It's Been Said ... That All Men Lead Lives of Quiet Desperation...

The epic and eternal struggle of the individual against the collective...

Towards a bit of house keeping, this is in fact my second post in as many hours. Or, at least it's begun within that time frame... Considering it's been weeks since my last post and months since the last time I put something forward of any substance. I'll cede the fact that I'm not known for my consistency.

Beyond the obligatory drivel, here we go.

I understand the necessity of the tenuous and on going struggle that exists between the impulses and wants of the individual and the peacefulness and well being of society as a whole. If everyone did only what was in their interest, the collective has to deal with the unforeseen externalities. There is an underlying pragmatism to the tacit understanding between the individual and the whole. But, it is in turn a spectrum, and a malleable spectrum at that.

Adam Smith was wrong, by the way. While what he put forward in the wealth of nations was impressive and he deserves a great deal of credit for his ideas, he was a bit short sighted. I can't really fault him considering his place in time... How could anyone really predict where we've lead ourselves?

I make a conscious and constant effort to be aware of others, and consider them and the way my actions would indirectly affect them. I feel a good majority of individuals in our society lack an awareness of the whole, and that to me is a problem. I don't remember this rampant lack of consideration by others in the 90s. Perhaps times were better economically, and people were happier in general... or perhaps it's larger than that. Perhaps in fact the stand up comic in my mind hijacked the stage and filibustered his way through my free time, leaving the philosopher little recourse but to go dormant. Even better, perhaps it's not just policy that's lead top down, but culture as well. Perhaps the laissez faire and zero sum mentality of leadership here in the states has transfered and superimposed itself upon the citizenry. Leaving them believing that their fellow citizen were only competition for scarce resources and not kin trying to survive the same struggles in life. The lack of shared empathy... we've sold our sense of community for a leg up.

Back to the point at hand. And time for a quote:

“Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won't feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, as children do. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It's not just in some of us; it's in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.”
----from A Return to Love, by Marianne Williamson. If you like the paragraph, you’ll love the book...! (AMAZON.COM)
^^That's right, it's so good i'm shamelessly plugging it.^^

While this quote appears on my facebook page (http://csuohio.facebook.com/profile.php?id=53703330)

I'd made an effort to scrub God from it, which I think honestly detracts from the quote itself... therefore I offer it to you here in full.

I'd like to draw attention to a few very distinct parts. First, "We ask ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous?" This is where my struggle begins. This is, at least in my mind, a quaint allusion to Nietzsche's "Slave Revolt in Morality" (see the previous post, and my apologies again for quoting the big N). For a little context, I'll offer a vast oversimplification of the concept for our purposes here. Basically, the priests convinced those of the noble morality to resent all those virtues they held to be good and proud, and told them they were the evils of man. In turn, it inverted the paradigm of power, enabling the priests to usurp the nobles.

I'll be the first to admit, and often you'll hear me say "I'm a bit of an ass." And, while it serves the purpose of being charming through a bit of self-deprecation... I often wonder if it is in itself a betrayal of self in the most basic sense? By the way, as effete and pretentious as I often appear and act, I've not used the terms "gorgeous" or "fabulous" to describe myself... ever.

Secondly, "Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won't feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, as children do." The tail end of that quote is more powerful and pertinent than it ever were previously. Every day I have the great honor and pleasure of experiencing first hand my darling nieces discovering all that is wondrous and amazing about their little limited worlds. Even though at this point in time they can't wrap their developing minds around the concept of "pride" (theres a good chance CQ can't even speak the word yet) I believe they can and do receive the rush of emotion as our eyes gleam with amazement at the most recent challenge they've bested. Towards the first half of the quote, part of me has never completely forgiven myself for my feigned ignorance in high school. I wasn't the man I am now, and I dumbed myself down... because "going along to get along" is one of the most basic survival tools. Again, a massive betrayal of self, and it in turn wasted years of my life.

Finally, "It's not just in some of us; it's in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others." There it is ladies and gents. An automatic excuse built in, removing culpability instantly when we allow the spectrum to slide a little farther than we possibly should. It has sort of a "blame the victim" feel about it. Furthermore, i imagine those that do live by this creed find themselves alone and disdained. Which ever literary reference you prefer... "Primus Inter Pares" (first among equals) or "All animals are equal, but some animals are more equal than others" (Orwell, Animal Farm ... pretty sure i've never actually read it). It both supports and defies my egalitarian perspective.

I've got to bring this to a close, because it's already occupied more time than I ever intended to allot it. I love most those people who love me exactly for who I am. Those who are aware and appreciative of this enormous internal struggle between what I could be and what others would be more comfortable with. And so, like time itself, the struggle continues.

Perhaps it's because I believe in the great unknown that connects every individual together, beyond the concept of society & social contract, that I have faith that everyone struggles with this conundrum from time to time. I just wish the stand up comic would fight for a little more time on the stage, cause the philosopher in my mind is generating a little too much doubt today.

Cheers and good luck to all of you,
-Rys

p.s.- This isn't about you, at least not entirely... I'll credit you with inspiration... Hows that for nuance?