Battleangel

I’m faced with a linguistic problem here. Copyriot’s story of the day, in Swedish of course, is covering a brand new report from EUDOXA (background):

Unfortunately they did not provide a translation of the article. EUDOXA has coined the term ‘Hårdaretagism’. An emerging attitude that could be vaguely translated as ’strong-armism’ (literally ‘harder/tougher-measures-ism’) in the sense of being one-sided, single-minded, oppressive and escalating in nature. Never mind the term. EUDOXA feels that this new universal answer to everything is deeply problematic. They trace it back to the practical issues of graffiti, file sharing, honor killings, the war on terror and reproductive cloning. In short the attitudes surrounding these rather novel social events, and how certain groups have influenced and steered society and public attitudes in a certain direction.

Seldom have I seen a social problem so well encompassed and presented. The bottom line is that ’strong-armism’ always strives to stay on track and escalate the measures in question to solve a given problem. There is no debate. No alternatives. The current method of doing things is the simplest and the most efficient, by definition. The follow-up is non-existent and the interpretation of success and failure is highly biased. The attitude just gains momentum over time, demanding more and more resources and infecting more and more of society. EUDOXA concludes that this attitude is a direct threat against a tolerant and humane society, even against the idea of democracy as such. Why even propagate the idea of democracy and public debate if, in the end, there is really only one solution anyway? Or at least only one solution that will be accepted.

EUDOXA also makes it clear that this attitude is unbound by existing political ideology, and perspectives. In many ways, much like say a totalitarian movement, it constructs a patchwork of identity and world view from countless outside sources. But the specifics are not relevant. Nothing else matters but keeping the cycle of escalation moving and turning. If something works than it’s seen as a proof the system works, if it fails then it’s ALSO proof the system works, but needs more resources, more authority, a more aggressive approach. Only zero tolerance is the limit, which is obviously just a mad as the desire to dominate all nations. The means are limitless. To stop and think is a death sentence for this type attitude, as it would be for a totalitarian movement. I can’t easily overlook this unsettling link.

EUDOXA has summarized and emphasized perhaps the most significant threat against human existence of our time. Once the attitude is mainstream (and it already is in some ways and in some places) there is no telling what could happen. And even though the report is specific for Sweden there is more than ample evidence that such attitudes have spread far and wide thanks to modern mass media. It doesn’t matter where is started but the strategy has to end here and now before nations have wound up to such a degree that only another world war is sufficient relief.

Nor is it likely any one person or group behind this development. Other than respective hegemonies of course. So far it’s only a movement. A shapeless malevolence, which no one has yet reined in or harnessed, if you will. But someone always will though that it also besides the point. Madness is, as Nietzsche would have put it “rare in individuals–but in groups, parties, nations, and ages it is the rule.”