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Whig history — I used to take for granted this historiographical analog to thermodynamics’ arrow of time. But I have also observed the steady decline in the democracy index since the early 2000s, the rise to prominence of illiberal states such as China, the re-election of dark enlightenment-adjacent leaders such as Donald Trump (influenced by JD Vance and Peter Thiel, themselves influenced by Curtis Yarvin who wrote at length against Whig history), the seeming lack of ability for liberal democracies (such as those in Western Europe) to come together, etc.
All these trend indicators that make me question whether history does indeed progress (in every acception of the word) toward a more liberal, open, democratic, and tolerant future; or if the Enlightenment period of the 18th century and the temporarily-settled post-colonial world order after WW2 were really transient anomalies, and we are simply now witnessing a reversal to the mean, which I view as the single most powerful force in the universe. 8 replies
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I didn’t want to include technological progress in my line of thinking, because I don’t think we’ve ever witnessed a net regression on that front in recorded history — merely brief periods of relative stagnation, like the Middle Ages. And of course, technological progress has brought undeniable net benefits such as food security, longevity and health, etc. over time.
My concern, instead, is specifically about the governance models of society, and how they adapt (or fail to adapt) to a changing and globalizing world. We have incredible tech at our disposal but we’re still the same bipedal apes with tribal mentalities. The wetware hasn’t kept up with everything else.
And if Homo sapiens remains the same, and the tech itself is agnostic (can be used to either enhance or erode liberties), then there isn’t an obvious case for net societal progress, as opposed to mere periodic oscillations around the mean (which we might mistake for a direction in history due to our short lifespans and memories) 1 reply
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