Authority: A Critique
10/26/2022 12:29 PM MST
philosophy
Let me play the Devil’s advocate and argue against the philosophy typical of authority. Towards the end I will seek to offer an alternative philosophy (that I am attempting to use for the time being.) However, I believe all philosophies should be open to improvement.
Light: Authority seeks to conform a group around a common goal. It does so by conjuring up loyalty or group membership, or harps on threatening punishment for non-compliance.
Dark: The goal may be accomplished by simple wishing of it. If not, then the morality of the group should be examined. The individual would be foolish to listen to authority when it’s clear they only have their personal interests at heart. When forced to comply, they typically do so begrudgingly, with little effort, and may cause additional problems as a result.
Conclusion: Authority is foolish; It recognizes the power of moral frameworks yet always places itself “safely” outside of them, for fear that the system is flawed. Alas, but if it’s flawed then why institute the fucking thing to begin with! Good values should be demonstrated, and if the group fails to follow them, then the group should fight. Escalation of severity should be employed. First, the members should debate. Then if this fails, they should duel. If this fails, then a civil war is necessary to restore moral order.
Light: Authority seeks to change its controlled members’ philosophies and demeanors to fit a group standard. Standards assure a level of quality that predicates success according to the authority’s memories and philosophical framework.
Dark: People have a natural desire to seek distinction. The idea of a standard is a set level of quality in adherence to some concept, which if the quality falls too much or rises too much, then the object of interest must be miscategorized. However, promoting someone who is of higher quality can extinguish the flames of motivation. Likewise, demoting someone can light the flames of motivation. This is typically avoided by authority because of fear of retaliation/inner subversion. Again, another moral issue.
Conclusion: People are meant to run as a pack. Nature assures a standard; the ones that can’t keep up with the herd are eaten or lost and starve. It’s unnecessary to place an obfuscatory layer between the person and the problem they’re dealing with. Providing enlightenment is obviously valuable and a reason to argue for authority. At least, in my mind, thought leaders should be respected and people naturally seek to adopt the behaviors of those they respect.
Light: Authority seeks to control information. Either because they don’t trust their followers, they don’t trust the security of the environment, or they fear the ripple effects of releasing it.
Dark: Firstly, the followers would likely trust the authority more if more information was released. Secondly, once trust is established, the followers would be more poised to help secure the environment than the authority. Thirdly, ripple effects are inevitable regardless, so not too much caution should be used before actioning on a judgment.
Conclusion: Wise people believe in the philosophy of Wu Wei due to experience and observation. So therefore, followers should realize that authority is either acting in accordance with Wu Wei or with the Tao. How intensely one focuses on doing nothing seems to activate some type of moral desire system. Perhaps this is because the mind is simply habitually used to instinctually continuously searching for threats instead of opportunities. With patience, the mind naturally inverts this, and seeks to grow by identifying opportunities through deep contemplation that is only possible by dedicating oneself to it.
Information is like the wind. To block the wind, one must oppose it in equal measure. To fight oppression (bad air descending) one can create fires to create an updraft, or one can accept it as pollution which runs through the rivers. Good air comes from below, rising from its oppression to greet you, or is a gentle breeze reminding you of peace.