Marx's Thinking

 

My appreciation goes to T.  B.  Bottomore.  You might ask who ?  That man translated  Marx's brilliant  "Economic and Philosophical Manuscripts' ' In 1958  and it was subsequently published in 1959 In the United States. T.B.  was a professor with the London School of Economics and Political Science. His translation into  English was the first.  This disquisition pertains to a few profound principles from Marx’s manuscript.

Much has been written about Marx that comes from individuals that have never read Marx or from gossip from  similar ignoramuses.  His name is associated with socialism and that by many was considered bad, especially when they bring up either Russia or China's political system.  However,  Russia and China have totalitarian economic socialism which is light years away and a misrepresentation of Marx’s ideas.  In fact, much of Marx’s philosophy is related to existential thinking . It is really a protest against man's alienation from his loss of self and by the  transformation of him into a thing. The existential movement philosophy was against the dehumanization and automatization of man that's inherent in the development of Western industrialism.  Moreover, Marx’s  philosophy is rooted in the humanistic Western philosophical tradition from Spinoza  ,the French and German Enlightenment philosophers of the 18th century to Goethe and Hegel.  Essentially, Marx's concern was about man‘s realization for  reaching his potential.  Can man  liberate from the capitalistic slavery,chains and reach his potential? The following is my brief story.

I was born,the oldest of three, in  Detroit, Michigan in 1939.  My father was a government employee and my mother was a homemaker until about 1958 . Then, she went to work as a special assistant to Walter Goodman who managed the Michigan State Fair. My passions were sports and girls, not necessarily in that order.  As a result, I did not focus much on education throughout junior and senior high school. Dad had an interest in law school, but did not complete law school education during the night.  He was quite the politician and was an undefeated President of Letter Carriers in the city of Detroit; undefeated President of the Supervisors in the city of Detroit and met  President FDR in Washington.  By the way, Franklin D.  is my legal birth name.  Mom was extremely smart and was a crossword puzzle whiz; sang and played the piano;  edited and typed my college papers. She played  a mean game of Scrabble and was delighted when she made triple scores. I acknowledged her in my dissertation.

Dad presented powerful messages.  The first message was work with your brain and not your back and the second was no one can take your education away from you.  Even though I was not particularly academically motivated, I was  towards play. I was admitted to the University of Detroit, a Jesuit institution, based on my football performance.In high school,  I liked English, history and especially PE.  I knew I was going to college, even though I didn’t study much.  I was expected to work and had a paper route before my teen years.  During summers, I dug ditches in construction, caddied, dropped off bottles of Mr. Clean on doorsteps, cut grass, etc. Summer vacation  was for  work.

While attending the University of Detroit, Aunt Lilian thought I'd be terrific as a PE teacher .  While at the university, I became  more interested in learning, began thinking about career and making money.  After all, one goes to college so they can earn more money.  While in college, my high school buddy Dave  N. was working for General Motors in a white collar job .  I'm in college, he has a home in Warren, Michigan, a suburb of Detroit, and is married to Darlene who attended nearby Dominican High School.  Dave had dogs, cars, and a front  and  backyard.  While at the University, I worked part-time from 10 PM to 2 AM at UPS and made an enormous sum of $2.20 per hour.  I worked on the conveyor belt with Nick S.Nick was married and also had a full time job . We pulled packages off the belt and began sorting them while a stoic looking supervisor looked on without a smile.  I also unloaded trucks by placing packages on the conveyor belt leading out of the truck. The goal was to empty the truck as quickly as possible.   Needless to say, I preferred  sorting packages than unloading those trucks at breakneck speed.

I initially majored in business , took a  course specializing in advertising and found that uninteresting.  I married and that triggered pursuing a career in education.  In 1963 I started teaching in the Detroit public schools, at a salary of $5200.  Teaching was fun , rewarding and I worked at Pattengill Elementary. Years  later  that was a scene of rioting in Detroit . I'm thinking I should get a Masters degree because I would make more money, which was extremely important. I would then  be eligible for an administrative  position.  Making money was the goal.  To supplement a teaching salary,  I worked evenings as well as summers in Parks and Recreation and substitute teaching. With nepotism, mom got me a position in security at the Michigan State Fair. At  the State Fair,  I drove a security car, keeping the peace.  Incidentally, Walter Goodman was  a former educator in the Oak Park Public school system.  I pursued  a Master's degree and received a position as a counselor in the ritzy West Bloomfield Hills School District in Oakland County.Hello Mitt Romney.

While a  junior high counselor, I began part-time teaching  at Oakland Community  College. Subsequently, I became an Assistant Professor.  I'm moving up the ladder making more money.  That's what you're supposed to do .Make more money was the mission. I was patriotic and  bought into the propaganda of the capitalistic system. Earlier, I had talked with Principal Marty H. and Chet the VP about pursuing a second Masters or Phd.  It was all about acquiring more money with more prestige, etc. They told me a second Masters did not make sense, but a Phd did.  I followed their advice and started my Phd at Wayne State University. I’m an assistant professor,  a graduate student,and teaching during the evening making money going up the economic ladder.  What could be better?

