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Pathology of the decadent Few

By Randy Gonzalez
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Pathology of the decadent Few

By Randy Gonzalez

Several hundred years “B.C.” or “B.C.E.”, warnings emanated from Grecian culture
about the necessity for wiser instigations to enhance civilization. Yet, that is only one point
of reference, as there have been many for which the heed of such continues to go unnoticed
for the sake of the greed, corruption and selfishness. For the mean spirited slant, there are
many adherents. In a recent article appearing in a major publication on the western coast
of the U.S., an author asserts the regressive tendencies of a culture bent on its own
“victimization” and eventual destruction. Another has called this era the final phase, the
“circus”, which alludes to the collapse of a civilization.
Seemingly, many prefer abuse, pity and pampering, rather than maturity, growth and
knowledge. Counterproductive in the process of self-evolution is the willful weakness non-
competitiveness in any sphere of social interactivity. For the sake of “political correctness”,
or other illicit attempts at enforcing “level playing fields”, by means of intolerance for
tolerance, hastens communal deterioration. A determined sense of individual liberation, by
disciplined determination, is often confronted by pretentious emotionalism and
maladaptive condescending confrontations. That hastens extinction.
Enlightened transformation is not considered a lofty and noble goal for evolving
transitions of individual self-reliance to higher states of ascendency. Smarter, competent,
skilled and self-evolving excellence is not widely rewarded, as more and more information
sources appear “dumbed down” to baser levels. In its place instead, most interactions tend
toward a disingenuous “victimhood” of pretentious helplessness. One writer described
many people in contemporary American culture as sissies. Pampered, spoiled and
irresponsible, many, including the wealthy few, seek personal enrichment.
In the process of criticizing post-modern society, several writers have questioned
whether or not most people, by lazy general consensus and apathy, have allowed U.S.
society to become a nation of wimps, crybabies, and weaklings. While a part of such
accusations are associated with a person’s overall physicality, the focus is more on the
intellectual, ethical and maturity side of acting like a grownup. Instead, some researchers
have suggested intellectual and morals capacity is regressing.
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An indication, or at least an implication, is the emotional reactivity or exceptional

sensitivity to any perceived slight, insult or insufficient recognition for needy validation.
The instant “selfie” or inability to accept criticism reflects overly sensitive immaturity in
reaction to a perceived “insult”. Rather than pursue the moral high ground of differentiated
self-reliance, juvenile antics devolve to a state of abject reactivity. Overall, due to
purposeful maladaptive choices, to satiate escalating degrees of selfishness, meaningful
change in human behavior stagnates. Increasing numbers of the population desire greater
emotional subsistence provided by others to satisfy their self-centeredness.
It seems to some who study social processes and by extension societal deterioration,
more “children” than ever are living in adult bodies. For which, they require more attention
for someone to take placate their neediness. Given the intentional persistence of biases,
prejudices and assorted animosities, regardless of socio-economic or political placement,
many easily provoke their own deception and thereby potentially bring harm to others. The
lack of serious creativity, innovation and productively motivated individuality appears less
and less a socially positive aspect. More want attention rather than invention.
Additionally, with hate speech disguised as “social justice”, and intolerance for
differing opinions with vicious physical attacks as “free speech” resistance, child-like
behaviors on the part of adults are increasingly degrading. And, once you are insulated
from the reality of the real world, you can ignore the factuality of cause and effect in terms
of rational explanations. Feelings will prevail over facts. As subjective validation for the
unimaginative expression of personal bias replaces logic and reason, the resulting
stagnation of thought debases meaningful commentary, as gross fallacies of inference
foment hideous hastily drawn conclusions. Along with that, there is the never-ending
collective of herd-minded assumptions based on little or no factuality.
Since most people are selfishly fixated on their own self-righteous superficiality, the
evolving essence of enlightened discourse is problematic. Choosing the less cumbersome
travels of in-depth investigative research, in order to prove the viability of an issue at hand,
most interactivity defaults to the simplistic and emotional conjecture of self-validation. As
such for instance, the mythology of the “American Dream” embraces the destruction of the
human species by way of gluttonous consumption and exploitation of global eco-systems.
To perpetuate the associated frauds speaks to the decadence of the few.
