What Ever Happened to Shame?

 

   

 

Play Audio of What Ever Happened to Shame

 

This past June 29, Breitbart.com, the über-conservative website ran a lead article  with the screaming headline OBAMA CAMPAIGN CELEBRATES INDEPENDENCE DAY . . . WITH FUNDRAISER IN PARIS. In the piece's snarky opening paragraph, blogger Ben Shapiro wrote:

Apparently tiring of US soil as a source of campaign dollars, the Obama campaign is headed overseas -- with its celebrity friends in tow.  The European Obama campaign starts next week in Paris on July 4 with a reception organized by various fundraising heavy-hitters.  Independence Day fundraisers in Paris -- now that's a flag-waving campaign! 

After attacking the president for what he termed his "European-style healthcare plan" which "Americans . . . see as a massive net negative sucking our coffers dry," blogger Shapiro concluded that "[Paris] . . . may be the only place Obama can still find cheering throngs." 

Of course, it goes without saying that President and Mrs. Obama were absolutely not going to Paris for the 4th of July. 

Within hours of Shapiro posting his article, the Los Angeles Times ran a piece on the president's Independence Day schedule, which had been easily gleaned from the White House website: "On Wednesday, he will host the traditional Independence Day celebration for members of the military and their families. on the South Lawn of the White House.  And anyone who had cared to check out the White House website for July 4  could have read the president's remarks to the assembled picnic goers. 

Despite having been quickly shown for what it was -- a bald-faced lie -- Shapiro's story continued to have a life of its own.  Thousands of Breitbart.com readers continued to treat it as the gospel, dumping all over the president for going to Paris, "the cradle of Socialism," in order to raise campaign funds . . . and on the Fourth of July!  Moreover, the lie also got tweeted by the likes of Karl Rove and was afforded a place of honor on Sean Hannity's message board, where his devotees trashed Mr. Obama for nearly a week more.  Some, while admitting that "maybe" the president had not actually traveled to France, nonetheless accused him of "closing down Arlington and then the Vietnam Memorial to veterans on Memorial Day."  what these folks had done was replace a discredited lie with a new bald-faced -- and demonstrably untrue -- fib.  For orthodox Obama haters, the truth rarely has the power to conquer a lie.  As has been proven time and again, a certified copy of Barack Obama's birth certificate means nothing to those who persist in the belief that the man was born in Kenya . . . or Moscow or on Neptune.  

Slick innuendo, mendacious half-truths and outright lies are absolutely endemic in modern high-stakes politics; they are the fuel that fires a million screaming headlines and lights up the lowest common denominator.  And because this is the United States of America, even the biggest, nastiest whoppers fall under the protection of the First Amendment.  Now to be certain, there are some generally accepted prohibitions on free speech, such as: 

• Yelling "FIRE" in a crowded theatre;
• Sedition (advocating force as a way to change government);
• Hate speech;
• Defamation (slander and/or libel);
• False or misleading advertising;
• Profanity on public airwaves, and
• Gag orders or publication bans in contracts, court cases and legal settlements.

Nowadays in the world of politics, it would seem that the telling of virtually any fiction, fable, falsehood or fabrication is acceptable; if you can create it, you can proclaim it.  For every lie that is told there are ears that will hear and mouths that will repeat. It seems that today, because the rewards of victory are so immense that no prevarication is punished.  And because there is so much lying and misrepresentation coming across the airwaves, in print and via electronic media, we have come to a point where nobody is believed . . . except the politicians you like. 

Historically, humanity possessed two censors for keeping mendacity to a public minimum: morality and shame.  For the person of even moderate faith, lying and bearing false witness have always been understood as immoral acts; just check the Biblical books of Exodus (20:13), Leviticus (19:11) and Deuteronomy (5:17).  For much of recorded history, people's words and deeds were, in large measure, shaped by a desire to live moral lives -- to be moral beings.  As such, spreading deliberate lies about others was understood to be both immoral and intolerable.  I for one find it terribly ironic that in the modern political arena, we hear as many protestations of faith and morality coming from the campaign stump as parishioners might in a church, a synagogue or a mosque.  Sadly, many of those flaunting their moral bona fides -- those who seek to blend religion and politics and to turn campaigns into crusades - are guilty of the sin of lying . . . over and over and over again.  Apparently, morality is no longer such an efficacious censor.

But what about that second censor . . . shame?  According to Paul Ekman, author of Telling Lies and one of the most brilliant psychologists of the past 50 years:

Shame is closely related to guilt, but there is a key qualitative difference.  No audience is needed for feelings of guilt; no one else need know, for the guilty person is his own judge.  Not so for shame.  The humiliation of shame requires disapproval or ridicule by others.  If no one ever learns of a misdeed there will be no shame, but there still  might be guilt.  Of course, there may be both.  The distinction between shame and guilt is very important, since these two emotions may tear a person in opposite directions.  The wish to relieve guilt may motivate a confession, but the wish to avoid the humiliation of shame may prevent it. 

In other words, we -- the great unwashed public -- are just as much to blame as the politicians, commentators and bloggers for all the untruths, misrepresentations and outright lies.  Why?  Because we have lost our ability to scream "SHAME!" at those who lie, to those whose deed is at odds with his creed -- in short, to those who talk the moral talk, but walk the mendacious walk.  We demand honesty from our leaders but countenance dishonesty from their challengers -- and visa versa. 

According to Dr. Ekman, unless and until we the people reconnect with that other great censor -- shame -- those seeking our trust and our votes will continue feeding us a steady diet of defamation, deception and dishonesty -- without feeling a moment's guilt or shame. 

