for that human being to create real good in this world through their voice: through the speaking of authentic thoughts, concepts, and ideas.

In short, I stand behind the commitment to human beings having voices – speaking their minds.

Corruption endeavors to silence because it can only exist in the shadows, where it can keep the rancid sights and smells of its misguided ideologies away from the eyes and noses of those it hopes to convince.

And so, I oppose it. I oppose corruption.

False Dichotomies

Corruption can be the distortion of the truth for personal gain. It’s the false narratives you’re told so that you turn the other cheek, or turn a blind eye to the crimes being committed by those who are corrupt. 

Corruption is that person, or that narrative that leads you to believe that you have only two choices in any given scenario. 

“You must…”  

The above ‘choices’ are false. Not that you can’t have any of those views – many do. But suggesting that you must choose one or the other – that’s a false choice; they’re false dichotomies.

You are a human being, full of not one or two competing ideas in your own mind, but a multitude. What makes you think, then, that there are only two choices in the struggles we face today?

“So you’re saying that property is more important than human life?” 

I’ve heard this retort many times over this last week, regurgitated against those who voiced their concerns over the protests-turned-violent-riots following the killing of George Floyd by ex-Minneapolis Police Officer Derek Chauvin. 

“So you’re saying that property is more important than human life?” 

Because those are the only two choices, you say? Either burn down cities or support police brutality and murder? 

Sorry, it’s a false dichotomy, a false dilemma. It’s false.

We have more than those two choices, and if you’re arguing that we don’t, then perhaps you just really, really, really, WANT people to support the choice that you’ve made.

That’s the point of a false dichotomy, after all, isn’t it?

…to corral, to herd. 

Because how many aspects of life are really A or B? Has life ever been that simple? Those who tell you so are capitalizing on the unfortunate tendency of all human brains to err on the side of over simplification. 

The perils of over simplification

We all do it. We over simplify.

Let’s take a look at a recent, salient example.

“Lockdowns save lives,” vs. “Lockdowns are tyranny.”

Well, both seem like they could be true, under the right circumstances, don’t they?  

Encourage a populace to run free amidst a deadly viral pandemic and you’ll see case numbers and deaths rise and rise, unabated, and people will wonder why the government didn’t react quickly enough to stem the tide of death. Lockdowns seem to save lives when it comes to communicable diseases. Hardly surprising.

And yet, keep a populace locked down forever, encourage citizens to report each other for not following the health guidelines that week, and businesses will die and the economy will crash and people will starve and kill themselves. It won’t just feel like tyranny, it will be tyranny. 

But how can these both be true? They seem diametrically opposed.

Well, paradoxes signal that the rules of such a statement (in this case, that you must choose either A or B) are flawed.  Perhaps there’s a third, or fourth, or fifth option that paints a picture slightly more accurate than the binary choice you’ve given me.

How about the real question… the one that doesn’t involve a false dichotomy: “How much lockdown is OK?” 

Or how about some other questions, for example: 

 “When do instances of police brutality become evidences of systemic racism, and what best to do about it?” 

…or, “When is the government too powerful?” 

…or, “When does the government not provide enough for its citizens?”

Notice each question has a silly little word that shouldn’t mean much, but is actually at the core of the difficulty in finding a ubiquitous solution. What are those words?  

‘OK’ 

’systemic’ 

‘best’ 

‘too’ 

‘enough’

No one has real, tangible, definitions for these words. Yet they’re at the core of each of these terribly difficult questions. 

How much is too much? How many instances signify a systemic problem? What is best? What should do we do about it all?

There’s no turning to the back of the book to find the answers, folks. 

We cannot give up, just because there’s no solution

But despite the difficulties, these are the issues we MUST contend with, as humans, using our brains and our voices, our ears and our experiences. 

And to be fair, those issues have been around for a long, long, long time, in every country or kingdom the world has ever seen. They’re not simply a ‘product of capitalism.’ They’re not just a product of historical slavery in America. No, they’re a product of us being human beings, with all our proclivities toward tribalism, and with our very natural and justifiable differences of OPINION regarding how much government we want in our lives.

Does that mean we shouldn’t address these questions? That they’re unsolvable? 

