How does culturism's view square with the “culture war?”
The "culture war" is seen as divisive.
Both secularists and religious folks in our country can look back on a a long Western cultural tradition that holds mens’ spiritual attributes to be more valuable than their physical attributes. Plato said that men’s souls were higher than their bodies. He said reason should rule appetite. Freud said the same thing. Jesus did too. It is sad that so often Christians and feminists agree on issues, but the way they frame them divides them.
Both the religious and the non-religious can invoke the primacy of mind / soul over body to anchor morals and critiques of our current culture. Why do we not feature sex on television or in the classroom? Because both insult man as a mental being. This is not just purely a cultural preference; real results come from it. We have a first world economy and opportunity today because we applied our minds to the problems of this world.
The FCC should make public airwaves an island of decency. This would create a safe zone for kids. We should use zoning laws to keep strip club billboards away from our main thoroughfares. In the age of of the internet the idea that this will bar people's access to information does not hold water. These culturist policies will promote essential cultural values.
The Culture War is often framed as a secular versus progressive battle. Culturism seeks to unite the sides around common Western values.
3 comments:
First they'll come for THE JEWS .
You seem to suggest that by declaring electronic waves a “smut free zone,” and by imposing zoning restrictions, we can provide an environment that is suitable for the dignity of mankind. I have two observations: (1) Hiding the problem is a superficial “supply side” solution. (2) Society should address the demand side of this equation with equal vigor.
The zoning is meant to induce shame back into our culture and respect for achievement. Addressing the "demand side" would also be good. Stephan Baskerville has suggestions for changes in the marriage laws that can encourage families. Schools should abandon "celebrating diversity" and "tolerance" as their main moral principles. We need to teach that individual's acts can be judged on whether or not they help support Western cultural values or not.
Zoning is not against our principles. Banning strip clubs altogether likely would be. We have the Courts and voters to determine that. If we do not teach virtue and responsibility, democracy will vote itself too many freebies, demagogues can appeal to what folks are owed and steer hatred, people will have unsustainable lifestyles, corruption can infest our political system, Etc. Culturism must counterbalance uncontextualized individualism.
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