The whole Mamdani phenomenon is quite exceptionally interesting, n'est-ce pas? The Left, Greens and progressives generally, everywhere, are hoping upon hope they can ride on his coat-tails to woke victory. Can it be Polanski? And yet ...
Generally, the real politicos of the Left hate the idea of needing to depend on personality-centred leadership. Magnetic charisma is even worse. These objections are doctrinal for them, and, you suspect, visceral, too. The Revolution comes, not when an individual galvanises gullible voters, but When Economic Conditions are Right, and the working masses rise up as one (along with the less-than-charming, less-than-working bedsit brigade). Of course, the sainthood conferred upon Lenin rather goes against this; and "whoa, Jeremy Corbyn" / Magic Grandad; but ...
The fact is, even ordinary-grade charm is dangerous, never mind outright charisma. The Blairs and the Johnsons (and even the Mandelsons) of this world glide through life asserting their exemption from ordinary constraints, and getting what they want. When we get to Clinton, we are talking weapons-grade, Elvis-level powers, particularly over women. (I've no intention of getting into Godwin territory.)
When working for a US multinational, I once attended a management conference in the States. On one occasion we were addressed by a speaker who had a novel but pedestrian consultancy-type idea to sell - a lens for categorising & analysing problems according to some classic 2 x 2 matrix of his devising. His ideas were worthwhile, but - objectively speaking - no more than just something to digest, hoist on board, and deploy where useful for a bit of an additional insight.
The thing was, he was as charismatic as all Hell (and the Devil is really quite charismatic). In the coffee-room afterwards, the discussion - amongst supposedly professional people, mostly senior engineers, went (or rather, gushed) like this.
- Wow! Wasn't that great?! I heard him say X, and Y. I really agree with that.
- Yeah - best we've heard all week! I heard him say A and B - that really resonates with me.
And so on.
Now with my cynical but quite useful Oxford training in philosophy and logic, I was mentally at one remove from all this the moment the guy flashed his enigmatic smile at us. And, if you'll forgive the arrogance of my reckoning I can offer an 'objective assessment', I can assure you he said none of X, Y, A nor B: some of the supposed pronouncements attributed to him were mutually contradictory! What he did do, was absolutely enthrall his audience, who then individually projected onto him everything each of them wanted to hear when their emotions were roused. Amazing stuff, this snake-oil: believed to cure all known conditions. Harmless, on this occasion ... but we all know where this sometimes goes.
Let's watch Messrs Mamdani's and Polanski's careers with interest.
ND
5 comments:
This is the cookie cutter West Coast Tech Bro approach. All the tech CEOs have the same vibe. They talk a good talk and sometimes produce a good product (especially at the start before they decide to screw their customers).
Wasn't there an Oxford codger once famous for telling his students that the purpose - perhaps the sole purpose - of an education is to learn to be able to tell when a chap is talking rot?
Among the tools useful for that, in my experience, are thermodynamics, the elementary ideas of free market economics, Newtonian mechanics, and the laws of arithmetic. Between them they cover you for a hell of a lot.
Perhaps worth pointing out where you might learn such things: (i) at University, (ii) at your Daddy's knee, (iii) at Secondary School, (iv) at, or before, Primary School.
Maybe my experience is atypical but my ability to use tensors has not, on the whole, had any bearing on my rot-detector.
Maybe I should have added a fifth base: elementary ideas of probability and statistics, perhaps learnt at school and university - failing which, from a good popular paperback.
A good list. Sadly, logic (in the strict mathematical sense) and probability (Bayesian) are quite beyond many people, if not positively counter-intuitive
Being devoid of charisma, as in my case, is a positive virtue ... one has so much peace and quiet to exploit.
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