Received my Phd in 1973 and loved graduate school. I developed best friends with Denny O. and  reunited with former high school friend Wayne F. also  a graduate student.  During that time,  I remembered studying,  so that I could pass the preliminary examination and of course the qualifying examination.  I read a lot of psychological research.  I knew the good points and the poor points of the studies. I spent all this effort acquiring and assimilating information.  I didn’t spend much time  fully digesting the  information.  My goal was to take in as much information as possible so that I could pass the various testing hurdles that were in front of me.  An example was that I took French.  It was not conversational French but the ability to translate French.  I would go through the flashcards learning the language, learning the tenses, etc. I read Alexandre Dumas’s "The Three Musketeers."  I aced the French qualifying exam and even read French menus while in  Paris, France.  Could I read The Three Musketeers in French today?  Of course not.  I studied and learned to translate French so I could read Jean Piaget and others.   If I have a goal.  I am terrific at meeting that goal.  My goal was to get a Phd so I could earn more money.  I was enslaved; a captive like Sysiphus on a treadmill.  Well, I was in a position to consume all those things. However, my cognitive, aesthetic and physical needs were not fulfilled, Yet, I had a celebration afterwards.  A member of the psychology staff Barry M. presented me with a graduation card.  It was a picture of a graduate with part of his head cut off and with sand being poured filling it..

I started as an Assistant Professor at Cal State San Bernardino.  Then, I left my professorship in search of gold in San Francisco .  I took advantage of the economic opportunities in private practice  that were available to me,  made a considerable amount of money buying and selling houses, ranches, and purchasing Harley’s every other year.  I was living a good life.  By the way, I had to go to the Hawaiian Islands at least 3 to 4 times a year just to lie on the beach and read novels to decompress from being a workaholic , being enslaved while making money.  Buying a new Hurley every other year was an indication of my discontent, but I had wonderful things.  The cliché that the one with the most toys wins, state of the art and the dream house were cognizant slogans.  I was a puppet within this economic system of capitalism.

Divorced, I moved to the foothills at the age of 60.  I decided that I did not want to pursue the mighty dollar anymore.  I was done with the Harleys.  I had a wonderful home  with acreage, horses and so forth.  Yeah. I could now bring to life my passions of play, running, horses and making new friends.  

It wasn't until I retired ,that I eventually learned and realized that I was no longer in bondage.  I was free.  That freedom allowed me to  go after athletic passions of running and being an equestrian.  I could get up in the morning and decide where I am going to run or what I'm going to write .  I really desired to condition my horse and myself.  Being involved in Ride and Tie, I was introduced to the Tevis, the Swanton Pacific 100 mile Ride andTie and Western States.  I had to do it all and I did.  In 2009 I broke some bones in my neck and was advised by the orthopedic surgeon that I couldn't afford to be thrown off a horse again as it might result in paralysis.  He said I could run and if I fell forward, that's fine. I retired from equine activities and focused on running.

 I then decided to write a book while recovering from my equestrian injury.  A few years later , while my dear wife Linda was riding her horse and I was running alongside , we started talking about mental toughness. So that idea was the topic for my second book.  In essence, I was  actualizing my needs of play,achievement,affiliation aggression, exhibition,dominance, sex needs in my 60s. In my 70s, I could more fully actualize my intellectual passions by spending more quality time , in a relaxed environment , meeting my achievement, dominance ,and understanding   needs by reading and writing.  Now, when I read, I am not preparing for a test but I'm actually able to assimilate ,accommodate, synthesize and relate ideas to what's happening in our world today. Furthermore, I  devote and spend  quality and caring time with Linda , spend time running, spend time reading and spend time writing and teaching again.  With the escape, I reentered childhood , adolescence and young adulthood again. I broke free from capitalistic slavery.  In other words, it wasn't until retirement that I started to cut the shackles.  I don't have to earn money.  I don't have to consume.  I  don't have to acquire things.  I'm not driven by those self-defeating pursuits. Living with integrity became more relevant.  Yes , challenges continue.

 Karl Marx, you're correct about the evils of capitalism ,it enslaves.  It alienates and interferes with meeting needs and developing one's potential.  It took me 60 years to re-discover my youth again.   We have a finite amount of psychic energy.  While  providing psychological services, I directed much psychic energy in that endeavor .  As a result, I did not have a sufficient amount of psychic energy for fulfilling my passions.  However, with  leaving the practice of psychology, I now had a sufficient amount of psychic energy,capacity amd ability to pursue my passions in running, riding, writing, friendships ,reading,  and educating The result was I could now actualizing my needs of Achievement  (To accomplish something difficult) ; Affiliation  (To draw near and enjoyably cooperate or reciprocate with an allied other); Aggression (To overcome opposition forcefully); Dominance(To influence or direct the behavior of others by suggestion, subduction, persuasion or command); Exhibition(  To make an impression); Play(To act for fun without further purpose); Sex(To form and further an erotic relationship), and Understanding (To be interested in theory).  I enjoy being physically active  and goal oriented.  Too many in the United States are alienated, unhappy,resentful and angry. The  widespread evil pursuit of money and greed continues.  What a waste. It's clear that we are living in a dysfunctional society. Thank you for the enlightenment  Karl Marx.

PS

How much better to get wisdom than gold, to get insight rather than silver!

— The Bible, Proverbs 16:16

Reference

Murray, H.  A.  Explorations in  Personality.