6 ms·

"Where did this collective insanity come from?" From the paternalistic insanity of authoritarian collectivism.

• kalleboo 10y ago
  In that case wouldn't you see this stuff in Japan and China? edit: it almost seems to speak to a LOSS of collectivism in the US, when people lived in small communities that all shared the same values
  • csuwldcat 10y ago
    I think you're equating collectivism with community, and the two aren't inextricably linked. Collectivism is the philosophy that a central set of practices and behaviors be enforced across a group, placing the group's will (often via force-backed punishment) over individual beliefs and choices. That's quite a bit different that a close-knit community that features voluntary interaction for mutual benefit. The latter form of true community is great, but in the US we're gravitating more and more toward forcing views about safety, security, and social behavior on others through criminalization of once ordinary personal choices.
    • kalleboo 10y ago
      I struggling to see where "true community" as you describe it has existed outside of Ayn Rand novels. American and global communities have always ostracized people (which used to mean struggling if not death) who don't agree with the group's will (which traditionally has been based on religion but also other mores). I guess the difference now would be that the group has become bigger (state/national) rather than based on towns/neighborhoods.