This is something that has been bugging me. This is mostly in America as I don't know much about the politics of other countries to have an opinion on, but if you do, please share. Recently, I found myself getting more and more into politics. And I've been looking at a liberal page (since that's what I seem to classify with the most) daily for news or just regular political talk. Today I saw something from a non-Liberal saying that "We just want what the Founding Fathers believed: See: The federalist papers." What has been bugging me a lot is that so many people seem to refer to as "the foundation this country was built on" or "the founding father's values" as the core of this country. Not only do some of these people have the wrong idea (America was founded purely on Christianity, for example), but it seems like they're halting change in my eyes. I like George Washington as much as the next guy, and I don't mind teaching our kids about him, but is it too old school? What I'm trying to ask here is this: Is focusing on our older traditions and values slowing or even halting our progress as a country? (If con is the opposite of pro, what's the opposite of progress?)
I think that, to some degree, preserving tradition is important. Some traditions are interesting part of nations' cultural identities, so attempting to keep them around isn't entirely bad. However, I don't think tradition should ever be prioritized over making people happy/suffer less.
I'll get involved in politics when i'm legally allowed to vote which unfortunately will have to skip another year in my life, since 18 is only around 24 days before my 18th. Damn Gordon Brown. Go Greenpeace party. Not because I like them or know their policies, but i'd love to see that government structure. But anyway yes, I know what you mean. We base our politics on tradition because it is all we have to base our future judgements on. We look to the past because we think it will shape our future, but this is wrong. The world and it's people change every day, mentally and biologically. We aren't the same politically as we were 200 years ago, from the monarchy of Britain, for example, developed into the democracy we see today. But it is difficult to see our change. The prime minister still consults the Queen on any matters, though the royal family are mainly a tourist attraction these days. They wield no real power and are only respected because of the history we have with them as a country. We need to think about our future and how to live. Not just how to cope for the next couple of years, battling against recession, unemployment, crime, etc, we must look forward to changing our whole being and progress forward. Unfortunately everyday people don't care and neither do the people they vote for. It's sometihng one person can change but what many need to do. Saying that we need progress is kind of hypocritical for me. I see things as needing to go back to the basics, by living in harmony with nature, as described in Daoism, my religion. However, for a whole country I know the concept is incredibly difficult to even think about. My dream would be to live without living under the rule of someone else, but by what I choose. And this wouldn't mean doing anything I want, but doing what I should. However not many people have the discipline or inclination to make up their own life rules. To tell the truth I think i'm a silent anarchist! :P
I think that old traditions should be learned about, but not necessarily practiced in some cases. It's important to learn how things used to be. As the saying goes: "Those who cannot learn from history are doomed to repeat it." The belief that everything should be traditional does certainly seem to make change come slowly, if not halt it entirely. Sometimes keeping with traditions is a good thing, but the idea that change could be better should always be considered.
As far as America goes, I definitely think that us holding on to a Constitution that was written 200 years ago is hindering us. That Constitution was built for the time period, and it's served us well. But this is 2010. We need to change. Yes, there is a place for our traditional vision of a representative democracy in our future, but we desperately need to reform a bit. People & the world are constantly in motion, and our government needs to set itself in motion as well. As far as people? I feel the same way. I often think that people cling on to religion as a comfort. They like to think that there's something that put us here, and something waiting for us. But scientifically, it just doesn't add up, and really just makes you seem very ignorant.
The irony here is that it is an incredibly traditionalist viewpoint that causes one to see religion and science as overlapping, one that no doubt springs from earlier times when religion pervaded every facet of life. This is not the case anymore. Religion falls under philosophy, an entirely separate discipline. In a nutshell, philo is internal study and science is external. Origin theory does indeed belong to science, but it has absolutely no conclusive word on origin theory; only speculation. As for the end: It is clear that the physical body is finite, but that there is something beyond this and what happens to it once the body expires is, at least at present, entirely outside of scientific study. It is better left to speculative philosophy, which deals with concepts of "mind" and "soul" regularly. Now, with that out of the way... Traditionalism, depending on its form, can be invaluable. It can be cultural spice, or the foundation of an entire school of thought. There are of course others that are less integral to society, such as bigotry and stereotype. As with anything else, you take it in moderation: Keep what doesn't hurt you and steadily dispense with the rest. Parting with tradition completely is like yanking the support beams out from under a building; now, granted, you might want to repair or replace a few of them when they get worn out or start getting in the way, but ideally you'd work on it one piece at a time.