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While there are sets of “law”, procedures, rules, regulations or guideline parameters for
a select group, the so-called 1%, there is also another set of legal frameworks for the other
99%. By means of what might be called the “legerdemain of the corporate state”, as
described in at least one novel, the “American Oligarchy” ensures its safe and secure
insulation. Upper reaches of society do not play by the same rules as the majority of socio-
economically challenged lower realm. But, the majority goes along with the mass
marketing appeals for a “herd mentality” of bloated consumer schemes, in order to satiate
desires for an endless array of consumptive commodities.
In a once proud culture of pioneers, adventurers and creative entrepreneurs, as cited by
one researcher, society has descended into a “nation of wimps”. A collectivist collusion of
ill-informed, lazy, obese and fearful “sheeple” hastens the devolution of an entire country.
Such references are not about well-built bodies, food fitness or bulging biceps. Instead, it
is about the courage of convictions, ethical enlightenment and fortitude of character to
insist upon justice over emotional justification. A sissified population is one that relishes
in the smug piety of its stupidity, disdain of intellectualism and creative laziness.
Self-righteousness in emotional reactivity, intolerance for the opposing views of others
and naïve notions of cause and effect, likewise express a growing self-perpetuating
pathology of infantile narcissism. Fiction trumps facts, with revulsion for thought
provoking rational insight and advocacy of enlightened perspectives. The quest for wisdom
in higher states of learned pursuits gradually transitions to illusions of fakes, frauds and
facsimiles of human expression. Behind the scenes, the decadent few encourage the abject
foolishness and adherence to the never-ending saga of unlimited resources.
Flourishing across a devolving landscape, with incessant appeals to the rich and famous
for words of no so profound “authority”, or pretentious “expertise”, speeds up the eventual
demise of the human species. In one way or another, decadent few collude to the
acquiescence of collective primal subservience for the incessant satiation of predatory
arrogance. Voluntary servitude enters the mix with myriad excuses to promote excess and
hastens the regressive escalation of diverse forms of modern enslavement. Discourteous,
haughtily condescending and mean spirited, immediate gratification presses the
persecutions for all manner of selfish deception. With antagonistic persistence, the landed
gentry, the robber barons, and the heirs of aristocracy threaten the republic.
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With smug disdain for those at the bottom of the socio-economic pyramid, the modern
aristocrats condescendingly flaunt their presumed entitlement. If one were to stop, look
and listen intently, the pitch and tone of decadent contempt comes through loudly. The
extravagance of greediness to acquire worldly possessions underscores a society of bloated
consumption. At the same time, predation in one form or another panders the seduction of
primal subservience, as modern day slavery become more pervasive. For which, the
promotion of gluttonous consumption seeks to pacify the many for the sake of the few,
who remain well insulated in their materiality. The hypocrisy is limitless.
Much like the ruling class of ancient Rome or Greece, according to one source from an
online investment advisory, the decadence of the ruling classes exploits materiality not for
the greater good, but greater greed. As institutions decline, political and social interactions
devolve, and people act out their hatreds, prejudices and multiplicity of self-interests, the
collective pathology willfully shares eventual societal collapse. Meanwhile, as the
“devolution cliffhanger” is uncertain, another worldwide study offers the inequitable
tipping of the global socio-economic scale in the direction of the few.
Over two years ago, a British news agency published a report that indicates what some
already knew. To add to a dismal perspective regarding the decadence, or perhaps social
debauchery, a small percentage of “oligarchs” governor a large amount of wealth. That is,
a small concentrated group of wealthy people controls a significant amount of planetary
prosperity and affluence. As such, the divide between rich and poor continues to expand.
By regressive capacity in maladaptive ways, the rift is demeaning, oppressive and
destructive. For 1% of the population to exercise dominion over more than 50% of the
wealth, creates an extraordinary inequity for the other 99%.
Nearly 100 billionaires, in reflection upon the aforementioned study, enjoyed a 50%
increase in wealth over a 4-year period. During the same time, more than 50% of poorest
on the planet experienced a loss of nearly a trillion in wealth. The disparity of such
decadence of the few, or call it corruption, depravity and self-indulgence, degrades any
prospects for long-term survival of the human species. Further, of the reaming 48% of the
earth’s wealth, that falls to the richest 20% of the population. Which could be interpreted
that one fifth of the people on the planet now owns all the planetary riches. And the
majority, 80% of the population, has limited ability to access such wealth.
