Wisconsin’s Moral Crisis — Has Wisconsin Lost Its Collective Soul?

For the better part of a year I have observed the vilification by the political right of a number of groups within our diverse Wisconsin society. This has included the poor, disabled,  elderly, students, public employees, teachers, labor unions, environmentalists, progressive intellectuals, racial and ethnic groups, etc; just about anyone who doesn’t completely agree with their world view and their take on reality.

In short; it necessarily includes anyone who is outside the right’s political vision. The vilification of at least half the population of Wisconsin has been done methodically and with purpose; leading to a polarization of significance. A rational person must ask what is to be gained by this practice.

This type of action is normally taken during periods of wartime and it is designed to dehumanize the enemy. Sociological and psychological studies have revealed that to take the actions necessary to defeat an enemy; they must be discounted to less than human status. If the enemy is counted as fully human, then it is difficult to rationalize one’s behavior morally. At play here is also classic ethnocentrism, in group and out group classifications. Again, the identified enemy must be subverted to the out group in order to morally justify one’s negative actions. If the political right is at war, then what are they waging war against?

The political right see themselves locked in a battle for survival. The survival of their beliefs and a vision of what the United States is and has been. Many see the nation as the “new promised land” where, under the Supreme Deity’s protection and guidance, mankind is destined to achieve its highest calling. So convinced are they of this mythology that they are willing to wage an ideological war, with some prepared to transition from the abstract to the concrete. The political right sees progressive change as a threat to their way of life and exalted positions. The ideological rhetoric is heavily laced with their values and beliefs with underlying racial overtones, elitism, American Protestant Christianity, and laissez-faire capitalism. At the core of the belief system is pure Calvinism and sovereign individuality.

The American mythos is derived directly from the Calvinistic teaching that only G-d’s elect are successful and those that are not are somehow not part of that elect. Calvin also puts forward the notion that “good works," as interpreted by Roman Catholicism, were useless pursuits; that no matter how many “good works” is done that one cannot earn a place in the elect. Fortunately the Dutch Calvinists modified Calvinism with the teachings of Christ’s treatment of the poor to include “acts of Christian charity” and the notion of “free will”. However, what finally came into American myth and culture are the concepts of the “Protestant Work Ethic” and the “Deserving Poor verse the Undeserving Poor."

The American value for work is paramount above almost any other value. People’s intrinsic worth is largely defined by their vocations or professions and occasionally their avocations. The work value is so exalted that when people are first introduced, they will invariably include their profession or vocation to help define who they are. Personal judgment is passed as to the individual’s worth or potential worth and fitness. Very few exceptions are accepted to the work value rule. In conjunction with the work value is the material wealth value. This provides a validation of the work value and is testament to the intrinsic value of the individual deserving of elevated status, respect, position and social power. In many ways this reflects a belief in simple “Social Darwinism”, where the wealthy and powerful have evolved to their elevated positions and have become a different type of human being. Although the American myth also claims to be a classless society, it clearly is not. Unlike our European forbearers who came out of landed classes, our class system is based solely on Socio Economic Status (SES), with the wealthiest sitting on the top of the Social Structural Pyramid. In our class system it is not enough just to be wealthy; but family history, religious orientation, education, locale and ethnicity all play a part of the matrix of class. All of the aforementioned values and structure has been conveniently wrapped into the conceptual phrase of “Family Values”. Who or what constitutes the political left?

The political left has its roots in the Italian Renaissance and the emergence of “Humanism”. From the Classical Renaissance emerged “Secular Humanism” and then “Religious Humanism”. Secular humanism finally found its full flower in the “Age of Reason” and the “Enlightenment." The men who founded our republic were strongly influenced by secular humanism and many of the basic values and concepts were written into our founding documents. The philosophical ideas of liberty, equality, justice, well being and the expression of individuality all came from the Enlightenment and secular humanism. The 19th century gave rise to the natural expressions of humanism in the sciences, humanities, philosophies, economics and social order. In short, the needs and well being of the individual is guaranteed by social contracts between peoples who acknowledge the importance of all human existence and experience. Humanism has found expression in a variety of social structures including; cooperatives, communalism, utopianism, socialism, communism and democracy. Over the course of two centuries the United States has evolved into a representative social democracy.

Secular humanism is written into the U.S. Constitution and subsequent amendments to protect the rights and welfare of individuals and minority groups from the unreasoned will of the majority.  The political left has defended the precepts of secular humanism against the forces of the political right that attempt to reduce or restrict those rights. Over time the push and pull between the right and left has left us with a series of compromises that doesn’t completely satisfy either side. However, it has worked to move the nation and the states forward in such a manner that it has been functional, but not terribly efficient.

Beginning with the defeat of Barry Goldwater in 1964, the political right made the conscious decision to employ a different strategy and tactics. They moved from “Top Down” politics to “Bottom Up." The political right fully understood that the power in this democracy is in the hands of the individual voter. A clear and consistent program was devised to reeducate the voter to embrace the political right’s value system and gain votes to defeat the political left. The war began at the local school boards, local elected councils and commissions. Nearly fifty years later we are now engaged in a full battle at all levels to retain the collective soul of the nation and maintain our constitutional guarantees. The olligarchs of the political right have perpetrated a social and economic crisis not seen since the Great Depression to finally defeat the left.

In Wisconsin we have been subjected to the full impact of this war. With Scott Walker winning the governorship, Republican control of both houses of the legislature and a clear majority in the Supreme Court; the stage was set for the political right to fulfill its wish list and power grab. The Republican right of Wisconsin is a support organization to the corporate oligarchy (control by corporations). Corporations and many businesses are generally amoral in their approach, citing an ultimate responsibility to the share holders via the board of directors and chief executives. All actions taken thus far in the state are in support of corporatists. The reduction of state funding to government supported services, except law enforcement and fire protection, has been dramatically shifted away and reduced to support a corporatist agenda. This has all been done under the reasoning of making the state “business friendly." The reasoning goes that by making it easier and cheaper for business in the state that it will attract businesses to move here, for entrepreneurs to start new businesses and for established businesses to grow. So far this approach has yet to yield any significant fruit and is based on dubious assumptions in the first place. What has happened is that Wisconsin’s moral principles have been significantly compromised to accomplish the “business friendly” atmosphere.

The agents of the corporatist oligarchy are using what I call “pocket book morality”. They are justifying their actions against the ability to generate revenue sufficient to fund morally imperative actions and programs. They have clearly convinced a large portion of the public that they are protecting their interests by limiting funds to what they claim are over bloated programs requiring huge infusions of taxpayer money. They are playing on the “work and anti undeserving poor values” knowing the resentment that many white Wisconsinites have toward the unemployed, underemployed and the poor on government assistance. This has given them the “green light” to restructure the government and social institutions of the state, ultimately favoring the political right and their oligarchy. This is an extremely dangerous situation for the citizens of the state.

This “pocket book morality” is willing to compromise our future and the general wellbeing of the citizens all in the name of affordability. The political right’s call to action against the selected minorities is only a beginning of complete control over the political process.

The political bomb dropped in January by the governor was the first indication of the intent of the political right to go to an all out war; finally gaining an unassailable position of power; to restructure, redefine morality and to turn back the clock on progressive humanism. However, in so doing, they have polarized the state and have taken a less than moral position in the name of affordability and expediency; "Pocket Book Morality" in the full.