In a class on medieval European history, I came across the ideology of millenarianism/millennialism - the belief that the world as we know it was ending, ushering in the utopia laid out in the Bible, where Jesus would reign as king of mankind for 1000 years (yet, only after an apocalyptic event, usually with the coming of the anti-Christ and Revelations-style awfulness for the inhabitants of Earth). Although such beliefs are often associated with Christianity, the idea that "the end is nigh" is universal across human civilizations. The anxiety of the "end of an era" has led to various last-ditch efforts to save the "old guard" from the new. Yet, the winds of change are not, in my opinion, random gusts. Change is cumulative. To continue with the cliches, the writing is always on the wall long before we notice it. Which, specifically, brings us to the present day: the Sybils of our time are not prescient; their cries are echoes of shit we haven't been able to fix in the past and have been compounded on for centuries.
Thus, there has yet to be a great revelation of truth to rock the modern world. I am not holding my breath that there ever will be either. Many people- from Alex Jones to the most pious among us- seek an overarching explanation to connect the disjointed misery that is human existence. In my historical studies, there as never been any such explanation to...anything. To believe such an answer exists shows an unwillingness to face the mess of reality. I used to be the person who said, "I wish I could believe in x...," usually as a response to someone asking me whether or not I was religious. At this point in my life, I can't honestly answer that I even wish I believed in anything. Through years of observation and experience, there has been nothing that has ever struck me as worth believing in. The abject silence of the universe in light of so many impassioned screams for help and of despair aimed at it, day after day, year after year, millennium after millennium, seems answer enough.
In a time where everything is easily visible, when there is more transparency than ever before, I note more and more the tendency of so many to dig their heels deeper into the earth around them. Why? Things are so readily verifiable! Why cling to what you can feel rather than what you can know? Despite most of us carrying around a "magic truth-machine" in our pockets that can quickly assert whether what we're faced with is true or false, we instead use it as a mirror to reflect what we desire the world to be.
Oh..so obviously, then, everyone is using technology to see the world through rose-colored glasses, we live in a consensual, Utopian version of the Matrix, and hooray! The conundrum of the human condition is...solved...?
Not so fast....using Americans as an example, just scroll through Facebook or Twitter - it seems as though EVERYONE is upset all the time. It's not simply a left-right divide, or a generational one. Everyone has something to complain about. So why would anyone choose to reflect the bad back at themselves? Why would someone want to see the world as a place of despair?
Well....? Whether we acknowledge it consciously or not, there's an intrinsic dread about impending mortality within all biological beings. While many of us would take pains to not be hit by a car barreling down the street toward us, some of the same "many" willingly engage in risky behaviors like smoking, eating poorly, not exercising, having unprotected sex, et al [list every danger from public school health classes here]. Typically, we'll avoid the big no-nos, but willingly ignore the little ones that incrementally affect our chances at survival. Similarly, seeing "others" as the problem allows us to forego some of the blame ourselves. Additionally, we're all suffering from a shared learned helplessness. Our problems are too big, too complex to even begin facing them, so why bother at all? On top of that, our leaders are unable to offer solutions, our purchases are only providing comfort with minimal satisfaction and therefore, why not simply shriek insults at anonymous commenters online by HOLDING DOWN YOUR CAPS KEY? Or better yet, curl up into fetal position and scroll through endless pictures of brunch or cute kittens? So many questions, and yet, I'm blogging instead of community organizing....? So what's my point if I am not moving and shaking myself?
Thus, there has yet to be a great revelation of truth to rock the modern world. I am not holding my breath that there ever will be either. Many people- from Alex Jones to the most pious among us- seek an overarching explanation to connect the disjointed misery that is human existence. In my historical studies, there as never been any such explanation to...anything. To believe such an answer exists shows an unwillingness to face the mess of reality. I used to be the person who said, "I wish I could believe in x...," usually as a response to someone asking me whether or not I was religious. At this point in my life, I can't honestly answer that I even wish I believed in anything. Through years of observation and experience, there has been nothing that has ever struck me as worth believing in. The abject silence of the universe in light of so many impassioned screams for help and of despair aimed at it, day after day, year after year, millennium after millennium, seems answer enough.
