Give Peace a Chance

Political indoctrination: something we generally associate with authoritarian or totalitarian regimes, yes? The phrase conjures up images of schoolchildren in Nazi Germany being taught about the evils of Zion, or their counterparts in Soviet Russia being lectured about the decadence of the capitalist West and the superiority of Marxist-Leninism. But the truth is that we're all subjected to it, regardless of where or when we live, from the day we're born. It's just that in normal, democratic, societies, the indoctrination is less direct. Here in the capitalist West, for instance, we're constantly bombarded with adverts from manufacturers telling us that the key to happiness is the acquisition of more and more material goods. The message is reinforced through the media and popular culture, which constantly holds up as role models beautiful people who are deemed 'successful' through their acquisition of wealth and fame. Their lifestyles are held up as some kind of 'ideal' for the rest of us to aspire toward. Just look at the most popular 'reality' shows on TV, things like X Factor or Dragon's Den, even - their message is all the same: material gain is good and the key to fulfilment.

Now, this may all seem obvious and this analysis certainly isn't original - Gramsci got there first back in the 1930s - but you'd be surprised as to how many people just don't see it. The other week, for instance, I had an argument in the pub with a bloke who was insistent that socialism could never work because people were inherently greedy and always 'wanted more'. He just couldn't grasp my argument that this simply wasn't so. Human nature isn't basically so self-centered. Man is a social animal. We are simply made to believe that what we want are material goods above all else by the capitalistic society we live in - it's how capitalism sustains itself. But he just couldn't see past his own indoctrination. Anyway, over the past week or so I've watched, with fascination, the annual indoctrination of the young which occurs around every Remembrance Day these days. In recent years it has become clear that, here in the UK, only one interpretation of the event is allowed - the glorification of our war dead and, by extension, the glorification of the notion of sacrifice in war and, ultimately, of war itself. As an interesting article in The Guardian last week pointed out, Armistice Day hasn't always been seen as a solemn occasion - in the immediate aftermath of World War One, many saw it as cause for celebration, in recognition of the peace it brought. Indeed, I've always thought that if we are to perpetuate observance of Armistice Day, surely it should be a condemnation of war and the senseless loss of life it engenders? But instead, what we get is this reverence of all things martial. Frankly, I think it is about time we started indoctrinating schoolchildren as to the virtues of peace and pacifism every 11 November.