Hello fellow Hivers!
While reading Bernard Mandeville's "The Fable of the Bees" I came across a part where he said something like everyday misdeeds took place on the hive but the hive itself was corrupted.
However, that aspect did not make the hive less prosperous because the particular vices contributed to the whole hive happiness.
Had a glimpse of society pretty similar to what we have. Giving the illusion that brings some satisfaction to the general population.
The thing is that this illusion of general well-being, always verified by economic power, leads to a sensation of general well-being,.
Turning it the center of the universe where the society gravitates around turning the human being an object.
Unfortunately, a vain illusion that will eventually lead us to the globalization of indifference.
In fact, when the economy moves along with the wish and grows due to wanting more and more, leaves little to no space for human dignity.
Disposable culture takes charge: we dispose of the youth because they can't bring anything to the table; the handicapped because they can't; the elders because they can't anymore.
To this clinginess to success, we can add the "looks like" game - allegedly politicians, CEOs, and ONGs that belong to the society promote and look for the common well-being. Nonetheless, this has never been confirmed by actions, is based on the highly dubious belief - that everybody is moved by ethical principles.
Well, if all of us were ethical there will be no use for politics as a power organization.
Politics does not have as a goal to turn men good, in fact, its existence is because we don't act ethically and it's an attempt to gather efforts to reach the common well-being.
Therefore, Ethical Politics does not exist, only ethical men and women in politics.
Society can't turn its back to jurisdiction nor to ethical principles to guarantee the protection of the common well-being.
All these considerations bring us to the initial question - understand if our society is dangerously walking towards Mandeville's community. Taking into account that everything revolves around money, success, economics, ignoring the human being, their rights, and values.
Seems like a society to be considered a "winner" only has to be economically feasible, ignoring most of the time the human dignity which is the foundation for a free and fair community.
It's nice to keep in mind that every action has an ethical component, therefore you can't have a publicly virtuous society based on particular vices.
This would be the same as building a house without laying the foundation, it can be nice to look at, but sooner or later it will crash down.
The same ending can only be avoided if we base society on two great pillars: human dignity and promote common well-being.
Unfortunately, this won't be achieved if we keep ethics at bay.