Lord Sovereign
The resident Britbong
Alright, that might be a bit too simplistic, but it would be a lie to say that many of the bad ideas wrecking our countries today don't have their ancestry in the Enlightenment of the 17th and 18th centuries. Our materialist society has been heavily influenced by rationalism rationalising away everything irrational (patriotism, religion, traditional values, etcetera). From this has sprung the idea that you can order the world in a rational manner.
Unfortunately, man is not an entirely rational animal, who does have what I'd call "spiritual" needs. Values are semi-irrational in of themselves, but once you've reasoned them all away because they don't make sense on a spread sheet, what are you left with?
You have thoughtless "coomerism"/ultra materialism because you've destroyed the spiritual heart of your society somewhat by accident (social engineers are just the best, aren't they?). Nietzsche picked up on this and it was, in part, why he came up with Nihilism as a sort of desperate attempt at a replacement for Christian morality.
At the very least, I do believe the rot in the West can be traced back to some of the ideas of the Enlightenment and a failure to reconcile them with the irrational, if not spiritual animal that is man. Since then it has since spiralled entirely out of control. Never underestimate the damage a few unchecked ideas can do.
Unfortunately, man is not an entirely rational animal, who does have what I'd call "spiritual" needs. Values are semi-irrational in of themselves, but once you've reasoned them all away because they don't make sense on a spread sheet, what are you left with?
You have thoughtless "coomerism"/ultra materialism because you've destroyed the spiritual heart of your society somewhat by accident (social engineers are just the best, aren't they?). Nietzsche picked up on this and it was, in part, why he came up with Nihilism as a sort of desperate attempt at a replacement for Christian morality.
At the very least, I do believe the rot in the West can be traced back to some of the ideas of the Enlightenment and a failure to reconcile them with the irrational, if not spiritual animal that is man. Since then it has since spiralled entirely out of control. Never underestimate the damage a few unchecked ideas can do.