Alan Zendell, August 22, 2023

Karl Marx wrote that “capitalism is inherently a contradictory system [that] breeds its own seeds of destruction.” Although that notion is most often associated with Marx, it’s an adaptation of the philosopher G.W.F. Hegel’s assertion that “every civilization (but the final one) contains within itself the seeds of its own destruction.” As America appears to be spiraling toward dissolution, it’s enlightening to examine whether those ideas apply to us today.

The right-wing extremist concept of unfettered, unregulated capitalism, which in the hands of Trumpers looks more like Fascism, can be thought of as a surrogate for unrestricted democracy and free speech. Our Constitution and our republic will only endure if we recognize that there is a basic truth in the words of Marx and Hegel: the freer and more open a society is, the more vulnerable it is to those who would destroy it for their own ends.

As Americans, we have spent our lives basking in self-praise and the belief that the ideals our Constitution seems to support are unassailable. Who would argue against democracy and free speech? In principle, not many, but with no controls or protections in place, those very ideals have the potential to destroy our way of life. It’s a cliché that we do not have the right to scream “Fire” in a crowded theater. The fact that only a crazy person or someone who stood to profit from the resulting chaos would do such a thing makes the point.

There are always those among us with nefarious intent who will attempt to use our freedom and openness against us, and with today’s burgeoning technology the risk is of existential proportions. The internet and artificial intelligence are amazing feats of technology and engineering that have transformed our economies and means of disseminating information. But they are completely unregulated, which raises the question: are we willing to entrust our future to Mark Zuckerberg, Elon Musk, and Ruppert Murdoch?

There is ample evidence that Russia, China, North Korea, Iran, and various others are guilty of flooding our media with bots and bad actors writing under false flags. They attempted to influence our elections in 2016 and 2020, and beyond that, their goal is to incite unrest and dissension among Americans. They understand us better than we understand ourselves. They know all about the divisions in America based on race, income, social status, religion, and personal values. They also understand that as a nation we often behave with the kind of intellectual laziness that makes us susceptible to any well-crafted lie.

Fortunately, there are experts who recognize the kind of subversion that weaponizes our own institutions against us. One is Caroline Orr Bueno, who pens the Weaponized Spaces newsletter. Yesterday, she addressed an issue that chilled me, more so because it represents only the tip of the iceberg of similar threats. I urge everyone to read the article referenced in the link, but if you don’t have time, I’ll summarize it here.

Dr. Bueno identified an entirely false campaign to influence America’s policy toward Russia’s invasion of Ukraine that revolved around the phrase “Hawaii, not Ukraine.” The point was to plant the idea in the minds of Americans who are ignorant of the facts that the Biden administration was ignoring the needs of victims of the devastating Maui fires because of the cost of assisting Ukraine’s defense. Think about that for a moment. Whoever began this thread, which soon went viral as a result of a skillful, well-coordinated campaign by influencers and provocateurs, was willing to use the devastation on Maui to mislead people who were unaware of the truth. More than willing – using the tragic circumstances of the victims to gain sympathy for Russia’s attempt to destroy Ukraine was the whole point.

Dr. Bueno goes into compelling detail about her analysis of the way people trying to end our support for Ukraine went about their task. She draws a clear picture of the coordinated effort, which included retweeting the initial thread on right wing media outlets with hundreds of thousands of followers, one of which was an account owned by a far-right candidate for State Attorney General in Arizona.

The final act of this play was when Russian state media jumped on board, the real intended end game. Russian media began attacking President Biden for not caring about the loss of life and homes in Maui, despite Biden taking every measure he was empowered to, to help. No surprise, Russian media claimed that if Biden cared about his own people he’d stay out of Russia’s military action in Ukraine.

Russia would only go to the trouble and expense of mounting such an internet campaign if they knew it would pay off. Not coincidentally, the same dozen Trumpers to whom Kevin McCarthy ceded control of the House of Representatives immediately issued a list of demands, with cutting aid to Ukraine at the top. Bueno identified a clear thread connecting these events. The only remedy is for Americans to think for themselves, close their Facebook and Twitter accounts, and find a safer way to share pictures of their kids online.