Comment of the day

I remember in 2016, in the leadup to the election, I just wanted to shut out all references to politics from my life. The energy and emotion being expended was so extreme, and I was feeling like these were "just ideologies" that people were arguing about, things that wouldn't affect the realities of my day to day existence. I couldn't have been more wrong. Ideologies are seeds containing the blueprints of the shape into which our societal structure will grow.

I was also a bit of a nihilist back then, and since, with regard to my mental health, my own situation was rapidly becoming insufferable, I rooted for our collective doom to come in the form of an asteroid or some other planet killing event. My own problems, and the problems of the world, seemed so large that I felt it would be better to just scrap it all -- blow it up, let it burn, let humanity be erased by a plague or flood or nuclear holocaust. Maybe in a few thousand years a new species of sentient life would come along and make a better go of it. This doom-indulgent thinking was selfish and a cop-out.

My current dilemma is that, having finally developed late stage empathy at the ripe old age of 59-3/4, I now finally give a shit about the world and my fellow humans that live in it. I can't pretend to bury my head in the sleepy sand of ignorance or distract myself with mindless entertainment. I am agitated looking out of my internet window onto the world that my generation's apathy has allowed to be created. Like a sluggard's garden, weeds and all manner of invasive, malignant growth have taken root while I was busy doing--what, exactly? Being disengaged? Self-absorbed? Unconcerned?

I don't know if I could have made a difference back in 2016. My influence circle is small. But like those seeds of malignancy, our thoughts, our voices and actions have a ripple effect. If you don't think that's true, ask yourself, "How the hell did we get to where we are now?" The answer: Opinions and ideologies, like infectious diseases, are spread from person to person, and if they go unchallenged or unchecked, they will find a place to take root and dig deep down into the collective consciousness.  So what we say or don't say, what we allow others to say in our presence without objection, creates an environment in which an idea (good or bad) can flourish.

Long way around of saying, "The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing" and "Be the change you want to see in the world." Etc, etc, blah, blah, blah. I know. Aphorisms can be so tiring. But a truism does owe its name to the fact that it is, by nature, true. We can't wait around for someone smarter, someone more able, someone with more influence, etc. to begin to fix things. We all have a part to play, however small. I encourage you to remain engaged. One brick doesn't seem like much of a defense, but cemented in with other bricks, it can be a bulwark. Keep being a good brick, Diane! 

----

Perhaps it will get darker before the dawn. It takes a lot for the masses to wake up, but it has happened in the past. Everything has a breaking point, and there always seems to be some type of event that serves as a catalyst to precipitate rapid change. Given the current administration's tendency to overstep, it is just a matter of time. I only fear that we're now so acclimated to this type of behavior that it it has become normalized, and many previously un-crossable lines in the sand will be breezed past with impunity. 

 

We've been taught to accept our lot, work harder for less, and don't question anything. Or question everything, so there is no longer a fixed reality. 

 

"Here, have the new shiny device. Watch mindless content while we make real information unobtainable because it is now indistinguishable from our fictional narrative." 

 

We're being fed too much, too fast, and even if we could sort it all out, the task seems too overwhelming, so we give up or feel despondent due to exhaustion.

 

I guess we'll just have to take things one small bite at a time. One excruciatingly slow step in the right direction is better than sitting in the middle of the road waiting to get run over. Anyway, like you, I'm certain to be on a list somewhere, and no, I will not go quietly