How Punching Down Hurts All
Now, let us cast our gaze upon a darker shadow in the realm of discourse: punching down. To punch down is to target the powerless, the vulnerable, or the nearly voiceless; those who have no say in the systems that govern their lives and who have most often been used as pawns. It is the act of stoking unproductive hatred, while remaining blind to productive actions.
When we punch down and use our words as weapons unproductively against those whom probably have even less control in their lives than we have, we feed into the intended confusion. We become complicit in the very systems of control through opposites that we oppose. It harms your ability to be effective and makes you look hypocritical.
The mobster who attacks his rivals to gain power is not fighting against corruption; he is perpetuating it, in stabilising the antistate. He is punching down, using the powerless as pawns in a game of mindless survival. His actions do not challenge the corruption; they reinforce it, primarily through punching down more often than up. But then this is identical to the way that corporations operate, especially those most bank institution entitled.
But why does this happen? Because punching down is a form of moral evasion. It allows ‘the puncher’ to feel righteous while avoiding the hard work of confronting the real enemy, which they cynically see as unavoidable: corruption of power. When we target the weak, we distract from the deeper issue: the corruption of those in authority and systems that perpetuated the differences and inequalities that generated the conflict. This is jumping upon the shadows of the lies rather than the lies, in themselves, and it helps keep corrupt powers in control.
To punch up is to choose courage over cowardice. It is to confront the real enemy with honesty, with clarity, and with the unyielding force of truth. Punching up is about more than simply image or how things are seen, it is based in an ability to recognise: the most dangerous deceptions are from those who hold the most power, not whispers in the shadows of the voiceless pawns. Are your ‘enemies’ basically illogical rather than outright lying? Might be a good sign that targeting is off.
This brings us to a vital distinction: punching up is not about aggression; it is about accountability. It is the act of demanding that those in power be held to answer for their actions, to acknowledge their flaws, and to take responsibility for their crimes. Punching up is the refusal to let silence be a shield for corruption.
- Art of Discourse part 1: Truth to Power
- Art of Discourse part 2: Punching Down Destroys You
- Art of Discourse part 3: Immoral Power
- Art of Discourse part 4: Patterns in Power
- Art of Discourse part 5: Weapon Against Corruption