In a time where everything is easily visible, when there is more transparency than ever before, I note more and more the tendency of so many to dig their heels deeper into the earth around them. Why? Things are so readily verifiable! Why cling to what you can feel rather than what you can know? Despite most of us carrying around a "magic truth-machine" in our pockets that can quickly assert whether what we're faced with is true or false, we instead use it as a mirror to reflect what we desire the world to be.
Oh..so obviously, then, everyone is using technology to see the world through rose-colored glasses, we live in a consensual, Utopian version of the Matrix, and hooray! The conundrum of the human condition is...solved...?
Not so fast....using Americans as an example, just scroll through Facebook or Twitter - it seems as though EVERYONE is upset all the time. It's not simply a left-right divide, or a generational one. Everyone has something to complain about. So why would anyone choose to reflect the bad back at themselves? Why would someone want to see the world as a place of despair?
Well....? Whether we acknowledge it consciously or not, there's an intrinsic dread about impending mortality within all biological beings. While many of us would take pains to not be hit by a car barreling down the street toward us, some of the same "many" willingly engage in risky behaviors like smoking, eating poorly, not exercising, having unprotected sex, et al [list every danger from public school health classes here]. Typically, we'll avoid the big no-nos, but willingly ignore the little ones that incrementally affect our chances at survival. Similarly, seeing "others" as the problem allows us to forego some of the blame ourselves. Additionally, we're all suffering from a shared learned helplessness. Our problems are too big, too complex to even begin facing them, so why bother at all? On top of that, our leaders are unable to offer solutions, our purchases are only providing comfort with minimal satisfaction and therefore, why not simply shriek insults at anonymous commenters online by HOLDING DOWN YOUR CAPS KEY? Or better yet, curl up into fetal position and scroll through endless pictures of brunch or cute kittens? So many questions, and yet, I'm blogging instead of community organizing....? So what's my point if I am not moving and shaking myself?
Even thinking about the state of affairs through the lens of social media is anxiety-provoking. So, first of all, breathe. The idea that every resource is scarce and we're all in competition so we have to be "on" all the time is toxic. It's also a fabrication. There's enough to go around. We'd have to consider different modes of existence from what is in effect now, which is scary.
Secondly, can we take the "millenarianism" down....a bit? Everyone and everything has always sucked. Awful people have been in power...forever. Humans have always been self-absorbed and narcissistic. The only difference now is that technology has actually worked to make these tendencies more apparent. So next time you're compelled to share an out-of-context meme or "factoid" from "Liberal Meme Stash" or "Conservative Meme Bank" or whatever subscribed pages pop up on your newsfeed, please don't. If sharing it didn't save the world, not sharing it isn't going to burn it down.
Finally, instead of caving to the pressure to give in or give up, laugh. Laugh in the face of the absurd challenge of being alive. As far as anyone can actually experientially can tell you, this is a one-time deal. There's no pressure to find happiness and purpose in each moment of every day. But, even in the drudgery of commuting to work or the mundanity of a Monday evening at home, find something to revel in - regard the sunset a minute longer, smell your child's freshly washed hair, curl up with your pet....you get the idea.
Finally, instead of caving to the pressure to give in or give up, laugh. Laugh in the face of the absurd challenge of being alive. As far as anyone can actually experientially can tell you, this is a one-time deal. There's no pressure to find happiness and purpose in each moment of every day. But, even in the drudgery of commuting to work or the mundanity of a Monday evening at home, find something to revel in - regard the sunset a minute longer, smell your child's freshly washed hair, curl up with your pet....you get the idea.
"This universe henceforth without a master seems to him neither sterile nor futile. Each atom of that stone, each mineral flake of that night filled mountain, in itself forms a world. The struggle itself toward the heights is enough to fill a man's heart. One must imagine Sisyphus happy." -Camus
