Program Me

The society and culture in which we grow programs us to think in a specific fashion. Our view of reality is thus coloured by our socio-cultural environment. But many people are unaware that their minds have been programmed. Many people feel that their constructed reality is true and don’t think that another way of looking at things might exist. To understand the fact that there are multiple ways of looking at the world, some of which are radically different from others, is very beneficial.

Cultural and societal institutions want you to fall in line. They want to control you, so that you don’t wake up and think for yourself. Even institutions which deem themselves to be moral often just want to exert control over people, whether they are conscious of this or not. This is why I'm usually distrustful of overt moralising and sanctimonious behaviour.

Many live in what some might call “the matrix”. The matrix, to me, means a distorted copy of reality, built up over time by a specific culture. It can be wielded or encouraged by people in powerful positions to stop others from waking up and taking control over their lives.  

Socio-cultural conditioning stands between us and a more naked, independent, true understanding of how things work. Many people, it seems, go from birth to grave without perceiving things for what they are. Other people feel they perceive things clearly, because they have educated themselves about politics, for example, or have adopted “alternative” views about the world, but are just as much in the matrix as most others. Other people, again, may have educational qualifications and can learn to repeat knowledge in a robotic way, but still lack a fundamental awareness of how things work. This is why I don’t value things in the same way other people do. I don’t necessarily think it’s amazing that someone has got a first-class degree from the University of Oxford, for example. I would be more impressed if someone has created a beautiful work of art, regardless of whether this work of art was unpopular or not. 

It is difficult to determine what fundamental awareness means or whether some people have woken up or not. Waking up can’t be explained in the same way we explain what a chemical process is, but it involves a dissolution of socio-cultural conditioning and a consequently clear perception of how reality works. Ground-breaking artists often achieve this kind of awareness. Artists challenge the dictates of the culture around them when they create something fresh and innovative. They have cast their minds into the unknown and brought insights back into the known. They have made things conscious that were previously unconscious. 

Reality has a lot to teach us. We need to be receptive. We need to listen, observe and contemplate. We need to humble ourselves to the chaos and majesty of the unknown and integrate its teachings into our lives. We also need to realise that understanding is a continual process. No matter how aware you are, you always have something new to learn. 

Come Together

We should resist all forms of dogmatism and we shouldn’t be quick to judge others. When confronted with an issue, it is beneficial to consider this issue over time and to genuinely look at it from different angles. This might mean stepping outside of one’s algorithmic echo chamber and engaging in some form of research and contemplation, whether it simply be cross-referencing different articles or being mindful of one's feelings and thoughts. 

Unfortunately, I see too much polarisation and aggression in modern discourse. On social media, for example, people are quick to display their political views and opinions, wearing them like some kind of badge. This is probably done as a means to “fit in” and be validated by one's peers. It also seems that many people are hyperbolic online, probably in some vain attempt to be funny or entertaining. But such people usually end up contributing to a climate of division, hate and conflict. 

With online discourse, there seems to be a strong impulse to have rigid convictions about the world. But to understand things accurately is to be nuanced, fair and open to different viewpoints. Understanding things accurately, however, is quite difficult to do. It requires some amount of mental discipline and periods of discomfort. It requires you to genuinely question yourself and the world. Unfortunately, I don’t see enough people trying to do this. It isn’t fashionable, one might conclude, to have evidence-based and thoughtful views about the world. 

It is important to be aware of what is happening to us, psychologically, when we engage in online discourse. A lot of the time, people are trying to be accepted by “the crowd” and are emulating what they think is the correct or moral way of speaking. Other people are looking to gain as many likes and followers as possible, regardless of what they are uttering. In consequence, such people don’t think for themselves or form insightful arguments. For example, if there is any criticism of the dominant COVID vaccine narrative, many people online, usually liberal, use labels like “anti-vaxxer” or “science denier”, when in reality these labels are often untrue. But this, apparently, is the morally acceptable way of speaking about this issue. Similarly, people who voted leave during the EU Referendum were regularly labelled racist. People who use such labels don’t seem to realise that they are contributing to an already fractured, hateful world. There is something odious about sanctimonious behaviour. 

Russell Brand is one of the few commentators who, in my view, is trying to heal division and have thoughtful conversations about global issues. I think this is partly because he has an understanding of the effects of cultural conditioning and of deeper philosophical thinking. Deeper philosophical thinking means that he has a perspective on reality which is contextual and goes further than superficial, materialistic concerns. He also doesn’t fall into traditional political groups. He doesn’t come at things with an agenda or ideology, but assesses things with some degree of objectivity. We need more commentators like this. 

Tech companies and those in positions of power encourage unhealthy behaviour on social media. Those in power wanted us to argue incessantly about Brexit and Trump. Those in power want us to judge and ostracise those who don’t want the COVID vaccine. Those in power want us to stay perpetually divided and distracted. Those in power want to create hysteria about certain issues and want you to ignore other issues. Those in power encourage all forms of opinionated, judgmental behaviour, regardless of where you are on the political spectrum. Those in power will inflame and exploit any issue that keeps us divided, whether it be racial tensions, opinions on gender or positions on COVID. 

Unfortunately, from what I’ve observed, many otherwise decent people fall into this game of polarisation. They are sucked into a seemingly endless historical cycle. A cycle characterised by the phrase divide and conquer. I think they are sucked in because their weaknesses and emotional inclinations are tapped into by those who want to control and exploit. In order to combat division, ignorance and hate, more people need to cultivate thoughtfulness and true self-awareness.