The Moral IQ

The US isn’t in any position to lecture anyone about morality. It's time to kick the moral idiots out of office.

The Moral IQ

by C.A. Matthews

“How can they do such a thing!” is a phrase I’ve heard more than once over the past twelve months, closely followed by “That’s insane! They’re acting like sociopaths! They’re immoral!”

I agree wholeheartedly. Israel’s genocide of Gazans, trapped in an open air prison, on what are basically made up excuses to steal their land and resources qualifies as insane, immoral, and sociopathic. But it’s happening now to the Palestinian people in both Gaza and the West Bank, and the evil is spreading into Lebanon with the blessings (and armaments) of the USA.

Americans can’t deny it. US tax payers are arming “The World’s Most Moral Army (TM)” with our tax dollars. We’re arming them in spite of Israeli soldiers videoing themselves committing war crimes such as looting and shooting innocent civilians and children in cold blood.

So how is it that Israel claims to have a “moral” army when its soldiers are anything but? How can the US claim to be moral when it has broken its own humanitarian laws that say it’s unlawful to arm a country that is breaking those same humanitarian laws? How can what the US military is doing in the Middle East be considered moral when they don’t even live up to their own standards?

“Because we say it is,” is the typical reply given by US and Israeli government spokespersons. “We say our actions are moral, and you are mistaken if you think otherwise. We are superior in our wisdom.”

Do you believe them? I don’t. I just have to look out my window. Do the indigenous peoples of North America still live on all of their ancestral lands? Not in my neighborhood. Wake up. Apartheid is used to dominate, crush, and steal from the native inhabitants on all continents.

The US, like Israel, has used the “superiority” argument to drop deadly bombs upon a civilian population as a form of collective punishment in the same way the Israelis have done to the Palestinians. Hiroshima and Nagasaki, two cities without much military importance in Japan, found themselves utterly destroyed by atom bombs in 1945. They were destroyed to make a point—not to stop a war, which was already winding down according to the most recent historical findings.

Nazi scientists and statesmen alike were smuggled out of Germany and into the US during Operation Paperclip at about the same time. If you feel this had nothing to do with advancing US “superiority” or hegemony over the rest of the planet, I have a bridge in Brooklyn to sell you.

Let’s face it: The US—and most of the Western world by extension, including settler-colonial states such as Israel—aren’t in the position to lecture anyone about morality.

So, what has all this talk about morality got to do with the upcoming presidential election in the US you’re wondering? Quite a lot I’d say. Last year about this time, I wrote a piece entitled The New Litmus Test where I spelled out how I determined which political candidate to vote for. My “red line” is a candidate’s support of genocide. If they’re in favor of mass murdering significant portions of the Palestinian population in Gaza, the West Bank and elsewhere, then that’s a no-go for my vote. I suspect most of my readers still agree with me.

But this year I’m hearing some voters claim, “I can’t use the red line of genocide anymore. There won’t be anyone left on the ballot to vote for if I do! I can’t leave so many ballot lines blank, can I?”

First things first: You are allowed to leave as many ballot lines blank as you wish. You don’t have to vote for a person or an issue you don’t want to. For instance, you could skip over 99% of your ballot and vote for just one person or issue and leave the rest of the “bubbles” on the form empty, and your vote for that one ballot line will be counted. Don’t let anyone tell you differently.

Secondly, I’ve come up with another type of litmus test to help you make up your mind whether or not to vote for a candidate. As a psychology major in college, I came across different types of tests used to classify others’ behaviors. There are all sorts of intelligence, social and emotional rankings, but I’ve never came across one that solely ranks individuals solely on their “moral intelligence,” even though there actually is a field of study dealing with human beings’ moral behavior. So, I’ve created my own.

It’s a work in progress. Please let me know how to improve it. I feel that anyone running for a public office should be ranked according to their “Moral IQ” so voters can determine their worthiness for office.

Starting in the middle of the Moral IQ scale and working downwards, we have the following classifications:

Moron – At this level of morality, the individual has an elementary recognition of what is right and what is wrong, but they will do their best to justify any immoral behavior they engage in by making excuses so their punishment can be lessened or negated. You might hear this type of person say, “Oh, I didn’t know I couldn’t just walk into a store/office and take anything I like without payment/permission. Oops!” Examples of moral morons include Richard Nixon, who knew what he did in the Watergate cover-up was wrong and resigned quickly in order to lessen his risk for imprisonment. (It worked. He received a full pardon.)

Imbecile – At this level, the individual knows they’re doing something that the vast majority of humanity would consider “wrong” , “evil” or “immoral”, but they can’t be bothered with trying to accommodate society’s concept of morality. It’s just too tiring or boring for them. They believe whatever they are doing at the moment is right and will do or say whatever it takes to get others off their backs so they can continue the behavior. They are often labeled “pathological liars” and tend to come across as affable, entertaining, or charming at times in order to distract others from examining their lies too closely. Examples of moral imbeciles include Count Smirkula (Matt Miller, US State Department spokesperson) and Donald Trump.

Idiots – At this level, the individual simply doesn’t care about questions of morality, evil versus good, or right versus wrong. Whatever they want, they take. Whatever heinous actions they have to do to get whatever they want, they’ll do without hesitation or a moment’s thought. They don’t apologize for their actions—why would they? Other humans simply don’t exist except for their personal use and abuse. Start a genocide or war to steal a people’s lands and resources? Why not? Burn people alive and shoot children who get in the way of your profits? Sure thing. Moral idiots will do their best to convince others of their cause’s righteousness and recruit them to do the dirty work so they don’t have to get their own hands bloody. They often employ pathological liars on their staffs. Their hardhearted explanations for their crimes against humanity are legendary. Examples of moral idiots include Benjamin Netanyahu, Joe Biden, and Kamala Harris.

