Quality Political Satire as Philanthropy

How do you define political philanthropy?

How do you define political satire?

When, in your view, is political satire a form of philanthropy?

Perhaps you use various expressions of fiction and satire as tools for societal and political improvement.

How do you know when social criticism is necessary?

When do you know that a particular approach to that criticism is necessary?

You are currently experiencing political philanthropy and Political Philanthropy.

Do you encourage satire and/or statecraft and/or witchcraft and/or good research and/or wise investments and/or an advanced understanding of political philanthropy?

Real democracy requires, and relies upon, insight, whether through the presentation of fact or through satirical exaggeration or even through satirical understatement.

How often have you thought of politics in satirical ways?

Perhaps you only think of politics in satirical ways.

You may feel you have been forced to do so.  You may believe it is the only possible way to maintain your mental health in some state of reasonableness.

In confronting the unfortunate fact that there are no reasonable political states in the world, political satire is therefore an essential public health measure.

Do you usually associate satire with reasonableness?

When do you know a quality analysis of events requires humour?

When do you know a quality analysis of events is unsuitable for humour?

If you regard elegance as lacking humour, why is that the case?

Perhaps you have never had a healthy sense of history, identity, imagination and/or humour as a unique human being.

You may, for example, have a tendency to mimic other people to conform to their outward practices and perceived expectations.

What do you know about humour as an investment?

How do you know when humour is adequately compatible and adequately appropriate?

Perhaps you have never had a sense of humour.  
 
Perhaps you have never had a healthy sense of the ridiculous.

Perhaps you would rather regard bullying as fun. 

Ridiculous politicians often regard satire as a form of bullying.  That is why they have often attempted to silence satirists and other critics.

A satire is an intentionally humorous critique.

Have you ever written a critique of political satire?

Have you ever written an essay on the unintentional humour you have found within politics?

Have you ever thought carefully about the purpose of political satire?

Thinking carefully is obviously an intellectual practice.

Perhaps you regard political satire as an intellectual practice.

Perhaps you regard political satire as a form of protest.

Perhaps you have written elegantly in praise of corruption, or another sort of folly.

Perhaps you have a deadpan approach to reporting scandals.

Do you regard political satire, and possibly even other forms of philanthropy, as essential to experiencing quality of life?

Perhaps you enjoy humour in translation, especially when transforming journalese into quality satire.

Quality political satire always has a serious purpose.  That purpose is to bring public attention to serious societal and global problems, in whatever way the public is likely to take notice.

Whether the public subsequently acts wisely as a consequence of the awareness attained is another matter entirely.

Do you at least occasionally gain amusement from mispronunciations and other verbal muddles?

Do you at least occasionally hope a satire-themed demonstration will lead to political reform?

Are you a world expert in the art, science and history of tactical frivolity?

Whether you are or not, how do you attempt to distinguish between the dangerously ridiculous, the demonstrably sublime and the benignly silly?

Either a point of view is reasonable or it is not.

An unreasonable point of view is merely ridiculous and possibly even an expression of bullying.

Quality satire highlights the dangerously ridiculous through reasonable expressions of mockery, such as necessary parody.

Self-serving, self-proclaimed intellectuals go along with whatever will boost their own careers, regardless of the consequences for anyone else.

You may be aware, for example, that tertiary academics are now mainly assessed, within and between institutions, on how much revenue they can acquire from various sources to boost the prestige of institutions.  It is a ridiculously narcissistic situation.

What do you know about the collective narcissism of the academic Establishment, the military Establishment, the financial Establishment, the medical Establishment and the political Establishment, in any society?

Perhaps you prefer the experience of attempting to invest in the dangerously ridiculous rather than in the demonstrably sublime or the benignly silly.

Perhaps that is reflected in the way you vote, and possibly even in the way you protest or otherwise invest your time.

Quality political satire encourages the public to acquire accurate knowledge to support sufficient safety and suitable civility.

Fun is often short-lived without accurate knowledge and sufficient safety. 