Of course we should address them – they’re at the very core of what it is to govern and to have a civilized society. 

Are they solvable?

I don’t know. If ‘solving’ means finding a solution in which everyone agrees, then no, I don’t think they’re solvable. And that’s ok. I stand firmly behind my belief that it is the grappling with these issues that is important, and not that they be unilaterally solved.

Not to get too philosophical, but the meaning of life is found in the grappling with the question, not necessarily in the answering of it, and the nuances of how best to govern are no different.

Where to turn, but toward ourselves – thank God we have a voice.

But first shouldn’t we turn to our government for answers (they must be wiser than we, no?). 

And then you listen to them speak.

You watch as our representatives (and our presidential candidates, and our president himself) scurry around direct questions as if the question itself had COVID, and you realize that they’re just human. Perhaps they’re even less likely to answer the hard questions than the folks at the end of the street.

When we realize that they’re just people too, it dawns on us that we must contend with these issues, come to some sort of conclusion, and then make statements about those conclusions – statements in the form of speaking, voting, and buying. 

We elect officials, they make decisions based on their own moral compasses and based on their desires to be re-elected by their constituents. When they don’t vote for what we want, we campaign to vote them out. It’s a damned sloppy business, but it seems to work well enough, if you zoom out far enough… 

Does that mean that everyone will be happy? No. Nor does the system work even ‘OK’ for every individual.

But thankfully, in this day and age, people have the ability to speak and be heard, to learn and absorb, and to connect with others locally and around the world. And thank god we in the states have freedom of speech and a justice system such that we can speak about flaws in our system, point out corruption, and then demand that criminals face justice in a court of law. 

That is a LOT to be thankful for.  

Thank god (or whomever you pray to) that we agree to those rules as baseline at least, even if we take issue with anything and everything else that follows. 

But notice – not one part of this idea (this idea that you are a human being, you have a voice, and that your voice and your vote can influence the course of a nation) – not one part of this idea hinges upon the color of your skin, or your gender identification, or your political party, or the way you wear your hair, or the actions (or inactions) of your grandparents, or their grandparents. 

It doesn’t even hinge upon what you say – and the First Amendment guarantees that. 

Of course, the execution of this idea has been flawed in the past because we humans have done exactly that which I’m arguing against – we’ve appropriated varying degrees of freedom upon various groups of people. Women couldn’t always vote. Blacks weren’t always free. But those laws have been repealed. Yes, we’re still navigating through the consequences of real, historic, systemic racism (in the forms of slavery and Jim Crow). But those systemic corruptions are now seen as corrupt, and are subsequently illegal.

Yes, racists still exist, all over the world and here in the US. Yes, the US has a for-profit prison system that needs to be investigated and likely reformed. Yes, we Americans still have people in prison for actions (like the voluntary use of drugs) that are now legal. Yes, we had and likely still have sentencing discrepancies between races and sexes. We need to investigate and remedy those issues. 

But we’ve arrived here… here and now in this moment not because of the errors of our ancestors, but IN SPITE OF THEM, and due to a consistent commitment to the idea that human beings have voices and consciousnesses that must be valued equally – and in the remembrance of people who have fought and died, year after year, domestically and abroad, to maintain this idea….

This is the central idea of America, despite our rocky past, despite our rocky present, despite our current ego-maniacal, insecure president. 

I believe that this central idea, that all people are created equal and have an equal voice in the country’s navigation is a GOOD one, a good idea, and good in the very deepest sense of the word. 

Was it perfect since the beginning? No. We have slavery in our history, but we can’t forget the 360,000 Northerners who died in the US Civil War to end slavery and re-unite the country. And we can’t forget the 260,000 Southerners who died as well, after being raised to believe that slavery was ok, and that judging someone based on the color of their skin was standard. 

We know now how wrong they were.

So why should we lament them too? Because they too were human beings, who enslaved and killed and died because of a misguided belief that one specific skin color was contemptible. 

It’s always a tragedy to watch ideas lead to mass violence and oppression.

Part of success is ensuring everyone has a voice

Our democratic republic endeavors to provide a voice to all and a system by which no single section of the government or the populace can ever get so powerful as to silence the voice of the others. 

