Divide and Conquer

Most of our public and online discourse is designed to confuse, distract and divide ordinary people. It's designed to sort individuals into neat, simplistic categories and divert our attention from real centres of power. It's designed to keep us arguing among ourselves about largely inane issues. It's designed to promote one-sided, egotistical reactions to nuanced problems. Social media, a lot of the time, doesn't help with this. We must always remain open to truth and evidence, regardless of whether it accords with our ideological inclinations. 

We need to focus more on what connects us as a majority, and less on what divides us. In my view, British working-class people have far more in common with working-class immigrants from Afghanistan than they do with Boris Johnson. The interests of these groups of people are largely aligned, in spite of superficial differences. Politicians like Boris Johnson, who is a member of an economically elite class, benefit from keeping such people divided. Boris Johnson and other economic elites benefit from divisive rhetoric, whether they're talking about "benefit scroungers", immigrants or political activists. 

But it seems that the liberal-left has also played into this game of division, which I'll get into more later. I feel more and more foricbly that, in order to overcome global injustice, the masses need to radically unify and resist the attempts to fragment and atomise us. This entails overcoming ideological thought and egotistical impulses.

Martin Luther King Jr came to understand that all working class people were oppressed by a heartless economic system that disregards poor people, regardless of what colour their skin is. This shows that MLK Jr was an insightful and subtle thinker. As well as challenging the horrors of racism, he also saw beyond ordinary divides and focused on what connects us as a whole. MLK Jr understood the fundamental causes of oppression and aimed to address these causes, in a practical and meaningful way. 

I'm of George Carlin's view that the quality of our thought is determined by the quality of our language. We'll only progress when we start thinking more about the language we use. This is why I think the term "climate change" is misleading and inappropriate, even though it's so widely used. The climate is always changing. What we're experiencing is climate breakdown or climate collapse. Similarly, the terms left and right, politically speaking, are becoming more and more unclear and outdated. 

Our language, like our globalised society, is arguably stagnant and regressive. We need a new vision and a new way of speaking about it. This vision needs to be based on honesty, transparency, nuance and fairness. Unfortunately, few commentators are attempting to realise this vision, as far as I'm concerned. Many mainstream commentators lack imagination, integrity and courage. 

Many progressives still seem to have undue faith in electoral politics and irredeemable political parties. If people want beneficial societal change, I feel energy needs to be focused on civil disobedience and new forms of governance. For, in my view, our main existing political parties, at least in the US and UK, divert and ultimately destroy peoples revolutionary energy. There are many young people who are invested in these political parties, and are consequently discouraged from initiating real, meaningful change. 

The culture wars are a distraction. This is why they're encouraged by mainstream media and people in power. Anything that divides ordinary people and keeps us arguing among ourselves, whether it's about Trump, Brexit or what politically correct language we should be using, is helpful to those who hold positions of power. The really nefarious, significant things going on, however, are actively concealed by the ruling class. When I say significant, I mean issues that impact life in a drastic and violent way, such as war crimes or ecocide. 

This is why the weight of the ruling class came down on Jeremy Corbyn, who, along with Julian Assange and Edward Snowden, is one of the main victims of cancel culture. During most of Corbyn's interviews, there was mostly a discussion about fabricated or exaggerated issues, and not about the truly important things going on. His treatment was vastly different from Theresa May's or Boris Johnson's. 

In most media discourse, it's very rare that we see a meaningful discussion about Britain's huge role in the global arms trade, or the systematic oppression of poor people under neoliberalism, or our significant contribution to the climate and ecological crisis. This is because the whole of British society is set up in favour of already established, transnational interests. Whether it's the BBC reporting, the Guardian or the Daily Mail, these interests must not be properly challenged. 

Many elements of woke, politically correct and liberal culture have been adopted by Western institutions and powers. There has been a concerted attempt by the Democratic Party, for example, to style itself as woke and "diverse". On the surface this may seem like a good and positive thing, but in reality the Democrats are still pursuing the same policies of war, neoliberalism and ecocide. Thus in substance, the Democrats are little different from Republicans, they simply appear nicer and fluffier. Arguably, the fact that the Democrats are more concealed and opaque than Republicans means they are even more harmful, for their wrong-doings are less apparent and therefore they can get away with more. 

The fact that elements of woke culture are so easily adopted by evil institutions, who simply wish to cloak their wrong-doings, suggests that woke culture doesn't truly address centres of power. This further supports my view that the culture wars are distracting and divisive. We must resist too heavy a focus on culture war issues. 

