Is It Really So Nice To Be Nice?
"I did not attend his funeral; but I wrote a nice letter saying I approved of it." - Mark Twain
Niceness is the zeitgeist of today. When our ancestors look back through the filter of time, what is it that they will find noteworthy about the people who live in this century? It will not be our valour, nor our cruelty. In both, we have been far surpassed by our forefathers. Nor are our achievements in the arts likely to stand out, as there have been golden ages in the past far more refined than our own period. It will not be our reason, intellectual insight, or mental agility, since these qualities have been in abundance well before the dawn of this century.
By the term "nice" I do not mean to refer to anything which is genuine and authentic. Instead I speak of a phenomenon which is based on the desire to be well thought of by everyone we come into contact with. Niceness is narcissism thinly veiled. Whereas someone who is genuinely kind may wish to express how much they like another, a narcissist will be nice simply in order to obtain praise for himself. Kindness and Niceness are uneasy bedfellows, for where one speaks of reaching out, the other is concerned with looking in, and where the one is a virtue, the other is the product of a vice.
At the societal level, political correctness is the name for the philosophy of niceness gone global. North America is now stifled under the aegis of this repressive orthodoxy which has made its presence felt in all sectors of society, from the media to our politics. One does not choose to conform to the standards of the politically correct class, one is required to. To break with the norm and take a stand for individual expression is an enormous social risk. To speak out against political correctness risks retribution comparable to that experienced by dissenters who spoke out against the old soviet regime. To suggest, for instance, that The Game exists would be dangerous enough, but to do so repeatedly and concertedly would be socially suicidal.
Political correctness is niceness elevated to the level of philosophy. It is the new orthodoxy, literally defining North American society. It is reflected in the media, in our laws, in our politics. Being politically correct in your presentation is not a matter of choice; it is a social mandate. Taking any strong position on any topic is tantamount to social suicide. These days, someone being politically incorrect is the equivalent of having spoken out against the party in the Soviet Union or decrying Christian values in the Victorian era. For instance, even the vaguest suggestion that the game exists, is a complete faux pas in the politically correct world. If one is foolish enough to press the point, one risks become a social pariah.
What exactly is political correctness? It is easier to say what it is not. It is not racist, it is not sexist and it is not restrictive. It is not anything at all! It is intolerance of intolerance itself. Any ideology draws a boundary somewhere as to what is acceptable and what is not; what is tolerable and what is not. Propriety, in the past, was prescribed by dogma. Ironically, political correctness denounces dogma as being intolerant, yet manages to be no less judgmental. In the end all we are left with is blandness, tepidness, mediocrity; in other words, niceness!
And herein lives the final triumph of the Players. Equipped with political correctness they can say and do as they please so long as they manage to do so without letting conviction or moral forbearance get in the way. Anyone who objects to their dominance is politically incorrect and will be excluded from the hub of society which they control. The reality is that we are having our rights stripped from us gradually but inexorably. Over time we have been reduced to the status of mindless inmates operating within a society which has become a prison. And the worst thing is that most of us will never notice because for all its evils, this particular prison is so, so nice!
Niceness is the zeitgeist of today. When our ancestors look back through the filter of time, what is it that they will find noteworthy about the people who live in this century? It will not be our valour, nor our cruelty. In both, we have been far surpassed by our forefathers. Nor are our achievements in the arts likely to stand out, as there have been golden ages in the past far more refined than our own period. It will not be our reason, intellectual insight, or mental agility, since these qualities have been in abundance well before the dawn of this century.
By the term "nice" I do not mean to refer to anything which is genuine and authentic. Instead I speak of a phenomenon which is based on the desire to be well thought of by everyone we come into contact with. Niceness is narcissism thinly veiled. Whereas someone who is genuinely kind may wish to express how much they like another, a narcissist will be nice simply in order to obtain praise for himself. Kindness and Niceness are uneasy bedfellows, for where one speaks of reaching out, the other is concerned with looking in, and where the one is a virtue, the other is the product of a vice.
At the societal level, political correctness is the name for the philosophy of niceness gone global. North America is now stifled under the aegis of this repressive orthodoxy which has made its presence felt in all sectors of society, from the media to our politics. One does not choose to conform to the standards of the politically correct class, one is required to. To break with the norm and take a stand for individual expression is an enormous social risk. To speak out against political correctness risks retribution comparable to that experienced by dissenters who spoke out against the old soviet regime. To suggest, for instance, that The Game exists would be dangerous enough, but to do so repeatedly and concertedly would be socially suicidal.
Political correctness is niceness elevated to the level of philosophy. It is the new orthodoxy, literally defining North American society. It is reflected in the media, in our laws, in our politics. Being politically correct in your presentation is not a matter of choice; it is a social mandate. Taking any strong position on any topic is tantamount to social suicide. These days, someone being politically incorrect is the equivalent of having spoken out against the party in the Soviet Union or decrying Christian values in the Victorian era. For instance, even the vaguest suggestion that the game exists, is a complete faux pas in the politically correct world. If one is foolish enough to press the point, one risks become a social pariah.
What exactly is political correctness? It is easier to say what it is not. It is not racist, it is not sexist and it is not restrictive. It is not anything at all! It is intolerance of intolerance itself. Any ideology draws a boundary somewhere as to what is acceptable and what is not; what is tolerable and what is not. Propriety, in the past, was prescribed by dogma. Ironically, political correctness denounces dogma as being intolerant, yet manages to be no less judgmental. In the end all we are left with is blandness, tepidness, mediocrity; in other words, niceness!
And herein lives the final triumph of the Players. Equipped with political correctness they can say and do as they please so long as they manage to do so without letting conviction or moral forbearance get in the way. Anyone who objects to their dominance is politically incorrect and will be excluded from the hub of society which they control. The reality is that we are having our rights stripped from us gradually but inexorably. Over time we have been reduced to the status of mindless inmates operating within a society which has become a prison. And the worst thing is that most of us will never notice because for all its evils, this particular prison is so, so nice!
About the Author:
John Berling Hardy helps people to cut through the artifice which dominates our lives. For more of his writings please visit www.playingtheplayers.com
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