On the other side of the moral spectrum, we find authentic, compassionate, and empathetic human beings who put the well-being of society and the planet before their own.

Genius – The moral genius knows a wrong-doing when they see one. Genocide/War is wrong and expensive, and taxes should never be raised to finance it. Basic necessities such as food, health care, and housing are seen as important, although the genius might apply some sort of “means testing” or other capitalist construct to approve or deny these necessities to those not seen as “worthy” of help. In other words, you’re on your own to address these challenges through the help of private means/charities. Examples of moral geniuses would include most Libertarians who don’t believe in government run programs to help end social injustices and fill the holes in the economic safety net for struggling Americans, but they wish others well.

Hero – The moral hero will stand up for the rights of all peoples—both at home and abroad. They are against Wars for Oil, genocides, and committing further ecocide against our planet. Food, health care, housing, and education/training are all seen as human rights to be provided to all regardless of race, creed, or political inclination. The moral hero is a leader of humanity, willing to speak truth to power, often at great risk to their career, reputation, and/or physical health. They call out the immoral actions of moral morons, imbeciles and idiots, and encourage others to do likewise. Examples of moral heroes are Dr. Jill Stein, Dr. Butch Ware, Dr. Cornel West, and Claudia de la Cruz.

Saint – Saints are those rare individuals who put their very lives on the line in order to free others from social injustice. They will lay down their life if necessary to expose the immorality of our corrupt, war profiteering, imperialistic society that ultimately dehumanizes us all. Examples of moral saints are Aaron Bushnell and Jesus of Nazareth.

This is a qualitative system not a quantitative system, so there are no numbers given, just categories. Your perceptions of what is considered “good” or “evil” about an individual candidate may vary greatly from mine, but ultimately you will determine how low you’re willing to go on the morality scale. I wouldn’t vote for anyone who is less than a moral genius, but your comfort zone may allow you to vote for a moral moron. It’s up to you to come to terms with your conscience.

What if all the candidates fail your Moral IQ ranking? What if there are no heroes or geniuses to choose from? Then that’s where leaving the ballot line blank might be your only option, unless your state has a “none of the above” bubble or you’re allowed to write in a genius’ or hero’s name. Don’t be afraid to vote outside the box or write in a name. This is your vote, your voice, not anyone else’s.

As Eugene Debs said: I’d rather vote for what I want and not get it than vote for what I don’t want, and get it.

Let’s send the idiots and imbeciles packing this election, shall we?

Israelis must be raised to see Palestinians as less than human. As less than animals. As less than vermin. They need to be hated with ferocious intensity. --Caitlin Johnstone, This Mass Atrocity Is Made Possible By The Systematic Dehumanization Of Palestinians

Related Articles and Other Interesting Links

Hind Rajab Foundation Files Complaint Against 1,000 Israeli Soldiers for War Crimes in Gaza https://www.hindrajabfoundation.org/perpetrators/hind-rajab-foundation-files-historic-icc-complaint-against-1000-israeli-soldiers-for-war-crimes-in-gaza

US Deploys B-2 Stealth Bombers to Attack Yemen Without Congressional Approval https://www.commondreams.org/news/us-bombs-yemen

Another Phony Biden PR Stunt About Humanitarian Aid In Gaza https://www.caitlinjohnst.one/p/another-phony-biden-pr-stunt-about

We're Basically Being Asked To Believe That The Palestinians Are Genociding Themselves https://www.caitlinjohnst.one/p/were-basically-being-asked-to-believe

More Authoritarian Crackdowns On Speech That's Critical Of Israel https://www.caitlinjohnst.one/p/more-authoritarian-crackdowns-on

Revealed: The Israeli Spies Writing America’s News https://www.mintpressnews.com/revealed-israel-unit-8200-spies-american-media/288457/

State Dept Evasive When Pressed on ‘PR’ Letter to Israel https://decensorednews.substack.com/p/blinken-austin-israel-letter-humanitarian-aid

What's Happening In Northern Gaza Proves Israel Lied About Everything https://www.caitlinjohnst.one/p/whats-happening-in-northern-gaza

Hamas Confirms Leader Yahya Sinwar Has Been Killed in Combat https://scheerpost.com/2024/10/19/hamas-confirms-leader-yahya-sinwar-has-been-killed-in-combat/

You're Not Crazy. This Genocidal Dystopia Is Crazy. https://www.caitlinjohnst.one/p/youre-not-crazy-this-genocidal-dystopia

Why Kamala Harris must be defeated https://electronicintifada.net/content/why-kamala-harris-must-be-defeated/49016

Patrick Lawrence: De-Westernizing Ourselves https://scheerpost.com/2024/10/15/patrick-lawrence-de-westernizing-ourselves/

The Choice this Election is between Corporate and Oligarchic Power https://chrishedges.substack.com/p/the-choice-this-election-is-between

Students and faculty encountering stricter anti-protest rules, fallout from spring Gaza encampments https://mondoweiss.net/2024/10/students-and-faculty-encountering-stricter-anti-protest-rules-fallout-from-spring-gaza-encampments/

Arrested by Kamala: A Black Mother's Story youtu.be/MsuAPuqxGl8?si=QTSLLjDW_Zb12Pvf

Green Party candidate Dr. Jill Stein files lawsuit against Ohio Secretary of State claiming election interference https://sciotovalleyguardian.com/2024/10/11/green-party-candidate-dr-jill-stein-files-lawsuit-against-ohio-secretary-of-state-claiming-election-interference/

Green Party candidates on climate and ecological issues youtu.be/nDH-PFI66ss?si=QEHIor3oycgUfaN4