In the West we arguably live in an identity obsessed, image-laden, narcissistic culture. One reflection of this is the proliferation of selfies and vain Instagram profiles. Such profiles seem to be the ones with most followers. TikTok is dominated either by teenagers doing "dance moves" or "activists" opining on culture war issues. I also see a lot of disingenuous political posturing on social media, which to me is more about social status than anything else.

Our Western societies seem to be more about image and artifice than substance and reality. As mentioned earlier, just because the Democratic Party is more racially diverse than the Republican Party doesn't mean they're doing anything more to genuinely combat racism. This is what happens when we live in a society that overwhelmingly values superficial, commercial, materialistic practices.

Personally, I don't have a fixed agenda and I don't think there is one solution to our societal problems. I don't feel I'm part of a group or movement and I don't buy into any ideologies or thought systems. However, I feel if people are able to overcome divisive rhetoric and egotistical, simplistic reactions, if enough people are able to have a truly healthy dialogue about things in an evidence-based way, across the political spectrum, then many of our problems will organically start getting better. As I said, I also feel people need to focus more on what connects us. 

We are all flowerings of the same universe, the same organism, moving in unison. We are all far more linked than we realise. Who you are runs far deeper than you might ordinarily believe.

"People will come to love their oppression, to adore the technologies that undo their capacities to think"

There's often something apocalyptic about scrolling through Twitter or watching TikTok videos. It's as though I'm watching the end days of culture and intellectual thought unfold before my eyes. I didn't think Idiocracy (2006) would be such an accurate portent of things to come...

Scrolling through Twitter is often like scrolling through a sea of inane, half-formed, poorly worded thoughts, punctuated by lol, y'all and like. Such thought-vomit tweets sometimes get hundreds of thousands of likes. Am I missing something? Am I the one who should change and just go along with all of this? All the great people in history, who changed the world for the better, is this what they would've done?

Tweet 1

Too much time spent on social media makes people less intelligent than they would otherwise be. Social media commentators and "activists" are quick to opine on things that they haven't researched or deeply considered, and they often express themselves in a judgmental and simplistic fashion. Please see tweet 1 for an example of this. It's rare to find truly intelligent, free-thinking people on social media, though the impression I get is that a lot of social media morons believe they are intelligent and free-thinking. It seems, mathematically speaking, that our intelligence isn't commensurate with the quantity of likes we get.

On social media, I've noticed people communicate themselves in a way which they wouldn't do in real life. I've noticed people are very opinionated on platforms like Twitter and TikTok, and can talk rudely and arrogantly. If they acted like this in person, they would probably be very unlikeable. A lot of commentators don't seem concerned with resolving the issues they talk about or having a healthy dialogue about them. Do they think they're educating people in a positive and constructive way?

Social media appears to render people more vapid, as well as less intelligent. It seems that when we reflexively express any little thought we have with little reflection, and still get a decent response from others online, then there's a tendency to become very superficial and lazy in our thinking. Conversely, when we inwardly reflect on things and consider them over time, our thoughts tend to become more nuanced and meaningful.

Being on social media sometimes reminds me of being in school. You have the popular kids, those with most followers and likes, and everyone else. A lot of people try to emulate the popular kids. They will adopt the language, abbreviations and style that popular kids use, and in the process lose their individuality and creativity. One of the latest trends on Twitter is starting a tweet with "did it hurt?". By emulating others to such a degree, people lose their originality.

Another style of posting is very common. There's a kind of post where there are no comas or full stops (just Joyce's stream of consciousness) coupled with a judgmental and opinionated attitude. This is the kind of tweet that gives off a "whatever I don't give a shit" vibe. Such tweets just make me think of a lazy, uninspiring teenager. Not to say that I expect people to conform to strict grammar rules on social media, but I often feel people are consciously trying to put out a "yeah whatever" vibe, and end up emitting ignorant, uninteresting babble.

The funny thing is, I think social media can be a good thing. I think if one is selective about who one follows, and if time on spent on social media is rationed properly, then there's nothing wrong with it. It's about maintaining awareness of what one is doing, and not getting sucked into a rabbit hole of opinionated teenagers spewing thought-vomit into a smartphone. 

It seems many people get into a position where they open up their social media and are immediately sent into a state of numbness (think of soma from Brave New World). They are then caught in a cycle of dumb posts rehashed over and over again.

There is often a lack of self-awareness on social media. But to be fair on the users, this lack of self-awareness and overuse of social media is actively encouraged by the tech companies who own these platforms. It's what is called the "attention economy", where each platform is competing with others for who can maintain our attention the longest. In this regard, I'd recommend the work of Tristan Harris, creator of the documentary The Social Dilemma. With the billions of users of social media, and the tremendous impact it's having on people, I think people need to be far more aware of what is going on.

