I posted the following parody in reply to the original (which I characterized as an anti-Democratic Party screed) in an out of the way place of the universe a long time ago.
“There is no difference” represents the epitome of a lack of understanding practical reality and the ramifications of the choices one makes. It is the smug self-rightiousness that there is only one true way, and that we do not have to accept responsibility for that choice. It tells us that to achieve one’s pipe dreams we can make others suffer for our hubris. It tells us that only we matter and those less fortunate are, well, out of luck.
“There is no difference” tells us that we can move furniture in the living room while the house is on fire and in danger of burning down (or, if you prefer, rearrange the deck chairs on the Titanic while it’s sinking).
“There is no difference” is patently false and very much like every clueless high school busybody who put on a Christmas pageant for the poor to brighten their day, ignoring the fact that they were ill, homeless, hungry, and cold.
“There is no difference” doesn’t bother to stick around to find out what happens, and doesn’t care.
“There is no difference” is the hand that grabs the last match as it is lit, letting the self generated wind extinguish that last hope for a warm fire because, well, they read about this really cool way to set the sticks when you build a fire which may, in certain circumstances, make your fireplace draft more efficient except we’re outside and it’s below freezing and that was our last match because at the last campsite there was “no difference” either and playing with the fireworks in Florida was so much fun…
[Timeout: people who are naive and unsophisticated should be mocked.]
“There is no difference” says that no loaf is better than 39 out of 40 slices. And besides, the people that won’t give us any bread will cause the hungry masses to rise up and change the system overnight.
“There is no difference” says not making a choice relieves one of any responsibility when the truly bad choice triumphs.
“There is no difference” worries about their own souls, but can’t fathom the suffering of others because, well, it’s good for their souls.
“There is no difference” is where one goes to hide because they were too lazy to do anything but pontificate in the abstract and didn’t want to soil their souls doing the hard work of planning, organizing, educating, and getting out the vote at the precinct level.
Let’s roll up our sleeves – there’s work to be done.
Spot on.
And yes, there’s work to be done. A lot of work.
That should have been paradocs.
My mind let my hands type the spelling I’m used to before I could stop myself. 😉
This question reminds me of watching a lady shopping with her young daughters a few weeks ago. It was one of those vignettes that makes you smile, then makes you think.
The daughters were debtating which popular “designer” label jacket they should have. The mother was trying to persuade them to accept an article of superior fabric and sturdier construction, and at one point, even offered to sew the “designer” label that each girl desired on them. No one would be the wiser, she contended.
An immediate chorus of outrage from the daughters, impossible, the Ecco has this kind of stitching here, the Bongo doesn’t have a pocket there, and so on and so forth. These girls could, and did, describe exhaustively, literally dozens of differences between what appeared (to me) to be two very nearly identical jackets, save for the label.
The mother acknowledged that fine, no pocket over there, stitching over here. However, both are made of flimsy material that will not keep you warm, which is the purpose of a jacket, nor will it hold up to use and washing. You need good warm jackets, and that’s what you’re getting!
To the girls, the differences between their respective preferred trendy jackets were glaringly obvious, and to them, quite significant. The mother’s perspective on the matter was so far from theirs that those differences, whether they existed or not, were irrelevant.
Ah, marketing.
Who benefits from the blurred distinction meme? Those in power can concentrate on pointing out the lack of a designer label on the opposition’s jacket, though the bill for their poorly constructed one will be due and payable long after it has fallen apart.