In lieu of an abstract, here is a brief excerpt of the content:

127 33 Of Deprivation and Primitive Accumulation Friday 30 August 2002 There is sufficient evidence to support the thesis that people born of deprivation and nurtured in the humiliating circumstances of deprivation-real or perceived-do become, again because of gratuitous circumstances, most contemptuous, arrogant, vain and vindictive toward those they perceived to have been better endowed (by dint of nobility or humility) and whom they regard as having been responsible for their deprivation. Thus, child of ostensibly humble and parish upbringing, who by fortuitous circumstance, is elevated to the rank of a prince, instead of exhibiting the virtues of his lowly cradle, magically transforms overnight into a demo-god who must teach a lesson to all those who thought he was a NOBODY. Vengeance is mine! If he ever wore a pair of slippers to school, he must now acquire a thousand pairs of designer court shoes of crocodile skin. If his humble parents never as much owned a bicycle, he now must acquire two private jets and the sheer magnitude of his vanity is arithmetically proportionate to his compulsive greed; a lust for vengeance born of deprivation. It is as if the world owed him something and he must have not only his pound of flesh, but also a gallon of blood. And that is the deal. When power passes on to the hands of those who have a lesson to teach the world and who invariably recruit only those of their psychic persuasion, the rest of humanity is confronted with a senseless legion of Satanic power bent on teaching ordinary mortals a lesson in obeisance. “You think I am the carpenter’s son? Sorry, I am now the king of…and I will out-Herod Herod.” So be it. The primitive instinct of over accumulation to compensate deprivation borders on madness,- a madness that reigns unchecked. 128 Framers of advanced republican constitutions were quite aware of the dangers of believing in the benevolence and decency of people of modest birth who may accede to power so they put checks and balances to curb excessive l power and political perpetuity. Human beings have an infinite capacity to inflict pain and suffering on fellow human beings, thus society must organize and protect itself against this tendency. Primitive accumulation does not limit itself to those who aspire or are catapulted to power by circumstance, but also to those who unexpectedly and undeservedly find themselves in position of authority or influence. In their state of relative advantage over others, they tend to over compensate for an earlier stage of deprivation by hoarding ill-gotten property and to show contempt for virtue and nobility. This state of affairs is very glaring in societies where mediocrity has replaced excellence and roguery elevated to a pedestal of glory. In such societies where embezzlers and hatchet men have become heroes, it is quite common to find those who have acquired wealth and authority by intrigue making a mockery of those they regarded yesterday as their superiors, the yesterday society of moral integrity, probity, respect for excellence and exemplary talent. Academics have averred that when society plummets to such a grotesque state of debasement, the time is ripe for change. Yet social scientists have still to explain the delay in the eruption of revolution long after the dissection and exposure of the anatomy of corrupt polities and their henchmen. Perpetuity breeds complacency and unless it is bled of its phlegm, the rest of ordinary humanity may just as well contemplate a return to the jungle and play by its predatory rules of primitive domination. S-N F. ...

Share