The New York Times has a headline: “Language of Greek Crisis Shifts From Financial Jargon to Humiliation”.
This is where things get dangerous. We like to think of
ourselves as reasonable beings. But feelings of humiliation are much more
powerful than reason: they drive people to suicide and murder, they are the
fuel of wars. Hitler played on the sense of humiliation in interwar Germany;
Putin is playing on it in Russia today.
The spread of economic interdependence sometimes bridges these divisions.
We speak of “swallowing our pride” in order to make a deal. But when the beast
of humiliation is loosed, when people no longer swallow their pride, terrible
and cascading dynamics follow. Reason is jettisoned: the Greeks are talking
about demanding reparations from World War II, the Germans are replying with
accusations about Alexander the Great. Crowds form, reinforcing a sense of
grievance and of communal unity. To relieve the sense of humiliation and the
taint of moral accusation, the accusers are cast as enemies and monsters.
This has happened many times before. We should not forget that
the period before World War I was one of great economic globalization and
trade, but degenerated rapidly into vicious warfare.
We know how to avoid humiliation: through listening,
respect, dialogue. Let’s try it.
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