A passage from Neil Postman's Amusing Ourselves to Death is incredibly relevant here. Tristan Harris himself uses Postman to illustrate his points. Postman compares Huxley's Brave New World to Orwell's 1984, remarking:

"Orwell warns that we will be overcome by an externally imposed oppression. But in Huxley's vision, no Big Brother is required to deprive people of their autonomy, maturity and history. As he saw it, people will come to love their oppression, to adore the technologies that undo their capacities to think.

What Orwell feared were those who would ban books. What Huxley feared was that there would be no reason to ban a book, for there would be no one who wanted to read one. Orwell feared those who would deprive us of information. Huxley feared those who would give us so much that we would be reduced to passivity and egoism. Orwell feared that the truth would be concealed from us. Huxley feared that the truth would be drowned in a sea of irrelevance"

We Need to Overcome Ideological Thinking

I have learnt that there is a common tendency for people to distort their experiences to fit into their preconceived ideological thoughts. To me, such people are not free-thinking. Such people do not think independently and have little individuality and creativity. Such people do not perceive reality in an accurate, healthy way. They do not try to understand something for what it is, but reflexively apply their established, ideological concepts onto everything in a robotic fashion. In this way, such people are not open-minded or receptive, quite the opposite. I have also learnt that this phenomena occurs on all sides of the political spectrum, though in varying degrees depending on where you look.

Unfortunately, most of the people who need to internalise these ideas will be those who are most resistant to them, and the person who points out uncomfortable truths is often seen as an enemy. I am reminded here of Carl Jung's view that the biggest threat to humanity is what he calls a "psychic epidemic", whereby people lose the capacity to think in a healthy, coherent way, thus losing connection to reality. Truly confronting reality, after all, is not an easy task. It is like facing up to an almighty dragon. To use Carl Jung again "the most terrifying thing is to accept oneself completely".

It is my view that "the truth will set you free". I strongly feel that if more people had a more evidence-based, accurate view of what is going on, human societies would be far healthier and happier. This entails overcoming ideological thought and moving beyond political boundaries. But many people, from what I have observed, are not willing to do this. 

We live in an extremely opinionated and defensive age. This has been exacerbated by social media. It seems that on social media many people react in an extreme, unintelligent and vapid way. I do not see enough thoughtfulness, self-reflection or nuance on social media. Maybe people deem these qualities to be boring or unfashionable?

Even if ideological, defensive people have good intentions, their thoughts and actions only contribute to a cycle of polarisation, division and avoidable conflict. "The road to hell is paved with good intentions". 

As far as I am concerned, it is only when people start truly thinking for themselves that human societies will get better. It is only when people start overcoming their egotistical, knee-jerk reactions that we will start really learning about the world. It is only when enough people become well-rounded and integrated that we will start developing healthily as a species.

Whether Boris Johnson said "let the bodies pile high in their thousands" is unimportant. What is important is that this is precisely what he has allowed to happen

Arguably, the most significant job of a Government is to protect its citizens. On this point, our Conservative UK Government has unequivocally failed.

What has happened over the past 1-2 years does not constitute a few understandable mistakes. 

Decisions have been taken time and again, by Boris Johnson and his Conservative Government, that have directly lead to one of the worst Covid death rates in the world. This has happened on an island, with a sophisticated healthcare system, and in one of the richest economies in the world.

Whether Boris Johnson said "let the bodies pile high in their thousands" is unimportant. What is important is that this is precisely what he has allowed to happen. If you analyse his behaviour at the start of the pandemic, you will have seen that he is not remotely fit to be a leader, of any kind whatsoever.

Boris Johnson is usually painted as a goofy, likeable and essentially harmless figure. In reality, he is an arrogant, incompetent and extremely harmful character who should go down in history as a despicable leader with many deaths on his hands.

In February 2020, Boris Johnson likens Britain to Superman. He thinks that Britain could "unleash it's potential" through freemarket capitalism (please see clip below). Fastforward a few months later, when the pandemic takes a firm grip on Britain, and this clip becomes simultaneously laughable and shocking.

This video emphatically shows that the Conservatives are arrogant and entitled, and they seem to believe that freemarket capitalism will literally solve all of the world's problems. However, freemarket capitalism doesn't help combat biological viruses, neither did Boris Johnson's arrogant attitude. 

