Quiet Desperation? Conservatives In The Age Of Trump

This is a reproduction of an article of mine that ran on westernjournalism.com on July 25th, 2017:

Quiet Desperation? Conservatives In The Age Of Trump

“The mass of men lead lives of quiet desperation,” Henry David Thoreau famously wrote. In the United States today, the desperation isn’t so quiet anymore. In fact, the same could be said for the entire Western world, given the recent rise in anti-establishment sentiment throughout the West, most notably manifested in the election of Donald J. Trump in the U.S. and the passage of Brexit in the U.K.

Incomes are stagnant as the cost of living increases. Opportunities once available to people without college degrees in factories and industrial settings are rapidly disappearing as a result of automation; and increasing competition from immigrants, many of whom lack skills and training and will accept much lower wages, puts pressure on wage earners.

Gone is the job security of yesteryear, with its pensions and loyalty to the employee; the “gig economy,” with its temp-to-hire purgatory and every-man-for-himself attitude toward benefits, seems to be here to stay.

In response to this, the political left, remembered fondly by some as the champion of the working class, has been hijacked by postmodern neo-Marxism and no longer speaks for laborers and middle-income families. To the cries of working people for fair wages and protection of domestic industry, it has only two answers: 1) “Shut up and quit being racist,” and 2) “Reduce your carbon footprint, you climate-change denier.”

Who will represent these forgotten workers?

On the right, a sense of frustration with “the Establishment” — that is, the center-right Republican Party, particularly from the East and West Coasts, whose interests seem to be out of sync with those of the rest of the country — is boiling over. Anger and resentment about the pace and extent of social changes, and the incredible growth of invasive, unaccountable bureaucracy that seems to care not a bit for the liberty of the individual, compel people to make choices that they would never have considered even a decade ago.

It was the anger of such people, devastated by the destruction of the family wrought by “progressive” social policy and repressed by a ban on common sense imposed by academe, that catapulted a brash, morally questionable business tycoon to the position of leader of the free world.

What are we to make of this?

Conservatives believe that the world is built on rules, and that by discovering and applying those rules to our lives we can come as close as possible to the goal of human thriving. But the cultural climate in which we find ourselves is increasingly hostile to the kinds of conversations that lead to the discovery of those rules.

We believe that the United States is built on principles that work better than the principles of other systems. For instance, allowing people to keep what they earn and compete in an open market to sell their goods and services reduces costs and increases quality. Allowing people to freely express and practice their religious beliefs, and openly discuss ideas and solutions to challenges, produces the sorts of ideas that we need to survive — ideas that win wars, that cure diseases, that increase crop yields to feed growing populations, that create new, energy-efficient transportation and industrial technology.

Freedom is more than an idea that’s good in theory. It’s a pragmatic idea as well; that is, its functional utility is self-evident.

Now then, how are we to preserve these principles in the face of the destructive forces that are always present?

First, the individual must cultivate wisdom and virtue. Wisdom is competence with regard to the complexities of life. Virtue is any realm of human endeavor honed to a pitch of excellence.

A great way to do this is to practice these two rules, discussed by Dr. Jordan Peterson, clinical psychologist and professor at the University of Toronto:

First, when you encounter an opportunity to increase your competence, take it. Everything you do matters. Get better at one thing, and the principles and strategies you use to improve yourself will apply to other things, too.

Second, stop saying things that make you feel weaker. Say only things that you believe. (You can tell when you say something that makes you weaker: You can feel it in your chest. You can hear the voice in your head that says, “No, that isn’t true.”)

Speak your truths to other people. They’ll tell you where you’re wrong. Think about their criticisms, and then the next time you speak, you’ll say it better. Eventually, you’ll be so sharp and articulate that your influence will grow. And the humility that you foster along the way will ensure that your power and influence won’t corrupt you or lead you astray.

Imagine if you took every opportunity to improve yourself that came along for a few years. Imagine if you spoke only the words that strengthened you. Imagine the impact on your families, your churches, your neighborhoods, cities and towns. Imagine the impact on the quality of elected leaders, policymakers and business people.

It is too late for the country? Is the progressive agenda, so corrosive to life and freedom as we know it, inevitable?

There’s only one way to find out: Get better and speak the truth. Then the very best possible “you” will face the challenges of an ever-changing world.