'Moral midgetry'

By Alex Gratzek

The other month, my uncle gave me a book titled “The 48 Laws of Power” by Robert Greene. As I was reading it, I couldn't help but draw parallels from the book to the current political climate in America.

One law stood out, specifically Law #42 which states “Strike the shepherd and the sheep will scatter” and the subsequent analysis proved to be remarkably timely for America. I thought I'd share.

In ancient Athens, there was a practice known as “ostraca” from which we derive the modern word of ostracize, which means to shun. The ancient Athenians recognized that there were certain individuals, demagogues, who stirred up “anxieties and discontent” and threatened the city's stability and cohesion. These men pursued their “ambitions and petty intrigues” at the expense of the city's interests.

To combat such individuals, the Athenians did not attempt to reason or debate ― they would banish the person in question. Recognizing that attacking or appeasing would only feed said individuals' power, they resorted to exile for 10 years. This removed the cancer and prevented its tendrils from expanding in society.

With the second impeachment of Trump and the subsequent second acquittal by the Senate, it became quite evident that the former president will not be completely ostracized politically and his presence in the American political scene will remain on some level for the foreseeable future, although his chance of winning the presidency for a second term now seems unimaginable. He will not be ostracized by his political party.

As for Mitch McConnell's attempts to have it both ways, I can only hope his name will go down in history like Benedict Arnold or the Greek Ephialtes who famously betrayed the Spartan King Leonidas.

McConnell, the man who voted to convict Clinton for lying about receiving a job while doing his job, couldn't bring himself to vote to convict a man who threatened democracy and his life with mob rule. It's “moral midgetry.”

Now that the Republican senators have proven institutional checks are inadequate, it has sadly come to tech companies and American society at large to take up the challenge of preventing Trump's rot from expanding.

I will concede one point to all the Republicans who cry at their “muzzling” at the hands of Big Tech; it does highlight their power and outsize role in shaping civil discourse ― but that is an issue that can be addressed at a later date, if/when the existential threat to American democracy has been addressed.

Removing the megaphone from the source of vitriol and disunion in America was undoubtedly the right move to make. Following his removal from Twitter, there was an astounding 73 percent drop in misinformation regarding the election and other falsehoods according to research by Signal Labs.

Former President Trump is free to say whatever he wants, but it does not mean he has to be provided with any platform to get his message out. I am just disappointed that, despite knowing for years that Trump was spreading outright lies and other perverted distortions as reality, Twitter, other tech companies and the media refused to take action until he had lost the election.

It's a case of moral midgetry on their part, happy to pursue the money, ratings and clicks while they could but then suddenly recoiling in horror at a failed coup.

For years, if they weren't actively covering Trump's inflammatory rhetoric, then they were doing nothing to stop America from reaching the boiling point. Only when there was a physical manifestation of an assault on democracy and when Trump's power began to wane did the tech and media companies take action. Shame.

Despite their shortcomings, it's better late than never. For the foreseeable future, all segment of society that value democracy and freedom need to put aside their own squabbles to fight for the greater good of democracy.

There can be no falser equivalences between the two parties: one stands for democracy, one does not. It's imperative that the Democratic Coalition hold together, not giving over to infighting and corporations' need to shun any Republican who will not admit to reality.

Despite failing in nearly everything he set out to do, Trump did accomplish one thing for which I am grateful. He highlighted how far the rot had seeped into America.

With the shepherd's removal from Twitter and other social media platforms, his flock has started to turn on each other and cannibalize itself in a frenzy of paranoia and betrayal in the fallout from the Capitol insurrection.

Looking back on history, I can't help but wish Trump had the cunning of Mao Zedong and an actual desire to make America great again. During Mao's reign, he launched the Hundred Flowers Campaign in which he encouraged Chinese citizens to express their opinions and criticize the communist regime. Once the poets, artists and other dissidents had spoken out, he ruthlessly crushed them.

Being a democracy, this isn't an option but at least Trump has brought the issues of racism, conspiracy and white privilege to the forefront of American society, making it clear American democracy stands on clay feet. These are inter-related issues that desperately need to be addressed.

One can only hope American democracy renews and strengthens itself, arising stronger from the trials and tribulations to continue to be an example to those yearning for freedom all over the world.

Alex Gratzek (ajgratzek@gmail.com) is an American who has lived, studied and worked in South Korea. Check his website at alexfromabroad.com. The views expressed in the above article are the author's own and do not reflect the editorial direction of The Korea Times.