And honesty can be cruel if it is not presented with appropriate civility. 

When politicians mock reasonableness, they do not deserve to be treated with civility. 

Do people in positions of power prefer to make fun of your needs and dismiss the importance of your health? 

Do most persons, including most politicians, regard your suffering as a somewhat offensive imposition on their activities? 

Non-intellectuals and fake intellectuals may prefer to protest disruptively, or otherwise rudely, with the aim of achieving media coverage if nothing else.

Yet true intellectuals often protest subtly.  They may even do so through the consistent display of good manners, highly insightful artistic expressions and sophisticated humour.

They never praise themselves, except satirically.

Philanthropy provides the freedom through which quality political satire can be displayed.  It may or may not be associated with financial freedom or political freedom.

What do you praise, and why?

What do you ridicule, and why?

Perhaps you regard insightful comedy as the only effective antidote to the tragedy of spiteful bureaucratic arrogance and political corruption.

You may associate political campaigns with panegyrics and publicity stunts, fearmongering, unlawful erections, hideous policies, inappropriate donations, undemocratic lobbying, silly slogans and futility.

Quality political satire is usually independent of blatant ideologies and other idiocies.

Perhaps you think suitable independence merely involves the acquisition of knowledge and/or money and/or the experience of fun.  Yet there is no true independence without reasonable honesty, and there is far too little of that in the world.  

Do you have an interest in paremiology?

Do you know much about paremiography?

Unreasonable ideas tend to arise from strong emotions, especially when associated with greed or another form of lust.

Are you sure you are not being greedy or otherwise obnoxious?

How carefully do you distinguish between philanthropic intentions and recreational intentions? 

How philanthropically do you use your leisure time?

Quality political satire, as an expression of philanthropy, is actually above politics.  In fact, it is morally much higher than most political activities in most societies.

You are likely to be aware that bullies use superficial charm as a way to hide their cruelty.  They impose their own ideas about excitement, seriousness and amusement upon other people for ulterior motives.

They are often overconfident and therefore establish a false sense of security.  They are usually bad investors, particularly through their propensity towards greed.  They believe they are esteemed in the common vogue of the world.

There are many ways to confuse the public, of course.  There and very few ways to enlighten minds.  That is especially the case when the possessors of those minds fail to be aware that they actually do possess minds of their own, hidden away behind multiple layers of cognitive distortions and cultural presumptions. 

The whole universe receives her ferment of mirth and jollity through the accurate assessment of folly.

Yet populist bigots are easily convinced by megalomaniacs to believe nonsense.  They may even believe that authentic intellectuals are the enemy.  They may believe that genuinely well-informed, kind people are at the centre of a corrupt Establishment and sinister, self-serving deep state. 

Meanwhile, the oligarchs and plutocrats protected by corrupt systems continue to act with impunity, supported by idiotic puppets within politics, bureaucracies and military cliques.

The ship of state has never been anything more than a ship of fools.

You may be aware that megalomaniacs in the Establishment tend to encourage populists to believe that the Establishment consists entirely of selfish intellectuals. Yet authentic intellectuals are usually absent from positions of power in corrupt social and political structures.

That is why authentic intellectuals end up talking with no-one but themselves, either singularly or in small groups, whether entirely seriously or with the wit required for quality satire.

How can you prove you are neither a thief nor a fool?

Excessive wealth is always stolen property.  

Excessive self-confidence is a form of foolishness.  

Perhaps you are happy to devote most of your time towards protesting against injustices instead of addressing injustices in theory and practice, at their source, as any real world leader would do.

Or perhaps you prefer to deny injustices and utter platitudes.

What is your acquaintance with the Adagia and the politics of sententiae?

Charlatans and other fools talk up false positivity in the hope that no-one will notice problems.  

The denial of difficulties even happens in many homes, and during community activities and in workplaces, such as government departments.

If you regard yourself as part of the maintenance team for Spaceship Earth, are you sure you have read all the most appropriate technical manuals?

 

 

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