Hannah Arendt (1906-1975)was one of those rare people whose clear thinking could penetrate the vague nonsense and "academic bafflegap" that political liars and media gurus pass as "news." Arendt could assess a situation or trend and carefully diagnose the flaws in "establishment" discourse.
Arendt demolished the idiodic nonsense of using atomic and nuclear weapons. She was clear that the use of such super weapons would ruin both "winners" and "losers." Diplomacy and war are weaspons used to gain some ecnonomic and political advantage. The rhetorical question that Arendt raised is what would the "winners" gain except a destroyed civilization. She could have treated the effects of atomic and nuclear radiation illness which would make those who died instantly the "lucky ones." In other words, the destruction caused by atomic and nuclear weapons would negate ANY economic or political advantage. The fact is that there would be nothing left worth debate or dispute. The issue may be to limit war given the economic problems with reduced military budgets.
Pundits raised the question about policy makers think about the "unthinkable" re mass destruction. Arendt's answer was that policy makers do not think at all. They create models and adhere to them with the stupid mentality of "what could possibly go wrong." Arendt's answer was that the policy makers make a claim for a randomm chance or "glitch." As Arendt noted, the random events and "glitches" ARE the norm. Bureaucrats can hide behind the fact that when tragic blunders do occur, Mr. or Mrs. Nobody is responsible. Scapegoats are in good supply and make easy fodder for political leaders and media gurus who refuse to actually know anything and, again, refuse to think. Slogans and ad hominem responses are substituted for knowledge and clear thinking. In spite if smugness and arrogance, policy makers and ultimately citizens realize too late that there are limits to power, and power can lead to weakness and decay.
Arendt also had interesting commentary re the student protests of the 19060s and 1970s. Some of these protesters had good reason to complain. However, those who preached violence and Marxist-Lenist nonsensee and violence lived in a dream world. Those who preached such violence had a romantic, naive notion that a Third World (whatever that means) violent revolution would be a Second Coming. These naive fools thought there was some unity between Mao, Che, & co. when no such unity ever existed. The original Leninist, Marxist leaders such as Lenin and Stalin would NEVER HAVE tolerated student dissent and protest. They would have employed the phrase of "The Stalinist Method of Management." This is what happens when men and women refuse to study history and fall prey to ideological nonsense.
Another concept that Arendt dealt with was that of violence. Arendt made a good case that violence is not the same thing as power or strength. Power and strength are often based on popular agreement, good organization, and acceptence of the status quo. One the other hand, violence is used when those in power are desparate and see their power successfully challenged. Those who invoke violence do not understnad that violence can beget violence. Another side of this issue is that men and women will not rebel when their are in bad conditions. Men and women rebel when they THINK their conditions are bad even though others have worse situtaions. Rebellions and revolutions do not occur when the tyranny is real, but they occur when tyranny and tyrants appear to be weak. The French and Revolutions are good exmaples of such conditions. Often calls for violence come from those who are stupid and cannot react to reason and knowledge except to make violent threats thus exposing weakness and desparation.
Hannah Arendt's books and essays include such works such as THE ORIGINS OF TOTALITARIANISM, EICHMANN IN JERUSALSM, CRISES OF THE REPUBLIC, etc. Those books and the one that is reviewed show the difference between what is reality and what is false.
James E. Egolf
June 25, 2013
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