What do you do, in a world where public services like public health have been destroyed?
This is the question for every day. Most of the world never had those public services. So we’re now returning to the pack. I think we sometimes forget how privileged we’ve been, and why. /1
This is the question for every day. Most of the world never had those public services. So we’re now returning to the pack. I think we sometimes forget how privileged we’ve been, and why. /1
We should absolutely expect public-focused governance to be the norm. Though we’ve never done very much at all to extend that model to the rest of the world, who must look on right now and chuckle.
Welcome back to humanity, they might say. And rightly so. /2
Welcome back to humanity, they might say. And rightly so. /2
I won’t labour the chronology here, people know that I think ‘the public’ was invented after WW2, to re-build societies after 4 major catastrophes in quick succession. WW1, the Spanish Flu, the Great Depression and WW2. /3
Only that comprehensive destruction and disruption suppressed our usual status games for long enough to make the focus of our collective activity the good of all of us.
We’re now back in the only world most humans who have ever lived, including today, have ever known. /4
We’re now back in the only world most humans who have ever lived, including today, have ever known. /4
A world run entirely by status. For millennia it was Kings and Popes topping the ordering status hierarchies. We had a bit of a stab with elected leaders in that post-WW2 period.
It’s failed miserably. Popularity contests decoupled from social need. /5
It’s failed miserably. Popularity contests decoupled from social need. /5
I think about this every day. I don’t see a way out except for more catastrophes to sweep away the status hierarchies we have now. History shows time and again this is all that produces change.
We’re all implicated here. Status is the currency of all of our lives. /6
We’re all implicated here. Status is the currency of all of our lives. /6
It’s not convenient cartoon baddies like socialism or capitalism or Big Corporations, or MSM, or any of those other adult fairy tales. Humans live by status.
We don’t even recognise it. Will Storr does though. /7
We don’t even recognise it. Will Storr does though. /7
For me, maybe humility is the way forward. Instead of whining like entitled privileged people who’ve had their lollies taken away, we should as a minimum recognise that this is how we’ve always happily allowed most of the rest of the world to live. /8
It doesn’t fix our situation, but it reframes the way we think about things. Right now I see people just getting more and more angry, white hot with rage inside their battling teams.
It’s not getting us anywhere. It’s just making these platforms rich. /9
It’s not getting us anywhere. It’s just making these platforms rich. /9
I think the catastrophes are also already here, in their early stages. It’s bizarre to think of that as a thing of hope. But I’m absolutely certain nothing else will shift us away from status games.
Come across to reality politics. To a focus only on material realities. /10
Come across to reality politics. To a focus only on material realities. /10
Away from all debates, I’m sorry but they don’t ever achieve anything. They’re battles for status, dressed up as logical games.
There’s real joy and calm in focusing only on material realities. For example I love my daily dose of @DavidJoffe64 and @ejustin46 on Covid. /11
There’s real joy and calm in focusing only on material realities. For example I love my daily dose of @DavidJoffe64 and @ejustin46 on Covid. /11
None of it is good news, but it’s at least about the material details of this pandemic. Away from the pointless team sports.
Reality will eventually win. It always does.
/end
Reality will eventually win. It always does.
/end
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