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Jefferson Was Wrong
North Miami Beach, FL 12-31-2000 Aaron H. Schectman
THINKING ALLOWED
Essays on issues, ideas and reflections on the times. Published now and
then, Opinions pro or con are welcome.
JEFFERSON WAS WRONG
Let me see if I got this right. Jefferson is quoted as saying, "there is a
natural aristocracy among men". This aristocracy was, according to this
Founding Father, based on "virtue and talents". Jack Hitt in this morning's
New York TIMES Magazine (p. 13-) explicates further by probing the idea that
there is a "great divide" in America between "meritocrats" and "valuecrats".
There is some merit and value in making this distinction particularly in the
way Americans view their process of creating governments. But, there is no
class, certainly no caste, of those who have merit or those who have values.
Jefferson was wrong in saying there is a "natural aristocracy among men".
He based his aristocracy more on merit. Those who had natural ability were,
he believed, more likely to have the proper virtues.
There are some identifiable "geniuses" but they are not gathered together
to create a class of those who are better than others. It is illogical to
think they have a commonality of backgrounds and belief systems. There is
also a class of those who THINK their values and beliefs caused them to win
the recent flawed election. In other words, they deserved that win -
possibly because God was and is on their side. However, "flaw" is the
critical term here. Flaws are found in every individual even in those with
the most merit or with the best values. Perfection is achieved in death for
when life is ended there can no longer be change either for better or for
worse. Jefferson's flaw was in believing that Democracy could, as
Darwinians have postulated, be improved by every so often having blood shed
on its behalf. Well, you have to fight for what you believe but "Pacifists"
do not agree that it has to end in physicality.
In each argument there is a counter argument. It takes two to make a good
donnybrook. But if you add others who weren't in on the original push and
then go directly to shove, you find that even the most cultured of
contestants will be subject to ungentle-person behavior. No, I think
Jefferson believed in his own sense of self and projected it onto a larger
group of persons he called "geniuses" who deserved more than the "rubbish"
he believed the greater mass of us to be.
The "meritocrats" basing their claims on ability are no less noisome than
the "valuecrats" whose belief system and ways of behavior are proofs they
are more deserving than those of us belonging to the unwashed majority. The
vast middle between these extremes does not have a voice and this is a
shame. What do you think? Carol's Evaluation: She didn't care for this one
at all.
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