Is living only about consuming and being entertained?
The other day a person asked me about my opinion of society today, and my idea of a future society. She was very much disillusioned watching the News about the situations around the world. For a start I very rarely look or hear the News, and the reason is that the mainstream media have an agenda, I don’t necessarily agree with. I*m very much critical about who, what and why information is distributed the way it is, and I always look into who have interest in distributing the information. The News is not only in Denmark, but all over the world very much biased. So my answer to the question about what my opinion is about the society today is, that I look at it from a kind of historic view as well as a in an evolution of Nature kind of way. The way society is today is very much caused by a lack of respect for human nature and Nature in itself. The society today is based on very materialistic values, an idea that every human is replaceable, should be socially controlled, and only have a purpose for consuming things and being entertained is a very dysfunctional way of thinking. Unfortunately a majority buy into this society concept, and unfortunately a majority pay the price for it. Have we done that before in history? Yes – the pattern is the same, but the difference is that now the dysfunctional behaviour is mixed with technology and human ignorance. Am I worried? – not at all, but that doesn’t mean I think its okay the way it is – quite the opposite
When you understand the pattern in society through history you realise every society with no respect for humanity is “dying out” – just like the dinosaurs. It*s a natural principle we can observe in nature. If there is no balance in the system because of “dysfunctional” dynamics, its just a matter of time before the system dissolves, and as I see it we are in the middle of this process. If you want to read into this I suggest you start to read about the decline and fall of the Roman Empire. When you’re done with historical examples you can continue with reading about bio diversity, and you can continue with reading about Social Systems by Niklas Luhmmann and Ecology of mind by Gregory Bateson – then I think you’ll get the picture.
Why should you read the book “The Art of War” and “Tao te Ching”
I’ve observed a lot about human behaviour and the act of meaning in my research over the last 25+ years. There is one thing that still puzzle me though, that people don’t recognise what is happening in plain sight in society. In the book The Art of War Sun Tzu explains some basic knowledge about war and conflicts, and if you read the book you’ll begin to understand the pattern in the conflict situations in society in history and today. So instead of being ignorant about conflicts, I suggest you read this book to contemplate the nature of conflicts, the dynamics of power and a very important subject; Self-awareness. A way of being self-aware could be by contemplating the book Tao te Ching by Lao Tzu. One of the quotes from the book is “only when there is no competition we will live in peace”. So if you noticed it – every Newspaper and News in radio and television are always talking about competition and conflicts, and being so biased can only (as I see it) have an interest – keeping people looking at each other as “us vs them”. Unfortunately there is a majority that believes and are getting manipulated by the concept that every other human being is a potential enemy. I don’t think so. To me it is political propaganda in the News, and although I know for sure that some people can be very toxic, I still have a strong belief in humanity.
Playing the The conditioning Game in Education
Although the concept “education” actually means “bring forth” the unique gifts of the students, it is quite the opposite that is happening. The educational system is using industrial logic and behavioural psychological “tools” to conditioning students to behave as expected of a society based on control. The constantly testing, scaling, examining etc are stressing the students in a kind of “you have to compete” with the other students kind of way “to succeed”. Its a kind of Game Theory guide to life and career that is unhealthy for all of us. If you’ve noticed a lot of young families are now homeschooling, and I understand them. It is unnatural to children, who is naturally courious and playful, to sit 7-8 hours “receiving information”. What is actually happening is a school week of human conditioning, and that is why a majority don’t see what’s happening in plain sight in a competing and performance society, where consumption, media and entertainment continues “the Game”.
Be water my friend
The reason that I have an optimistic view on society in the future – although I know there will be years with a chaotic turning point – is that a kind of Inner Revolution in some people is happening at the same time as the outer chaos. It*s like the symbol Yin/Yang; the white spot in Yang as well as the black spot in Yin. This pattern is also something you can observe historically and in Nature. Quietly there is a naturally search for homeostasis in the system, and the society depends on people who just don’t conform, but quietly transform their lifes creating a new society, who benefits not just the 1% but all of us. If you observe Nature you can observe a seed in the desert quietly and slowly transforming an environment. We are a part of Nature – so we can do the same. Be water my friend – “The supreme good is like water, which benefits all of creation without trying to compete with it.” as it is written in Tao the Ching.
