Fear, Honor, and Interest

My granddaughter recently introduced me to one of the funniest TV series I've seen in ages: "Cunk on Earth," carried on Netflix. It's a British mockumentary series starring comedian Diane Morgan as Philomena Cunk, a hopelessly clueless and ill-informed investigative reporter who walks the audience through a condensed version of human history in five episodes. Along the way, she "interviews" an array of real-world historians, philosophers, and subject matter experts, often leaving them struggling to provide rational answers to her bizarre questions. Part of the fun of the show is watching the looks on the faces of the interviewees as Philomena deadpans her way through some truly astounding questions.

But as it happens, the show occasionally stumbles upon a real gem of interest.

In Episode 4 ("Rise of the Machines"), Ms Cunk reports on the awesome savagery of the mechanized warfare of World War I, and asks Professor Ashley Jackson, Professor of Imperial and Military History at Kings College in London, 

"Why does humankind feel the need to invent killing machines like this, and could you keep your answer to a sort of soundbite length?"

Not missing a beat, Professor Jackson responds with one of the best summaries of history in a single soundbite I've ever heard:

"Fear, honor, and interest."

If ever there were three words that summed up the reasons we humans go to war, they are these ... and we see them play out not only in war, but in present-day America. 

Fear drives many (particularly white and "Christian") Americans to extreme positions as they see their domination of the nation's life and history slowly being eroded by the growing proportion of minorities in the population who seek their own piece of the American dream. 

Honor is a quaint concept that has lost its ability to affect American behavior, particularly among our elected members of Congress. One need only look at the fawning obsequiousness of Republicans toward a crude, angry blowhard like Der Furor as they scramble to defend him against criticism of his own self-indulgent and self-destructive behavior. To today's "MAGA" Republicans, honor is found only in the slavish worship of the person least worthy of it.

Interest is the driver of modern American business decisions. In a capitalist society, business decisions are made on the basis of profit and loss, rather than on any concept of social responsibility, while the working class makes decisions on the basis of being able to afford a home, education, and medical care for a family. When profits are threatened, the business solution is generally not favorable to those on the lowest rungs of the economic ladder.

I believe Professor Jackson was absolutely right in his immediate answer to Philomena's question, although it was focused on the human drive to war rather than on everyday human activity. Fear, honor, and interest are, indeed, the drivers of today's America.

Have a good day. More thoughts coming.

Bilbo