During WWII primitive islanders were exposed to Westerners who were, by their standards, rich beyond their comprehension. They called this stuff “Cargo.” When the Westerners left, so did the cargo. They made also sorts of strange representations of modern equipment in an attempt to summon the cargo back. They got pretty disillusioned when it didn't come. The folks had no idea what it took to make and ship ‘cargo’ around the - they thought it just happened.
Which brings us to the current era. We have raised a bunch of ignorant ungrateful savages who have no idea what effort goes into producing this ‘privilege’ they talk about. They just know that that want it, and they want it right now. To aggravate things, these savages vote and politicians will pander to them. They don't understand the effort that goes into building families, sticking together, raising children, delaying gratification, sacrifice, etc. They think it just ‘happens’ and that they can demand a share of it, rather than cultivating through the generations.
There needs to be severe consequences for anyone who preaches this cult of privilege. While a cargo cult in Melanesia might be quaint, here in civilization is it catastrophic. "Privilege" isn't something that can be distributed. It earned across generations. It is hard to cultivate and easy to lose.
Friggin’ brilliant analogies, Little Ray. The whole idea of “cargo cult” has been on my mind for an unusually long time, as being symbolic of some unspoken cultural dynamic, but it never “clicked” as applied to today’s sorry situation. You made it click as you hit the nail right on the head, (to mix metaphors.) Brilliant. Kudos. My new FR hero.Read my post/reply to someone else on this same thread if you have time.