All Generalities Are False

"Political ideology can corrupt the mind, and science." ~ Edward O. Wilson

I was reading over a couple of posts and the comments on them from a leftie blog this morning and I was struck by the amount of accusations that indicate Conservatives and Liberals are defined by how they view the monetary assets or lack of them in people.

One of the most important factors, although not all of the most important factors, in determining ones political ideology kept popping up in the form of how we all view the wealthy and the poor and how we all propose to solve the problems caused by the gulf between the two.

Here are the two differences as I perceive them:

Conservatives stress personal responsibility to solve the problem of poverty, and Liberals stress the importance of the Governments responsibility to solve it.

On top of this is how the two ideologies attack one another for supporting one class over the other.

Wealthy people are demonized by the left because, apparently, they have money. They are seen as greedy and selfish, with a blatant disregard for poor people. Charity, if the Liberal commenters are to be believed, is not one of the wealthy class's qualities. They are like the ruling castes in India who consider it Godly to let the poor die in their poverty because that is their Karma. Supposedly, they will never think of helping a poor person to overcome their plight, ostensibly because if they did, the poor might well rise above them and crush them in some shrewd hostile takeover or something.

That seems to generally be how the wealthy are perceived by the Liberal ideology as far as I can see.

On the other hand, Poor people are generally seen by Conservatives, as lazy, ambitionless people with no desire to rise above their situation and an overwhelming need to lean wholly on the Government for their sustenance. They are to be detested, as they obviously don't want to take responsibility for themselves. They want the taxpayers to take care of them without expectation of paying anyone back.

That is the perception I get from reading what Conservatives often say.

As my father used to say, "All generalities are false, including the statement that all generalities are false."

I'll let the Philosophers try to figure that one out.

The fact is neither ideology is absolutely correct or absolutely wrong. There are those extreme examples in both the wealthy and the poor.

I am not wealthy, and never have been. Yet I don't expect the Government to take care of me. I don't want it to. I want to take responsibility for myself. I expect no hand outs nor would I accept them if they are offered. At least not without the expectation from my benefactors that I will eventually pay them back.

I will not bend this stubborn pride of mine to accept such a kindness. But that's me. And there are many just like myself that would find it demeaning to accept government help.

I know there are many people living below the poverty line that place no such restrictions on themselves and will accept, gladly, whatever handouts that are offered to them, even to the point of taking advantage of such kindness by cheating and lying to procure them.

These people are known as welfare cheats and they are legion. But not all poor people are welfare cheats.

Many poor people are Liberals but some are Conservatives.

On the other hand, I have known wealthy people who are exactly what the Liberals seem to believe are the rule, rather than the exception. They are greedy. They are selfish. They care nothing about the poor. They have the attitude that all a poor person has to do to alleviate his situation is "get a job".

Poor people often resent the success of wealthy people regardless of whether the wealthy person in question is a good person or not. That is a classic example of class envy.

Somehow, because one is wealthy, they are evil.

That is, of course, not true. There are many evil wealthy people, but there are many evil poor people as well. Some are Liberals.

Additionally, I have known many wealthy people in my lifetime that are generous and kind, and (blanch) Conservative.

All generalities concerning wealth and poverty are false.

Incidentally, the perception among many wealthy people that all a poor person has to do is to get a job is not because they are evil, or greedy, or selfish. It is because they have truly never been poor, and so, have no frame of reference. No matter how much personal contact they have with poor people, the solution is usually that simplistic to one who was never in that situation, or have and forgotten where they come from.

The fact is, they simply don't understand.

Just as I cannot understand how people like Bill Gates and other multi-billionaires never seem to be contented with their vast fortunes. They just continue to make deals and do more research and hire consultants so they can become richer and richer past all understanding.

I don't get it. I keep telling myself that if they were me, I'd stop gaining riches and any accidental increase in my earning more than I need would cheerfully be donated to the poor.

If the shoe was on the other foot, I'd likely think differently. Maybe. I don't know.

I think if we are honest with ourselves, Liberal and Conservative, we will have to concede that there are no absolutes, and not everyone fits into the stereotypical perceptions that define our singular ideologies.