The Tower of Babel is a biblical account that is part of a series of sin or alienation stories. It describes how nations got alienated from other nations. It uses the metaphor of language to do this indicating that at one time we had one language that all understood, but after sinning against God, the one language of understanding is replaced by the Tower of Babel where each nation had a different language and there was no understanding of what each nation could understand about another when in communication.
I have recently read an article in the Atlantic (April 11, 2022) by Professor Jonathan Haidt of NYU that is the best description that I have seen of why we are in desperate times in our nation. He sees the Tower of Babel as an appropriate image. I will attach the article in full at the end of this blog as it is worth reading. I want to also comment on some ethical themes that I see in his point of view of concluding that social media is at the heart of our problems as well as seeking power and money. Keep in mind that the article was written before Elon Mask’s purchase of Twitter which makes the article even more compelling. His purchase of Twitter has raised deep concerns and high hopes. Many feel that it may make or break us as a nation. The right and left have strong opinions about complete freedom to say what is on your mind with transparency being the second of the two guidelines. People who work for Twitter have literally been in tears after the purchase. Haidt’s article describes the origin of the hopes and fears as well as the tears. What will Musk do?
According to Haidt, social media has reduced a spirit of cooperation. His opinion is that Google started the building of the Tower in 2011 because you can’t develop deep friendships that are generated from private conversations. Then there was the addition of the share and like buttons. His research pointed out that posts are more likely to trigger anger when shared or liked which was followed by dishonesty and mob dynamics. All of this diminished trust and “democracy depends on rules, norms, and institutions.”
People can be outraged each day and institutions are no longer trusted. An example is when Newt Gingrich urged Republicans not to bring families to Washington because they might form social ties with Democrats. I have written about having Biden at EA for a chapel address where he identified the problem in Washington is caused by people not having dinner together any more. It’s all partisan business.
Social media has brought us a spread of information, polarization, and misinformation. Twitter is based on confirmation bias which has led us to extremes and not moderation. However, a democracy depends on communication with people who don’t share your beliefs where you work together to move toward understanding. Democracy depends on not punishing dissent. Gail Godwin describes this in her book, A Team of Rivals, which points out that Lincoln, who some regard as our greatest president, who chose people who didn’t agree with him on all things as members of his cabinet.
As I have written about before, if someone presents a problem, they should have some suggestions of a solution. Haidt suggests three things that are needed: (1) harden institutions so that they can withstand chronic mistrust; (2) limit the fringe people who make anonymous attacks by giving the people in the middle more encouragement of their views, and (3) remind future generations that we got where we are today in moral evolution by focusing on co-operation.
But there is something that Haidt doesn’t talk about in his terrific analysis. That something is money and power. Recall that I have written about Callahan’s research in the “cheating culture.” In essence people will choose money and power before they choose integrity in action. I saw this clearly in something that was said by a Republican senator when the press asked him how he felt about Kevin McCarthy who lied about the nature of his comments about Trump after the January 6 insurrection. The senator replied, “No one is interested in whether McCarthy is a liar or a traitor. People are interested in inflation, border security, and Biden’s failure in foreign policy.” In addition, McCarthy got a standing ovation at a GOP conference meeting after explaining his recent comments about Trump. In essence money is more important than ethics. What a snapshot of our current dilemma that has also caused our Tower of Babel! That response seems to be true for many. It sickens me that McCormick and Oz covet the support of Trump in the race in Pennsylvania. Trump who should be seen as a pariah on our democracy.
Money and power are the language of our Tower of Babel along with the impact of social media. Please read the article below. You won’t regret it. St. Paul said, “Now I see through a glass darkly, but then face to face.” The article below helped me to merge my thinking with Haidt’s so that I can see more clearly and not through a glass darkly of why we are in our current national dilemma.
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