And the people – we are like a glittering jewel, with so many faces and facets and perspectives – we don’t speak with one voice, and that’s ok. Even I don’t speak with one voice – my opinions change and evolve and bubble out of multiple internal storylines. It’s part of what makes us human. 

Additionally, neither America, nor any other country in the world, is without fault or error or the existence of atrocities in their past or in their present. 

That’s because all countries are made of human beings who, regardless of race, creed, or sex, make mistakes and are at times misguided. Often times it’s simply hard to know which policies will lead to what, even the best-intentioned of policies.  

But the central idea of the United States of America is in the upholding of the sanctity of freedom – freedom of voice and thought, the freedom to vote for your representatives, and the freedom to purchase and maintain personal property by ‘voting’ for those things that you value with your well-earned dollar. 

Freedom resonates, because it’s at the core of what it is to be human

These are good ideas. Not just because I say so, not just because the forefathers said so, but because deep down you know that the freedom to choose is at the very core of what it is to be human – to choose a path and to experience the consequences of your choice.

This is fundamental. Because you know what? You will ALWAYS think for yourself, whether in college or in prison, whether in a democracy or in a communist dictatorship, whether in a nunnery or a music conservatory, whether as a child or on your deathbed – your brain is free. 

It can be influenced, yes, and it can be cajoled. But in the end, in this moment, regardless of your past, you are free. Free to think. Free to choose. Free to speak.

Why not support this idea – this recognition of the essential human qualities of freedom, freedom of thought, and freedom of choice? 

So make choices. Learn from the consequences of those choices. Apply that knowledge and experience to make the system in which we live better, for present, and for the future. 

But don’t forget that making a system better does not involve silencing people. Improving a system that provides freedom does not involve rabid adherence to one school of thought or philosophy, and beware of those who tell you otherwise. 

Remember that the core of you being human is not the story of what group you were born into. Yes, the story of that group is important, of course, as are all stories that illustrate the trials of humanity, and which illustrate the ways in which humans can elevate or destroy our fellow man. But your story is your own, as is the story of each individual in any group.

In fact, look more closely and you’ll find, so often, that the heroes of any group are the individuals who stood against the oppression they experienced, such that they could make their own story. I’ll say this again – their own story – not the story they were expected, by others, to live out based on the color of their skin, the place they were born, the god to whom they prayed, or the ideas they held. 

And yes, it would be easy, then, to say the villains of all these stories are simply those who did the ‘oppressing’. And yes, they are villains. 

But the real villain is our mind’s desire to group anything and everything into neatly labeled boxes, and to further simplify those ‘things’ by judging them as good or bad. Why is such labeling so dangerous? Because it’s so easy and because it’s so natural (we can’t help but label and judge). But once we start, especially in the labeling of other people, history illustrates our human inclination to dehumanize, enslave, torture and kill the ‘other,’ once we’ve labeled them deplorable. 

And so political philosophies that encourage you to label the world as ‘us’ and ‘them’ only exacerbate this human tendency. 

Over simplification – it’s a mind virus. It’s always there. In all of us. Every one of us must be vigilant.

Don’t forget the larger group, humanity

Looked at another way, could I not say that each individual within ANY group is part of a much larger group called ‘humanity,’ and that every human is especially similar in their struggling to live their life? 

And not just struggling because times are hard, or because of all the inhumane and unfair adversities against which people rage (yes, those things exist)… but I say ‘struggle’ because damnit, it’s HARD to be human, even when it’s easy.

Every single person who has ever lived has struggled to formulate their ideas of what it is to be ‘alive’, struggled to pray to their god, struggled to find a lover and perhaps make a family. Every individual has wanted to pursue trades and careers and gain knowledge and explore the art forms that inspire them, while balancing the pressures and obligations of the family and friends and society around them. 

Every person desires food, shelter, camaraderie, companionship, challenge, achievement, recognition, surprise. Every person fears the unknown. Every person fears disloyalty. Every person fears being judged. Every person fears death.

And so, in the end, we have more in common with EVERY OTHER PERSON IN THIS WORLD than we do with some specific group into which we’ve been consciously, arbitrarily (or forcefully) placed.

