Reaching Towards an Un-Ally-ism

I've been intrigued for the last few months with the Ally moral political philosophy that I got from Matt Taibbi:

It sees the human being as locked into one of three categories: members of oppressed groups, allies, and white oppressors.

Mainly, I'm intrigued because of the way that it presents liberals as the noblest, kindest, bravest, evolve-est people that ever lived. What could be nobler than fighting for the oppressed against the oppressors!

But, I tend to think, do you really mean to say that all those middle-average Americans at Trump rallies are really the deplorable "white oppressors" of which we've heard tell? Really? Cross your heart and hope to die? 

I'd believe it if our liberal friends weren't so interested in political power. Because the basic requirement of the Ally paradigm is that we give the Allies the power to hunt and kill the "white oppressors."

In other words, our liberal friends do not propose to do all their ally work for free. Oh no. The whole point of their moral positioning is Jobs for Gentry. Preferably life-time jobs with tenure.

OK. Suppose that I was commissioned by a well-heeled tech billionaire to come up with a counter-Ally moral paradigm? What would it be? Who would be the innocents? Who would be the villains? Who the heroes?

I think I'd like the archetypal notion of the Sacrificial Hero as the good guy, and my notion of the Ego Hero as the bad guy. So there are your "allies" and "white oppressors" taken care of.

So, whatabout the "oppressed peoples?" My little problem is that I don't believe in the notion of "oppressed peoples." The only way you would get that is with a powerful political elite with a monopoly on the levers of power. It takes big-time political power to create a class of "oppressed peoples." Something like a feudal system or a Commie dictatorship. Otherwise the natural jealousy in every human that is instinctively opposed to other people having political power would put a stop to all efforts at oppression. Except that, it seems to me, many Subordinate people are quite happy to see political power used to provide them with benefits. That, after all, is the universal plan of lefty politics. You "oppressed peoples!" Give us political power and we will stick it to the "white oppressors!" In return for free stuff. Hmm. There is something weird about that notion.

It seems to me that the salient characteristic of the "oppressed peoples" is that they don't act; they expect someone else to act for them. And really, that is also true of the supposed "white oppressors." Just what are those notorious "white oppressors" up to this week? Well, back in 2017 there were a couple-dozen tiki-torch bearers around a statue of Robert E. Lee. And the other week Gov. Kate Brown of Oregon was worried by a Proud Boys peaceful protest in North Portland:

“I am incredibly concerned about the increased risk of violence in Portland this weekend,” Brown told reporters.

Ya know, Gov. Brown, when you are nonchalant about months of AntiFa protests in Portland but declare a state of emergency about one Proud Boys protest way out in the northern suburbs, that is what they call, in poker, a "tell."

Just what are all those "white oppressors" actually doing? Apart from carrying tiki-torches and all? Not much. Of course, lots of them are going to Trump rallies, Trump Car Parades, and Trump Boat Parades.

So, I think that the characteristic of almost everyone who is not trying out for a Hero role is that they are the "audience." Think about your average superhero movie. There is the good-guy hero, the Batman or Spiderman. There is the bad-guy villain, the Joker or whoever. Everybody else, including the Gotham city police, especially the Gotham city police, are spectators. They have no action role to play; they are just watching the action, hoping that the good guys win.

So, I say that if you want to understand modern life, it is like a superhero movie. Here goes.

I experience humans as choosing one of three roles on the stage of life: Sacrificial Hero, Ego Hero, or Spectator.

The point is that most of us, whoever we are -- whether ginormous tech billionaires or stupid idiots clearing the shelves of Walgreens in San Francisco just down the street from Crazy Nancy's $24,000 side-by-side refrigerators -- are doing nothing about it. We are just following the rules, going to work, checking in everyday to our social media accounts, or consuming cable news, cheering one side and booing the other side. But not really doing anything about it.

And isn't that exactly what happens in superhero movies?