Boris Johnson's attitude suggests a profound detachment from reality. In times of crises, we need leaders who are responsible, grounded and empathetic. Boris is none of these.

About a month later, on March 3rd, Boris Johnson states that he shook hands with Coronavirus patients in a hospital (please see clip below). Again, here we have video evidence of an entitled and privileged individual, who somehow believes that he would be impervious to a deadly biological virus.

Boris Johnson, and the corporate culture he embodies, is morally repugnant and very dangerous. Not only should he and those around him resign, but they should be tried in court, with the aid of impartial scientific experts.

Even from their own capitalist, corporate viewpoints, locking down swiftly and firmly would have benefited businesses and the economy in the long-term. So the Conservatives, as well as being morally repugnant, are highly incompetent.

Regardless of who you want to blame for originating the virus, you simply cannot deny that certain countries have been far more responsible and competent in dealing with this pandemic.

I don't think there is a single solution to the world's problems and it is is not my aim to advance political agendas. My aim is to describe the world in a balanced, evidence-based and rational fashion. This often entails challenging media narratives that distort, twist, omit and lie.

I'm Repulsed by the Leaders of my Country

If you're still defending the Conservative Government for their pandemic response, there may be little hope left for you. 

One shouldn't be surprised at the UK death toll (even though we are an island, have a highly sophisticated healthcare system, and one of the richest economies in the world). 

The Conservative Government, and to an extent New Labour, have demonstrated time and again that they do not care about ordinary human life. Whether it be the lives of those in poorer parts of the world - look at Iraq, Libya, Yemen. Or the lives of poorer people in our own country - look at the last 10 years of austerity.

The UK's pandemic response is yet another example showing us, very clearly, that the Conservatives are harmful and immoral. Please don't defend or support them.

Different stories are being spun by our politicians and billionaire-owned media. We are being told that the Government did the best they could, that the public is largely to blame, or that it is all China's fault. Don't allow yourself to fall for such lines. If you are going to support a political party, please look beyond mainstream media headlines. Please do some research. You might not be that affected by your decisions, but lots of other people are.

The UK had a lot of time to prepare. We saw other countries who were hit by the virus first. China, South Korea and New Zealand, for example, when they realised the severity of the virus, responded aggressively and efficiently. They applied World Health Organisation advice and succeeded in controlling the virus. The long term benefits of this approach, even from a capitalist view-point, let alone from the view-point of protecting human life, were positive. We then witnessed countries who let the virus spiral out of control, Italy for example, and could have learnt from this. But we didn't.

When I write about this I have strong feelings, but I'm trying to maintain balance and measure. Each life lost is 1 too many. Not only the lives that have been taken too soon by Covid-19, but the families that have been affected or destroyed. 

The Conservative Government has presided over 100,000 deaths (well over this number in some estimations). This number was never inevitable. It is the direct result of ideological decisions made by a political party that is criminally incompetent and immoral. 

Not only is the death toll such a heart-breaking factor, but consider the business and livelihoods that have been destroyed by ongoing lockdowns. Our joke of a Government allowed the virus to spiral dangerously out of control. Our hope of properly containing it is long gone. This means ongoing lockdowns, huge pressures on health services, and more mass death. The futures that have been derailed, the domestic violence that has increased, the education that has been affected, are all factors traceable to the decisions of our Conservative Government. We should never forget what they have done to this country.

I have been reflecting on precisely why I think our Government did so badly, and I think it was a mixture of 3 primary factors. 

The first factor is that the main politicians running our country are sickeningly entitled and privileged. It is as though they have been so shielded throughout their lives, and they have got away with so much through lies and rhetoric, that they actually thought a virus wouldn't affect them or their country. Viruses, it seems, aren't susceptible to lies and rhetoric. 

The second factor is that they are incompetent and short-sighted. Our decision-makers couldn't seem to grasp that even from their own neoliberal, corporate view-points, locking down early and aggressively would have actually benefited the economy and businesses in the long-term. 

The third factor is that they do not value the lives of ordinary people. I'm sure our decision-makers are aware that, if they fell ill from the virus, they and their families would get the best healthcare possible. This is not so for others. The Conservatives have demonstrated repeatedly that they do not value the lives of poor people. This is why they implemented austerity to bail out the bankers.

I sincerely hope that more ordinary people will wake up to the evils of the Conservative Government, and the corporations that control this Government, but I still fear that the propaganda is too deeply entrenched.

To anyone who cares about the world around them, I urge you to develop an accurate understanding of society. We need to wake up and take appropriate action, for life is short and valuable, and we must care for those around us.