Aristocratic Personality Disorder

Look at Brett Kavenaugh, look at Neil Gorsuch, gods help us, look at Amy Coney Barrett. All three seem deficient in some basic empathy. Kavenaugh, who probably raped dozens of women as a young man. Gorsuch, who opined that it was just fine for a trucking company to fire a man for leaving a load so as to avoid freezing to death. Barrett, with decisions making excuses for rapists and racists.

Surely these people are deranged. Surely there is some problem with them, some aristocratic personality disorder.

The history of aristocracies says they are not. The history of African slavery in the United States says they are not. Rather, they are normal people who have been raised to privilege. When people are raised to believe they are above all others, some will behave this way – it has happened over and over in history. If we want compassion to become a norm, we must teach it and reinforce it.

Now: look at white people in the United States. Are they not also an entitled class? Does this class not also have a significant faction of brutal members – white supremacists, rapists? Do the brutal not also have wide support among the less brutal members of the class?

We only thought we ended aristocracy with the Revolution.

What would it take to truly end aristocracy?

We would have to teach egalitarian values and compassion throughout society. We would have to limit extremes of wealth and poverty.

Could we do it? Would it lead to a workable, lasting society? I do not know. Trying is surely worthwhile.