I agree with Arthur Cordell. "Reform" occurs by changing the thrust of
government's agenda, and this means "speaking truth to power",
clarifying publlic perceptions, not letting half truths or wooly
theories take the place of realistic socio-political concepts and
effective political action, and, ultimately, mobilizing broad coalitions
to "throw the rascals out" so decisively that a deterrent is provided
against further actions along the lines of extreme-Right knavery, and
the panoply of smoke and mirrors that accompanies it.
There is a lot that can be criticized, at any time, in any bureuacracy,
whether corporate or public. But, fundamentally, the extreme-Right has
had a three-fold strategy: first, weaken the public service and the
institutions and norms of governance of which they are a part; erode
corporate memory, so that the values and techniques of socially-oriented
public policy are forgotten; then scapegoat the public service, to
divert attention from those who are really making decisions or are
reflecting retrograde ideological agendas.
This is an old, old, game. I've been reading about, and planning a book
on, the deterioration of democracy in Europe after the First World War
and the rise of totalitarianisms, of both the Fascist and the
proletarian Left variety. These tactics have been repeated again and
again, with temporary success, but gutwrenching consequences. Mixed in
with these strategies are others, particularly pandering to fears in the
public or creating new fears, and creating an atmosphere of fear for
livelihood (even for life) in the public service and other structures of
society, to ensure disciplined conformity and failure to adhere to
ethical norms and/or professional standards and traditions. In total,
this is what the Nazis meant by "gleichshaltung", the creation of
conformist patterns of behavior (see for this the various writings of
Eric Fromm, among others, and the early case studies of Theodore Abel).
Don't be suckers! Don't believe everything you're told, or everything
that becomes easy to repeat! Don't undermine your own independence and
the possibility of independent thought and action in a democratic
society! And don't believe that it will last forever, or that the
ideological extreme-right represents entrenched, majority opinion!
What goes around, comes around. Think and act to uphold standards
today; plan for thought and action to restore and create a better
society tomorrow.
Saul Silverman
