I have a bad habit.
I read the comment section of facebook posts. I must be a closet masochist. The pain resides in the cognitive dissonance generated between what I read and my belief that human beings are rational, reasonable, pragmatic problem solvers capable of, what was up until that moment, impossible or undreamt. Believe me, I see the irony when I mock religion.
I used to lie to myself when I engaged with them – the easy lie that a well built argument, or a particularly well executed rhetorical judo throw would perhaps, maybe, plant a seed that would reach for the light. But we all know better.
In my more charitable moments I tell myself it’s a reaction to the ugliness of blatant untruth. As if you overheard someone in an elevator sincerely espouse a belief that the moon is made of cream cheese. I snort, I roll my eyes, I go through the dance of explaining how the moon was actually formed (fascinating, by the way), but all of this is for my benefit, not the ignorant fool who thinks no one would starve on the moon. Part of it is the pleasing tones of my own voice – I’m no less immune to this then the other guy. Part is a self appointed ethos of not letting egregious bullshit go without rebuttal. Part of me also just enjoys verbal combat. I don’t take it personally when it’s used effectively against me either – on the contrary, if it’s really good, or novel, I’ll steal it for my own use. But I digress.
Jimi Hendrix said that knowledge speaks and wisdom listens. I also believe that one is a fool who deals with fools. I tell myself both of these things whenever I’m tempted to weigh in on a thread, especially when I don’t know the fool in question. Unfortunately, the fools have gotten control of something they neither understand nor respect. Namely, our modern civilization. They do not understand that civilization (is, was, and ever shall be) exists balanced on a knife’s edge. History is the study of the ruins that prove this truth. Ask a Syrian refugee. Ask any refugee.
The repeating history of humanity is of a small group of people dictating the quality of life for the rest. We live in a country founded on this principal – we make that small group as large as possible. The fools are being led by those who want to go back to that small number, for some that number being as small as one. At the risk of sounding foolish, it’s really just that simple. So the question then becomes, do we deal with the fools and thereby through the commutative law of foolery we become fools as well, or do we deal with their greedy/evil/deluded/combination of all three leaders?
That’s a trick question. Because we have to do both. The fools are our responsibility. They are our fellow citizens. As much as it is tempting to say “I wash my hands of you” the truth is we cannot. Left to their own devices, well, you see the ongoing tragedy that only deepens and worsens each day. I know how difficult this is going to be. I have family that, while none I know of are rabid supporters, do in fact support what little they think they know of what is going on, which is horrifying enough.
Making phone calls, protesting, giving money to the cause, and especially voting are all necessary. I just can’t shake this nagging feeling that it won’t be enough. Those who are behind the fools can smell the blood in the water and they’re not going to be put off their feed through any of the normal methods. Our would be feudal lords don’t give a bloody fuck about protesting in the streets when they outright own one party and are leasing with the option to buy too many in the other. They care if you vote, in the same way Putin cares that his citizens vote. They care more about their continued profits and power. They sure do care when all that is threatened.
I think there will come a time for a nationwide strike. A day when, oh, I’d be thrilled to see 45% of the entire workforce (those whose absence is ethically sound) not go into work that day. They don’t want to work for the benefit of all? Let’s not work for them for a day or more. Now,I realize that just about everyone cannot afford a day without pay, they like it that way so you’ll continue to show up. Do it right and we could even get some companies to agree to pay their employees that day. They can afford to pay for a glass of milk so long as they’re assured the cow is coming back to the barn.
Wouldn’t it be wonderful if on that day, we all learned something new? Maybe a refresher course on how our government works. A day when we contemplate the great civilizations of the past – and where they went wrong so we may avoid their mistakes. But I’m not picky, anything that increases your store of knowledge and teaches the wisdom of listening will do.
I don’t know, maybe learn how the moon was formed.
