"Vom Kollektiv zum Individualismus" appeared in the magazine of the Frankfurter Allgemeine Sunday magazine March 13, 2022. Not many people should require a translation, From Collectivism to Individualism. Since the two philosophical poles help to identify the disunity in America, the article should interest us very much--equality in the Democrat de-facto socialist tradition, versus the Republican historical reliance on individual initiative and private wealth.
Author Tatjana Krieger writes that London, England, suffered a catastrophic fire in 1666 that burnt down "80% of the city-centre." London had to rebuild and realized that Londoners needed a new concept of building to reflect the changes in the society, a new generation of dwelling that contained "Privatsphäre und Freiräume." Those two words hardly need translation either, I hope.
"Between the front-door and the sidewalk, home-owners wanted a buffer that separated them from the life of the street, which they associated with sin, lawlessness, and sickness." Krieger continues that "Anyone who could afford it wanted to protect themselves from public spaces."
Public spaces had defined life in Medieval-London, a life governed by the "social control of watchful neighbors and cultural busybodies." 17th-century Londoners, on the other hand, wanted personal space and protection for their "private activities." They wanted a place where they could live "unobserved, with no one eavesdropping. Even their thoughts would remain a secret from others."
Krieger continues that, in modern terms, 17th-century Londoners wanted to protect their personal data, encoded and protected by passwords." They saw as their main enemy the people from "public spaces who wanted no personal space or secretiveness." No matter how people vote, they live in private social circles, and jealously protect what's theirs.
Modern Americans need to realize that the historical period of the Medieval "Common Era" predated society's focus on individualism, private wealth, and personal spaces. The M.C.E. had to yield to advances. In terms of Evolution, society has moved beyond equality, all things in common, and all that other left-wing stuff. Nowadays, anything we create belongs to us and no one else. Even a left-winger like Bill Gates understands the sanctity of private data, even if he claims not to understand the sanctity of private wealth--except his own, of course!
