The Endpoint of Idealism is Totalitarianism

submitted by StillLessons from self.politics

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[–]magnora7 4 insightful - 2 fun4 insightful - 1 fun5 insightful - 2 fun -  (2 children)

The reaction to this shouldn't be to abandon idealism though, but rather to merge the idealism with realism. Reality always must be taken in to account, or else it's just hopes and dreams.

Reality is the ultimate truth, language is just a set of descriptors. So our ideologies should always be based on reality, not language. But that doesn't mean idealism, or having something to strive toward, is useless. It's just important for that goal to be realistic, otherwise you create an impossible task. And then creating high pressure to achieve an impossible task just results in totalitarianism.

[–]StillLessons[S] 3 insightful - 2 fun3 insightful - 1 fun4 insightful - 2 fun -  (1 child)

I agree. The point I'm making, which I can see you understand, is that idealism, like all forms of human mental/cognitive/emotional/etc experience represents a spectrum. To be idealistic balanced out - as you say - by realism is natural and has generated wonderful benefits for mankind. The extreme end of the "idealism" spectrum, however, where an ideal trumps any and all information that would naturally limit it, is where we get into trouble.

There are several areas of discourse where we are currently approaching this endpoint; thus I hope to bring this construction to popular attention.

I find the statement useful because it spreads "totalitarianism" beyond the mental picture of a dictator. Dictators may be one aspect of totalitarian states, but far more dangerous and destructive is the reality that for totalitarianism to succeed, a large cross-section of society has to play their part. Stalin/Hitler/Mao/PolPot didn't personally kill millions of people. Other people killed those people on their orders. Those who did the actual killing believed the reasoning behind the orders was correct. They believed that their acts were justified as a step in the direction of the ideals they had been taught.

That's the real danger. People are capable of justifying unthinkable horrors when they believe they do what they do in support of some ideal they have been taught. A lot of people, not just one leader.

[–]magnora7 2 insightful - 2 fun2 insightful - 1 fun3 insightful - 2 fun -  (0 children)

Well said, I agree.

[–]Canbot 2 insightful - 1 fun2 insightful - 0 fun3 insightful - 1 fun -  (0 children)

But but but, that wasn't real communism/socialism.. this time it will be different. This time we added a pronoun to our bullshit and it's completely different. You just don't understand what (democratic) socialism is.

[–]BanditMcFuklebuck 1 insightful - 1 fun1 insightful - 0 fun2 insightful - 1 fun -  (0 children)

its true....look at islam....muh prophet, muh prophet....don't drawl muh prophet!!!!....

[–][deleted] 1 insightful - 1 fun1 insightful - 0 fun2 insightful - 1 fun -  (1 child)

No you idiot, the end-point of idealism is to troll totalitarianism. Till your idealism comes true - Duh!

[–][deleted] 1 insightful - 1 fun1 insightful - 0 fun2 insightful - 1 fun -  (0 children)

Fuck religion and anti-religions.

[–]Boudreaux 1 insightful - 1 fun1 insightful - 0 fun2 insightful - 1 fun -  (0 children)

Totalitarianism is a form of government that attempts to assert total control over the lives of its citizens. It is characterized by strong central rule that attempts to control and direct all aspects of individual life through coercion and repression. It does not permit individual freedom.

https://www.mycardstatement.pro/

[–]BravoVictor 1 insightful - 1 fun1 insightful - 0 fun2 insightful - 1 fun -  (0 children)

The endpoint of any ideology is totalitarianism. If you believe your ideology is true, and over time experience shows it to be true, than any competing efforts to halt it must be stopped or subverted, which is the essence of totalitarianism.