One of the great gifts of the Enlightenment age was the centrality of reason and empiricism as instruments to unleash the astonishing potential of human capacity. Great Enlightenment thinkers recognized that human beings have the aptitude to observe the universe and rely on logical thinking to solve problems.
Moreover, these were not just lofty ideals; Benjamin Franklin and Denis Diderot demonstrated that building our collective constitution of knowledge could greatly enhance human prosperity not only for the aristocratic class but for all participants in the social contract. Franklin’s “Poor Richard’s Almanac” and Diderot and d’Alembert’s “Encyclopedie” served as the Enlightenment’s machines de guerre effectively providing broad access to practical knowledge empowering individuals to build their own unique brand of prosperity.
It is hard to overstate what a radical departure this was from the prior millennium where the birth lottery largely circumscribed the determinants of one’s prosperity. Due to this striking reorientation, many historians view the Enlightenment as providing the bedrock for what we think of as a modern society.
Further, one cannot deny the titanic impact of this reorientation. Consider that in 1790 human life expectancy was around 30 years, one in five children didn’t survive to age 5, and 4/5 of the world lived in extreme poverty. Today, life expectancy is over 70 across the globe; over 99% of children survive past age 5; and only 1/5 of the world lives in the same extreme level of poverty. In arguably, we have unleashed more human prosperity in the last 200 years than in the prior 2000.
It is with this perspective, that we must consider the gravity of our current condition. What are the consequences of having abandoned our Enlightenment ideals? Today, the era’s gifts are adrift in our bitterly polarized landscape in which civic problem solving is obscured by the demonization of tribal politics. In such an environment, our ability to construct effective policy solutions becomes impossible. As the vital constructive discussions of public policy are crowded out, the unfettered interests of crony capitalism rule supreme. By yielding to the alignment of political and economic power over recent decades, we the people have permitted the monied classes to advance their own interests at the expense of those of the majority of the republic.
Where does this leave us? Our political discourse has devolved into to a game of scoring points and laying blame for our predicaments while the unbridled “free market” wreaks havoc on today’s working classes and, as we continue to amass an immense debt burden, deprives future generations’ of their own prospects.
The absurdities that emerge from our predicament become increasingly disquieting. Here are two particularly noteworthy examples:
The quest for artificial intelligence and its consequent effects on energy prices and the environment.
Unsatisfied with the intelligence with which we are naturally endowed, we have surrendered to a market driven quest to discover and deploy a supposedly superior “artificial” intelligence. The immense anticipated demand for this AI will require significantly more computer processing power than we currently possess. Consequently, today we are building the requisite data centers, which will consume a staggering amount of incremental energy.
At the same time, our MAGA retrograde energy policy, priding itself on climate change denial, is funneling resources into the rebuilding and redeployment of coal, oil and gas infrastructure and cancelling or furloughing green energy projects. However, due to the skyrocketing cost of revitalizing coal, this traditional energy source is now more costly than solar and wind energy. So as the NYT times recently reported, in West Virginia, where the coal revitalization is centered, consumer energy prices are rising more than double the national average.
The replacement of genuine human interaction with its virtual counterpart.
As a species we have seemingly determined that building authentic human relationships is too difficult (or painful). Fortunately, the proliferating opportunities to build digital relationships provide ample replacement. Vast chunks of our society, notably young people, are increasingly forsaking real human interaction and replacing it with its virtual cousin. As Scott Galloway reminds us: Who needs to go out on dates, when Only Fans is just a click away?
Of a bygone era are the noisy college dining halls where vivacious conversations reverberated form the rafters; today each student eats individually with scant interaction with their neighboring diners, all glued to their screens, and many with earbuds.
Can we not avail ourselves to our better angels and return to an era of crafting solutions to pressing concerns? Unfortunately, trapped by our technologies and their supporting business models, we find it increasingly difficult to distance ourselves from the pressures of our self-chosen “mobs.” This leaves meager opportunity to constructively resolve genuine policy differences. Our Enlightenment forbears welcomed technology and market competition as leveling devices for the public good. For the sake of the next generation, it might behoove us to follow their model.
Radwell is the author of “American Schism: How the Two Enlightenments Hold the Secret to Healing our Nation” winner of last year’s International Book Award for Best General Nonfiction. He serves on the Advisory Councils at Business for America, RepresentUs, and The Grand Bargain Project, and is a frequent contributor as a political analyst, and speaker within both the business community and on college campuses both in the U.S. and abroad. This is the sixth entry in a 10-part series on the American Schism in 2025.
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In order to make sense of the current assault on our Democracy, its institutions, the rule of law, and common decency, we must understand the root causes of the deep cultural malaise that has seized our political process. If you are struggling to understand how the pursuit of a more perfect union is being torn asunder and why by a convicted felon and his supporters, read the American Schism. You will discover the important distinctions our Founding Fathers debated arising from the European Enlightenment. The foundational principles and core values that shaped our Constitution and Federalism spin a fascinating tale. You will understand the motivations, fears, and hatred necessary to implement the multifaceted destruction of Democracy and get away with it in real time in this very moment. American Schism reveals the factors and vulnerabilities that are allowing our system to be transformed into an all-powerful plutocracy, driven by greed. An authoritarian dictatorship combined with a White Christian Nationalist agenda is obliterating any remnants of civility remaining in our consciousness and commitment to enlightened self-interest or the well-being of the commons. Seth David Radwell takes the reader on a deeply informative journey of discovery.
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