December 25, 2021

The last letter of 2021

This is the last letter of 2021. I want to end the year with an assortment of sorts. What follows isn’t so much a list of newsworthy events, although there’s some of that, but rather an assortment of thoughts I’ve had while going about daily life.

In early December, a local newspaper, the Redding Record Searchlight wrote about a surprising musical talent - a masterful cellist who lives on the streets. Alissa Johnson, 33, has been playing cello since she was 11 and was described as a musical “genius.” Unable to afford a new instrument outright, she bought a custom-made cello for $7,300 on credit earlier this year. After the newspaper article was published, Johnson got word that an anonymous reader wanted to pay off her cello. She still owed $6,649. “I wish I could give them a hug, like 1,000 hugs or maybe how about like 6,600 hugs,” Johnson told The Redding Record Searchlight. Yep, there are beautiful things that happen in this world from time to time.

I’m always surprised by the ease with which humans have been subordinated. I believe it was David Hume, the philosopher, who articulated this. He asked - since the power is in the hands of the general population, why then do we submit ourselves to power and authority? The only answer Hume says for this is enforced consent. Society is structured and shaped so that common people will consent to what is against their fundamental nature. By the way, this is a very large industry in America. We call it public relations or advertising. It is a way to ensure that the bewildered herd is controlled and ensures that responsible intellectuals are not trampled upon. The task of the general population is thus reduced to be spectators, not participants. This is what is called manufactured consent.

The stories we tell ourselves, our mythologies, are important. In many cases, there are real costs to them. In the sixties, there was a project that set out to create the image of a modern woman. It involved models walking down Fifth Avenue in New York smoking cigarettes. They succeeded in getting large numbers of women to smoke. It is one of the most successful experiments in manufacturing consent. A lot of corpses were left in its wake.

Take work, for example. A young person comes up to you and asks you for advice on what to do with their life, and you tell them to find a job. A job is now the highest goal in human life. For two thousand years until the mid 19th century, a job was considered an abomination. When you take up a job, you are voluntarily placing yourself in a position of subordination to a master. It is a fundamental attack on human dignity, on human rights. No person with any integrity and self-respect should submit themselves to this. Right? And yet we do. We celebrate the acquisition of a job and a salary as if they were the second coming of the Messiah. Many of these are old issues.

I like to think of myself as having a conservative attitude towards social change. By that I mean, I dream big, really really big, when it comes to visions of what a good modern society entails and where we should be headed but I am pragmatic about what actually ought to be done in this moment and day. I don’t believe that meaningful change is something that can be foisted upon the unwilling masses. Once a large section of society has come to the realization that it wants to change, radical change is possible. If it’s forced prior to that, it will eventually end up in some sort of authoritarianism and censorship.

Take Biden for example. He is probably the first President since FDR to speak in favor of unionization. His Build Back Better is an excellent program with many good parts to it. This wasn’t a miracle. Biden has been a conservative Democrat, a Clintonite globalist, all his life. Build Back Better didn’t happen because Biden had a religious epiphany one fine day. It happened because a lot of popular pressure built up. We the people have come to the realization that modifications of existing systems will no longer get us to where we want to be. When the rich rob the poor, we call it capitalism. When the poor rob the rich, we call it socialism. When popular pressure builds up and realization dawns, there is enormous appetite to move beyond such false binaries.

And yet there are those who attempt to manufacture consent in another direction. Take healthcare. We are repeatedly told that universal health care is a radical idea. Even the most liberal commentators like those who write for the New York Times say that it’s a good idea but it’s too radical for America. That we should move slowly. Why? What is radical about universal healthcare? Mexico has it. Canada has it. Nearly everyone else has it. This is one of the most extraordinary attempts to manufacture consent.

This sort of brings up a biggish question - are we humans capable of saving ourselves from species suicide? I don’t know. I don’t think anyone really knows the answer to that. We are quite capable of the most astonishing feats in both good and bad ways. To ensure our survival, we are going to have to find ways to conduct thoughtful, civilized exchanges. We’ve got twenty, maybe thirty, years to solve the climate change issue. It’s not that we are all going to be dead in twenty years. It’s that our choices will reduce dramatically in 20-30 years if we don’t course correct now.

Let’s face it. There is no algorithm for life. You have to think it through. There is no other way. Life’s too complicated. We have to sit down and think through things. Once we’ve thought through things, we have to find a way to talk to each other respectfully.

Take the happiest family in the world. There is still going to be conflict inside. We wouldn’t even want a world in which there are no conflicts. It would be too boring to live in. There will and must always be different opinions, different attitudes, and different ideas. That’s how creativity takes place. That’s how changes take place. We have to structure life and society so that these can be handled in civilized ways.

Finally, I want to share the prolog to John’s gospel. It has been universally lauded as a masterpiece. It contains some of the most beautiful thoughts expressed by human beings.

Here’s the first stanza:

In the beginning was the Word,

and the Word was with God,

and the Word was God.

This one was in the beginning with God.

All things were made through Him,

and without Him was nothing made that has been made.

In Him was life,

and life was the Light of men.

And the Light shines in the darkness,

and the darkness did not apprehend it.

This Christmas season, may you find rest and restoration. In darkness, may you find light. May you risk love and find yourself more alive than ever. May you lose yourself in the love, the pain, and the chaos of family. May you find understanding that stands guard and protects your mind and your heart. May you find peace.

Stay safe. Happy holidays!