Gil Can Run!A blog on Running and all the crap that runs through my head while doing it

Jul 31st Fundamental Misunderstandings and other issues

So I was massively busy yesterday and didn’t get to post about the Craft Brew Race. Not a bad time, and my team won fastest team. I didn’t count in that, only the two fastest males/females and fastest female/male count. It was a great time with friends. Then today I went out for 5 training miles (strava is not updating my most recent run for some reason) to finish off my July. I would have done more, but my day kind of got away from me. I’m just shy of my general average of 120 miles per month. Even though that was thrown way off by a completely off 35 miles in June.
So sometimes I can be a bit intellectually lazy. It can cause confusion. This is true, it can be a disservice to whatever point I’m making.
First and foremost, never think for a second that I think things are peachy and wonderful in this world. There are a lot of people that are discarded by a system that either intentionally, or simply through the mechanics of the system, keep them abused, in poverty, treating them as less-than, that their lives are not as important as others, that they are somehow not entitled to the same rights and privileges as any other human being. There is a hierarchy, in the US, and throughout the world. There are different levels of the bullshit. I’m on a level where I am lucky enough to have a voice to talk about these things, without facing too many consequences for it. That’s a privilege. It is not a privilege afforded to me by my socio-economic status, it’s not because of my education status, or even my natural ability status. The reason, the only reason, I don’t risk much at all, is simply because of the status of my complexion, my outward appearance. That’s a serious problem.
In regards to all that, the only thing I am grateful for is that I have a voice, and that I have the cognizance that there are people out there in much worse a situation than I am in, and they need a voice. If they can use mine, if I can let them use mine, I absolutely will. I visualize our current society as a pyramid, the very wealthy at the top, the very poor at the bottom, as you move down all sorts of things change, and the further down you go the people disproportionately change their complexion more than any other factor. Whenever I use my voice, I use it not for me. Any injustice I see for myself, is what it is, and that will be dealt with in due time, but those behind me, regardless of why they are there, they need my help. Because as you go down in this pyramid, the injustice increases. They know what they need for help, so I need to listen to them. But nobody should ever assume, when I talk about being grateful and staying positive, I mean everything is ok and we shouldn’t fight. I’m saying I will face my troubles with positivity and be grateful for what I have, until we get everyone behind me the privileges I have. Then I can start taking care of the injustices on my plate, with my brothers and sisters facing the same injustices. Until then, the only fight I’m worried about is theirs, because the greater injustices need to be dealt with beforehand, because moving forward without them doesn’t change a damned thing. It leaves all these obstacles and pitfalls in the system firmly in place.
Now that this is out of the way, let me talk about a horrible meme I saw from an admittedly funny magician. There’s a major problem in society, particularly with those more comfortably in the Middle Tiers of the pyramid. Either through poor education, or just faulty logic they draw conclusions based on premises that are absolutely false.

Now, when this happens, when people draw these ridiculous conclusions based on flawed premises, as that spreads because no one checks them on it, then it becomes the reality, and that’s what we have here.
Let’s break down this argument, then I will point out what is wrong with the premises, and conclusion:
Premise #1: The Government is an entity outside of the people.
Premise #2: That this Government forces people to do things they don’t want to.
Premise #3: That compassion is only helping the less fortunate yourself.
Premise #4: The Government uses guns to force us to pay for things.
Premise #5: That people vote for the Government to use guns to force us to pay for things.
Premise#6: That nobody should be required to help others if they don’t want.
Conclusion: It is wrong for people to be forced to help others because if they don’t the Government will hurt them with guns.

Alright, Premise#1 is completely absurd. You need look no further than the Preamble of the Constitution of the United States of America:

“We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defence, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.”

Most of my objections to this Libertarian hogwash are going to center around this Preamble. You think “but it’s just the opening, it has no legal bearing.” Every word of that document is just as important as any other. It sets the framework for the nation. It was never meant to be the whole thing, it is meant to be changed and augmented as times changed. Right at the start, it says that the Constitution, ergo, the framework of the government is “We the People”. Which means if you don’t like what’s happening, it means you are participating enough. It means get to your party nominating meetings, vote in primaries, vote in every election and get your friends to vote with you. If not, you have no right to complain, because you have to be part of it. You want to change the system, you can, if you can get enough people to agree with you. So the people are the government, and the government is the people. That only 15-50% of people vote in elections shows a broken system, but it doesn’t make the government a different entity outside the people, it says that not enough people are swayed to vote in accord with your beliefs. So there’s #1 gone.
Premise #2, well sometimes you have to do things you don’t want to do in a civil society.
“Taxes are the price we pay for civilized society.
Taxes are the price we pay for civilization.
I like to pay taxes. With them I buy civilization.”
Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr. – Dissent 1927 Compañía General de Tabacos de Filipinas v. Collector of Internal Revenue
It may be a dissenting opinion in a Supreme Court Case, but that doesn’t make it less true. This comedian would not have a avenue for his fame and fortune without infrastructure and programs paid for on his tax monies. You wouldn’t be reading this on the Internet if not for taxes.
Now, compassion is caring for others, from yourself yes. But it’s more than that. It’s sympathy, it’s a desire to alleviate suffering. Nobody can do all this alone.
“I am opposing a social order in which it is possible for one man who does absolutely nothing that is useful to amass a fortune of hundreds of millions of dollars, while millions of men and women who work all the days of their lives secure barely enough for a wretched existence.”
-Eugene V. Debs “Statement to the Court Upon Being Convicted of Violating the Sedition Act” (18 September 1918)
If you don’t know the struggles of the tier below you, how can you be expected to help them out of the problems they face, therefore solidarity is the only way forward, rugged individualism will never be enough. So the power invested in a government must be used for the greater good.
The Government uses force for sure, and they use it wrong many many times. They don’t use it for simple tax collection. They do use it when people are stealing from the government and then when they are being told to pay, point guns at the government. White people problems, that’s what I’m saying there, Cliven Bundy and his ilk are no heroes, they are absolute thieves, destroying public lands and refusing to pay. I realize these are opinions here.
Once again, no votes are taken to force people to pay at gunpoint, this is an absurd idea.
As for the final premise, the virtues of helping others in society are innumerable. If you are so selfish and greedy as to not want to help anyone, let’s just remind you that a high tide does raise all ships. Here’s an article on the value of public education alone. Roads, bridges, electrical systems, all manner of infrastructure, these things help the poor believe it or not. Better roads make cars more reliable, lower repair bills help those in poverty keep their heads above water. It’s more simply a matter of not seeing how things are connected for whatever reason. This is all back to about how taxes are there for facilitating a civil society. Not to mention the Preamble states that the government IS there for the general welfare of the people.
So you can see, the conclusion simply does not follow. It’s simply improper due to not understanding the basic principles of what this country is supposed to do. Libertarianism is a scourge on this land. It is a symptom of not looking past ones own interests. Also not understanding that your interests are actually bouyed by helping those less fortunate. It’s time for this idea of people doing things on their own to go away. Nobody anywhere ever got anyplace worthwhile on their own. Anyone who thinks they did in working on a certain level of dissonance.
With that, I have used my voice for the day, I will see you all tomorrow I hope.

Have fun, keep running, and remember; if Gil can run then so can you!

Posted in Uncategorized by Gil with no comments yet.