Alexandra Posca
Romulus Maier
Final
I’m No Superman
A common political culture advocates that all Americans do not think alike, which is only one of the reasons why this country is so diverse. These attitudes define how individuals participate, who or what they vote for, and what political parties they support. Because of familial and social experiences, I am primarily an apathetic/disinterested party when it comes to politics, however, keys events such as 9/11, Roe vs. Wade and ISIS do engage me in the political realm.
Nietzsche thought that the human universe was the manifestation of an underlying force, which he called the Will to Power. He proclaims that, “Life itself is WILL TO POWER” (Nietzsche 13)1. Nietzsche characterized the will to power, the basic underlying essence of the human universe, as a limitless yearning to achieving power. The Will to Power can be understood as an answer to the age old question, “why do we do what we do?” Nietzsche thought philosophy had a definite practical purpose, that being to facilitate the emergence of the great individual who dedicates their life to growth and self-overcoming. Self-overcoming is the process by which an individual, what he called an Übermensch, rises above their circumstances and difficulties to embrace whatever life has thrown at them. Nietzsche viewed himself as the educator of an individual of “the higher man.” Nietzsche believes that the strong impose their values on the weak and if the weak don’t like it, they can rise above and show themselves to be strong, otherwise they are cowardly, only the strong deserve to be respected and paid attention to. He thinks that historically, the original morality took place between universal principles of right and wrong. Nietzsche fights to make it known that bad and evil have no firm existence and aims to prove that individuals give these entities meanings of their own, according to their needs of rationalization.
In spite of family generation gaps, one’s family is generally the first and biggest influence on a child. Families are generally an enormous impact on political opinions. But as individuals grow up and realize that there is more to the world than the opinion of their parents; their attitudes tend to diverge away from what they once thought. Although individuals do not still agree with their parent’s opinion, their influence will always remain. The more politically active your family, the more likely you are to hold the same beliefs. My mom never pushed politics on me as a child. When I was growing up, it didn’t seem proper to ask people who they voted for. I would ask my mom who she voted for she would always respond, “I voted for Bush, but don’t tell anyone.” Politics were more like a secret society, rather than a drawn out debate with my family. This is mainly the reason why my political opinion isn’t concrete. I feel I am more independent than anything, my mom has always expressed to me the free will to do anything I wanted, but one event in history restricted everyone’s freedoms indefinitely.
September 11, 2001 was a turning point for American culture, trust and belief in the government and how the government was run. Politics are now based on terrorism, gun laws, and violence, which is mostly shown through heightened security. Before 9/11 I can never remember one lockdown drill, but after 9/11 this has become routine. A lockdown drill in schools is supposed to prevent an unwanted party from entering a classroom. The teacher locks the door and the students go to the furthest place from the door and hide. This history of 9/11 has shaped laws, providing for the common good, and policies that once did not exist, but are now extremely prevalent. Can the amendments withstand all of the progression in society? It is a live document, but can it really adhere to any changes in society? Also, when you go to the airport, when you go anywhere, security is much tighter. This is a problem and a hassle, but it is