On the Need to (Re)Affirm Freedom, Democracy, and Human Rights

Lecture by Dr. Davor Dzalto
The main thesis in this lecture is that we ought to (re)affirm human freedom, rights and democracy, and that this (re)affirmation needs to be done beyond, above, and against the predominant ideological systems that are usually called “Liberal-Democracy,” (Neo)Conservatism, various types of Authoritarianism or Techno-Totalitarianism (acknowledging the existence of many overlaps between them). Despite all the differences, these political-ideological systems also share some similarities: the embrace of capitalism as a broader ideological setup, and their hostility (to various degrees) toward more authentic freedom, democracy and human rights (except for rhetorical/propaganda purposes). A change needs to begin within the existing systems, by trying to pierce the solid fabric of the existing ideological bubble(s), in order to create a situation in which today’s oppressive madness (often called “normality,” even “freedom” and “democracy”) will be seen, by a bigger number of people, as an oppressive madness, that needs to be dismantled in order to expand the horizons of human freedom.