Woundings.

“@baziz It's not about either, because there was no concept of "Native Americans" from the perspective of the Lakota people, since tribes treat all foreigners and social progress with rabid disregard. (Hence we can thank evolution and the development of the neo-Palium, alongside civilization, for even the freedom to make posts online, a great deal of which are maintained by servers on the West Coast, which is of course the end of the Oregon Trail and the consummation of Manifest Destiny.) As for the "whole US" (I'm guessing you mean "whole U.S." rather than "us"), that entity as we now understand it could only have been the product of sacrifices made, such as at Wounded Knee, in order to eliminate the tribal way of life and to attain an ethical, teleological purpose devoid of any further, needless violence. (A perfect parallel would be the character of Gustavo Fring from Breaking Bad and his cold, uncompromising war on the Mexican drug cartels.) The only "we" that could have been referred to here is the Lakota Tribe itself, and as people who inherited a civilized language we have an obligation not to abuse it against its unitive purposes. Most uses of the word "we" are illusory, because only the Individual can truly be said to exist as a sentient phenomenon; his flourishing depends entirely upon the elimination of those oppressive ways of life, such as Fascism and tribalism, that would seek to subvert the Reasoning Intellect to the rule by force. R.G.”

Herein lies the paradox: that in order to set people free one must look down upon them, and in order to acknowledge others as being akin to one’s self one must note the limitations in not only their cultures but all so their own limitations in direct proportion to their dependency upon those cultures. Being humane must come at the expense of being all-too-human, for while people of lesser character and reason can cavort across gaps in language and sophistication, truly understanding an Other with respect must involve a sacrifice in sympathy. Excellent characters are not those who excel in the principles of any one culture exclusively, nor are they those whose partisan excellence earns them the “respect” of members from other cultures, but rather it is those people who excel in Universal Human values that only the most forward-thinking Individuals, across history and place, have discovered and brought to their respective societies: non-violence, altruism, progress, and communication are only to name a few examples. Falling short of these ideals, one can only establish a corrupt connection with foreigners, for others are reduced to mere means and threats in the narcissistic state. There are absolutely no problems that are not collective problems, and even the most personal experiences are experienced as involving and transcending all of Humanity. Once the ideals have been owned, however, any possibility for a superficial and Utilitarian connection dissolves, and only genuine human empathy – a force transcending mere self-centred sympathy – remains.

It follows that elitism is the first step towards egalitarianism, for True Equality must be attained by Progress. Progress thereby warrants itself, though not tautologically, for the seemingly circular argument in fact draws on the very Universality of its fruits: the Civilized Human Virtues.

Dm.A.A.