"Shame," according to the great Salman Rushdie, "is like everything else; live with it for long enough and it becomes part of the furniture." 

To my way of thinking it's high time that we redecorate! 

©2012 Kurt F. Stone 

 

Comments

[Alan Weiss]

Loved the message and loved listening to it. It worked perfectly!

[A. Simon]

I not only read your weekly blog, but listened to the recording as well. I
think it is a wonderful idea, particularly, as you have said, for those who have
trouble reading.

For a long time, I was aggravated by the lies foisted by the radical right whose
soul purpose, as they unashamedly admit, is to make Barack Obama a one term
president. I no longer am.

The people (allegedly described by Alexander Hamilton as a "great beast") who
pay attention to the likes of Karl Rove and Sean Hannity never planned to vote
for Obama under any circumstances. In essence, Rove and Hannity and their
ilk are preaching to the choir, the always and ever committed.

Although I don't have a lot of faith in the intelligence of the American people
(how did George W. Bush get so many votes?), I believe the independents, most of
whom are not really independents despite their holding themselves out as such,
may be just a tad brighter than the gullibles.

I also believe that the hundreds of millions of dollars expended and to be
expended by the Romney Super-Pacs will have little effect. As a result of the
never-ending primary campaign, I suggest that 95% of the electorate already know
where Romney stands, if he stands for anything, and will vote accordingly.

As for the remaining 5%, those who are yet uncommitted, I suspect most of them
will end up voting for Obama. Perhaps I am being naive, but I suspect that
Obama will win by a margin greater than the polls currently indicate.

On a different subject, how many American jobs has Romney created by his
multi-million dollar incestments in Swiss banks, the Cayman Islands and
Bermuda?

[Stanley]

The recording is fine. The message pretty dispiriting. It's amazing what these Tea partyers have done to the country in such a short time!! I remember when "Have you no shame" had meaning

[Natalie]

Great article, makes me very very furious but then again if it makes me furious the right wingnut know nothings, racist psychotics succeed in doing what they want. So I try to tamp it down. I do not know what the remedy for all of this is.

I have thought often about the vulgarities of our culture and it is curious to me that the so called family values right wing are some of the most hateful but not only hateful as they always have been that but some of the MOST profane in action AND word I have heard or seen in a long time.

The late 60's ushered in a new freedom which the so called "moral majority" was dedicated to oppose but it seems that they have harvested the filthy verbosity and made that part of the sixties communication revolution part of their own verbal exchange mixed with twisted hate ESPECIALLY for our president of color.

What to do? Maybe that answer is just to spread articles like yours far and wide and hope that it gains traction. I suspect to those who really need it won't be bothered by their vulgarity of expression.

Sometimes I think we on the left opened up the verbal floodgates of free expression including profanity with all of the more squalid aspects attendant to it and now the genie cannot be put back into the bottle ever again.

All hell has sadly broken loose.

[Roz]

Loved hearing you record the written text. Thanks

[Al]

Although I’m one of those “ getting up in years”, fortunately my eyesight is still “ good enough” so as to be able to read your wonderful essays. However, for those with a problem, your recording certainly aids those with failing eyesight while at the same time giving the inflection that you want the readers to feel. MISSION ACCOMPLISHED MY FRIEND!!!! Now as to the article itself…..It really is a SHAME and I’m not sure how we overcome it. Those in power and/or control and know it to be pure lies, don’t have the B---LS to really tell it like it is. SO again, It’s a SHAME and I’m not sure how we overcome it! BUT I’m an OPTIMIST, so we will prevail, with or without the lies.

[Roberta]

I enjoyed the audio, you have a wonderful voice and it is nice to listen rather than read. Thank you for keeping us informed.

[Natalie Rosen]

K.F. Stone is kind, insightful, sincere and always refreshingly humane. His article about the dastardly lies and profanity hurled wily nily against our president of color should give us pause for thought. The lack of shame for these lies, which has become the decorative wallpaper of part of our nation, is profoundly disturbing.

The lies people even of stature, who should know better, perpetrate make me furious. If, however, they make me furious the right wing know-nothings and racist psychotics succeed in doing exactly what they want to do and that is to foment discord and hostility in the nation. I try to tamp down my anger but admit I do not always succeed nor do I know what the remedy for the vicious mendacious assault on the right against our president of color is. I have thought often about the vulgarities of our culture. It is curious to me that the so called "family values" advocates exude some of the most hateful, profane speech and perpetrate the ugliest deeds.

The late 60's, a time I admittedly loved, did usher in a new freedom which the so called "moral majority" was dedicated to oppose. It seems, though, the right has harvested a grain of filthy verbosity and made that part of their own repertoire the Sixties communication revolution advocates never expected. They baked their own right wing cake of poison with a concoctive mixture of blindingly twisted racist hate and spewed it upon our African American president caring nothing for the grandeur of the office of the presidency itself sometimes even alluding horrifically to a radical elimination of this president couched in Second Amendment fury. What to do? Maybe the answer is to spread articles like K.F. Stone's far and wide, hope it gains traction and sticks. I suspect those who most need to read and understand it will not.

Sometimes I think we on the left opened up the verbal floodgates of free expression and critical thinking unfortunately including in its flying carpet a profanity the squalid aspects of which were sewn into its tapestry. Now the genie, long out of the bottle, is spreading racist hate on the right the morality for which the left did not stand nor expect. Unfortunately we cannot put this flying carpeted genie back into the bottle and it seems all hell has sadly broken loose as times are now more dangerous than they have ever been!