Sure, group identities provide the feeling of belonging (which is essential to human happiness), and groups make it easy to hear and learn from others who have similar opinions as you. But remember the dangers: 

Firstly, even the most benign echo chambers lead to flabbiness of thought. You need to hear opposing opinions to know if yours hold water.

More importantly though, once the identity of your group starts to become more important than your commitment to your fellow man, you will start to act in ways that bring out the worst aspects of being human. And the more powerful your group, the more justified you’ll feel in your actions. 

Hence why ‘nationalism’ has a dirty connotation. The more accurate condemnation would be against ‘excessive nationalism’, but either way, the justified fear is that absolute pride in one’s country blinds a person to the mistakes made by that country, and thus those errors or crimes are allowed to continue. 

Hence the joke of the phrase ‘murica, meant to sound like someone less educated staunchly (and implicitly foolishly) defending their country.

The truth is, of course, that a country can’t be all ‘one thing,’ nor can any group of people, nor can any one person. Thus, any true ‘nationalist’ would maintain an attitude of tough love for their country, similar to the affection and pride that a parent holds for their children: affection, balanced with the responsibility to keep that child in check and set it on a path toward success.

We must look at our country in the same way, with affection and gratitude, balanced with vigilance and responsibility for its actions.  

And this knowledge of the grey (that which exists between the blacks and whites of absolutism) comes from introspection – when you look at yourself, honestly, and acknowledge that you are a combination of infinite interests and characteristics and histories and patterns of thoughts, and that many of those desires and habits (far too many to be comfortable with) stand in opposition to each other. 

You’re complicated

Admit it, you’re complicated.

So stop bowing to someone else’s over-simplification of life, or politics, or god – because that over-simplification just isn’t true.

Life isn’t simple. 

Life’s not easy. 

But thankfully there’s a wisdom that comes with seeing more than just one side of an issue. 

And as the years go by, you realize that most often there’s a subsequent wisdom in the calming of that voice inside of you that rails against the existential torment of it all. That voice that whispers, in your darkest moments, to “burn it all down.” 

Know now that that voice exists in all of us. You’re not alone in hearing it. We’ve all heard it within us. And we’re hearing it now, in the news, and perhaps even from people we know and love and respect. That doesn’t make the voice right.

It’s up to each of us now to stand against the fury that feeds on hatred and destruction – but we must do so so by acknowledging, listening, and then speaking the truth.

When that blood-red desire speaks… to you, or within you… acknowledge it and know that you are stronger than the part of you that wishes to see the world burn. And know that there is meaning to be found in the care-taking of this world for those who come after you – to give them a system in which their voices are heard also, and in which they, hopefully, spend less time thinking about which group they fit in, and more time simply thinking. And loving. And building. And exploring.  

Finally, and let me reiterate this… any and every system needs to be evaluated consistently, such that corruptions within the system can be identified and removed. 

But stopping corruption doesn’t require segmenting us and painting us with the color (and the judgment) you’ve allocated for any particular group of people. Nor does it require silencing voices, even voices which you have deemed to be too ‘dangerous’ or ‘hateful’ to be heard. 

No – let them spew their hate – it’s easy to hear hate and identify it as such. More importantly though, through dialogue, that hate can be turned into love and kindness and brotherhood. If you don’t believe me, just ask Daryl Davis, the black musician who, over the past 40 years, has become friends with multiple members of the KKK and, through the power of human interaction, patience, and dialogue, has been directly responsible for over 60 members leaving the Klan, and indirectly responsible for over 200 leaving the organization.

Tolerance can be learned, and it can be taught, from the inside.

So work to build a better America, and I’ll be there with you. But I don’t accept the damning paint of your judgment, nor will I bow to your demands that I must place myself into any specific group, or accept the guilt you’ve sentenced to my group, or any group, for that matter.

I won’t have it. 

I am me. You are you.

We, together, must take a stand against intolerance, against the illegal use of force by the government against the people, and against the illegal use of force by the people against the people.

BOTH are corruption.

And I oppose corruption. 

Thank you to everyone who took the time to read my thoughts. I invite you to leave your own below. And please consider sharing this article, far and wide, if you value a commitment to freedom of speech and thought.

~ Cecil

follow on twitter: @thececilcharles