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With the disparate divide between arrogant wealth and abject poverty, closing the gap
for greater opportunity, for the greater good, appears a dismal prospect. An oligarchic class,
which fails to ensure the nobility of equitable distribution of resources, and otherwise use
the power of influence to affect productive change, aids and abets the demise of the human
species. Smugly self-righteous and piously “entitled” to their “inheritance” of corporate-
political aristocracy, the decadent few perpetuate a devolving complicity of a “ruling
class”. Neither by intelligence, accomplishment or competence, the collective pathology
of the decadent few promote the safe mediocrity of a greedy status quo.
Then again, what’s new? Not much. A small percentage of very smart people invent
various means by which to ensure the comfort of a leisure class. An even smaller wealthier
group that uses influential means, some by support of the American taxpayer, to create
multi-national corporations, in turn conscripts them for expansion of “corporate cartels”.
In the process, the “power elite”, an echo of warnings from nearly 75 years ago, ensures
riches remain consolidated within a narrow societal spectrum. Yet, in the short span of
finite existence, what really matters in terms of personal transformation.
For the reassurance of acceptance as time passes, where youthful passions dissipate,
primitive thinking and eventual conformity stagnate, and materiality through greed
replaces personal transformation. Subjective validation for nearly anything stimulates the
urges for selfishness in the performance of maladaptive behaviors. By the greediness of
constant accumulation of material goods and services, counterproductive ideations plot and
scheme the neediness of worldly acquisitions. For the most part, it is not for the greater
good for the greatest number, but for the few who pillage and plunder.
For the want of excessive materiality, in the pleasures of exceptional self-interests, the
mainstream satiates its illusions in obedience to the perpetrations of the upper streams. As
opposed to the frugal sharing of the training, education and discipline for imaginative
dreams, a unity to advance civilization, oppressive behaviors invite the final inflictions.
Creativity fragments into disuse and over-consumption that drains environmental
capacities. A few strive to transform in wise rebellion for a union in personal ascendency.
Coming out of nowhere, a void, and then in the end, going back there, to the nowhere to
be forgotten, terrorizes into masses into protective submission. Ignorant of history, the
majority embrace the failures repeated endlessly to self-destruction.
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Lacking the innovative forces of energies untapped, accepting stupidity instead of

rationality, in lieu evidentiary substantiation, aids the eventual death of the human species.
Many malicious factors participate in the contrived demise of the American society.
Undercurrents that undercut the viability of creative enterprises for the advancement of
human civilization are intricate. Interwoven in a complexity of deceit, manipulation and
greedy subversion, the decadence remains pervasively malevolent.
Self-caged to primal and immature emotions, steeped in the hypocrisy of supernatural
fixations, and imprisoned by amative unimaginative proclivities, the degradations continue
in divisive criminalities. For the perceived necessities of illicit gain with little effort, greedy
self-righteous ignorance for unmerited entitlement, and consumption without limits, fosters
a collective devolving social “mindset”. As one generation after another perpetrates the
nihilism of devolution, the human species follows others that vanished.
With various calamities occurring globally, from hurricanes to tsunamis, as one
example, many opportunities to observe aspects of human behavior. For most, self-
centered, selfish and foolishly arrogant overrides humility, self-evolution and service for
the greater good. While there are noble acts of heroism, there are degenerate acts of
criminality at every level of socio-economic strata.
Without question or opposition in any form, with nominal exceptions, the majority
eventually embrace the conformity of non-resistance. The oligarchs continue to deceive
and exploit the many for the greater gain of the decadent few, the so called 1%. In time,
for the brevity of each life, liberation diminishes, as diverse forms of slavery binds and
confines the masses. Meanwhile, communal educative and restorative resources stumble
and creative enterprises falter, as the oppressed fixate and spur the demise.
In an academic study by a major western university, the wealthiest top one fifth of the
U.S. population controlled or otherwise manipulated 90% of the wealth. With the riches
concentrated in the hands of a few, one wonders how much can be done to rectify major
societal problems. But for the valiant efforts of the few at different rungs of the societal
ladder, the vast majority remain mesmerized by the deceptive manifestations from the top
down. The status quo is perpetuated by any way possible. As generations come and go, and
easily slip beyond the possibilities of species advancement, normal becomes degenerative
and decadent. As a result, the probability of species extinction grows nearer.
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Of ghosts, goblins and gremlins, the illicit nature of magical thinking perpetrates the
short-term gain over devotion to a long history of tireless enlightenment and mature self-
evolution. For that, among those interested, it becomes essential for the few brave ones to
break the bondages of modern day slavery. To think more deeply, passionately committed
to rationality, less emotionally distracted and more imaginatively creative, the quest is long
and cumbersome. Transforming selflessly, as opposed to regressing selfishly, escapes the
imaginings of many. However, for there are resistance fighters, they struggle against the
seduction of their basic essence to succumb to devolving primal subservience.
Hedonistic tendencies for immediate gratification, reinforced by the greediness of
cognitive prejudices, retaliate and demean in ways that stifle personal liberation. Fame and
fortune, in metaphorical glory, sell the “American Dream” as though the social systems are
not rigged or otherwise manipulated. Yet, for the pathology of the decadent few, who
control the majority of wealth and resources, as though human value is cheap, replaceable
and easily restocked, that fantasy remains. Illusions of the status quo are kept in place and
out of reach for most people, as the contrivances are persistent.
Self-indulgent inclinations, or proclivities, whatever the designation still reside within
the power and control of the individual to freely choose subsequent actions. Of an earlier
comment, based on many years of professional observation, investigative application and
contemporary research, analytic capacity for profound mindfulness, critical thinking by
way of logical analysis, appears elusive across the broad expanse of society. On this point,
a number of studies indicate regressive processes by which the populace is devolving
intellectually. Prone to increasing emotional reactivity, reasoning in reality transitions to a
lesser capacity for more insightful assessment based on evidence.
On the part of many people, the inability to apply serious and enlightened introspection,
by well-reasoned logic and mature analysis as applied to current social issues continues to
be woefully inadequate. In close proximity by ideation and formulation, most refuse the
strenuous exertion of laborious self-revolution. For one to look with passionate forthright
authenticity in constant examination of the self, the effort expended pales in competition
with the tumultuous onslaught of self-exaltation. Immediate gratification takes precedence.
Although the complexity defies simplistic delineation or easy solvability, the dismal
perspective of it all yields little prospects for productive change.
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Probably of sadder degree than disappointment, or even regrettable disenchantment, is

the permissiveness of selfish behaviors. These of course come in many forms and forums,
from intolerance of free speech, to the con artistry of commerce and industry, as well as
associated political processes. The divisive self-interests of the few perpetrate illogical
misguidance and distrust among the many by multiple societal processes. This of course
does not mean a person cannot resist by purposeful assertion of individuation through
exercise of willful liberation. On the contrary, resistance is not futile.
One can oppose the foolish juvenile behaviors of those who feel entitled to their self-
appointed lofty status within the social layers of society. To do so means profoundly
determined efforts to assure personal differentiation from the nonsense. Innovations and
creativity of thought and action are essential to self-evolution. In contrast, stupidity in
selfishly pursuing the constraints of the many, for the assurance of conformity, under the
illicit power and control of others, reflects intentional choices. Fraudulent contrivances
ought to be exposed for the bogus conjectures that emanate from that.
Aside from the “pandemic of the stupidity virus”, which crosses all socio-economic and
political spectrums, those of greater means have the advantage over those of lesser
influence, power and sustainability. As such, the smug piety of the oligarchic pinnacle is
such that insulation becomes protective in the negation of greatest good for the greatest
number. The blatant pathology of the few, with linkages to the willful perpetration of
selfish maladaptive and anti-societal intentions, expresses a sense of social disparagement
against those of lesser means. In this regard, to “form a more perfect union”, “establish
justice”, or “promote the general welfare”, no longer seems relevant.
The idea of “domestic tranquility” appears to apply to the safe, stale and secure enclaves
of “gated” entitlements, rather than purposeful actions to ensure broader equality. With all
the wealth concentrated in an increasingly smaller niche, the reach of inequality burrows
deeper. In one study of “wealth oriented behavior”, from a major west coast university,
those in the higher realms of materiality tend to disregard the interests of those at the lower
social levels. Seemingly, less generous, not as prosocial, seeking to safeguard the status
quo, and minimal empathy for those who have not “made it”, characterizes the growing
divide between upper and lower echelons of society. With all the affluent power, control
of the majority of resources, at least economic disparity should have vanished.