Am I a Voice Among Truth Seekers, or a Noise Among the Masses?
While having a conversation with a friend about the coming economic collapse, the petrodollar, Monsanto, and the current state of the world in general, I was struck.
Struck by the obvious disconnection, ignorance and aloofness a second friend had displayed while listening in.
I was struck perhaps, because of my wrongful assumption that the three of us would all share the same amount of interest and knowledge in these topics.
Perhaps it was because of my failure to recognize that my own world interests had become so specified to the point that I had no longer noticed the bigger picture.
Or perhaps it was more so because of the fact that I had truly considered this second friend of mine to be sensible and intelligent, though we hadn't necessarily engaged in such topics as the fluoridation of the tap water, or the GMO monopoly.
But even then, I did expect there to at least be an inkling of awareness in regards to these apparent world issues.
Nevertheless, there was an obvious disparity in knowledge and concern between the friend who was "aware", and the friend who wasn't.
As I had mentioned, my second friend is quite sensible and intelligent.
So what had boggled my mind was this: If he truly is a sensible person, why did he appear to lack concern for issues that are obviously important to the well being of humanity? And if he truly is intelligent, why was he ignorant of such issues? And why do some people find themselves fortunate enough to bear this information? So begun my search for the answer to this question: In regards to important world issues, is the ignorance of the populous a result of a lack of exposure to information, or is it more so a result of a lack of concern to search for it? After some reflecting, I had come to understand that perhaps it is both, and that the two are quite closely related.
An ugly dichotomy.
We don't know because we don't care, and we don't care because we don't know, if you will.
As technology advances and as society becomes more complex, the flow of information becomes increasingly dense and increasingly vast.
And although it is a blessing to those who desire to be knowledgeable, it can be a curse to those who easily allow themselves to be distracted.
Since the amount of information flowing through our monitors, cellphones, and TV screens is so dense, it is extremely easy for the stuff that matters to get lost in the mix.
And since the information that is vital to the well being of the public is often under the control of governing officials, access to that information is that much more difficult to attain.
Go back 50 years, 100 years, 1000 years.
To a time when access to information was less cluttered, and a lot simpler.
News and information were brought to the public through a black and white TV, a newspaper, a scroll, a raven, or a messenger on horseback.
There were no feeds to customize.
Government had more control over the flow of information because there were fewer ways of delivering it, but recipients of the information had little control over how and even if they receive it.
Thus the worldview of the populous was more homogenized.
In this day and age, recipients of information have more control over how it is received, and government has less control of the flow.
The amount of available information has increased dramatically, thus so has the means of delivery, and thus the worldview of the populous is less homogenized.
The unfortunate thing is, that there is so much freedom in the ability to filter out the preferable from the unpreferable, that one can end up missing the most vital information.
Those who are interested in sports can, if they so choose, be fed with only sports related topics.
Those who are interested in reality TV and the private lives celebrities do have the option to be fed with that as well.
How appropriate is the term RSS "feed"? What a strange responsibility for us as humans, that our understanding of the world is dependent on our own mental palette for the world.
With the paradigm that we live in right now, in order to continue being aware of what matters, we are given the responsibility of having to actively seek out the important information.
Which brings me back to the original dichotomy: We don't know because we don't care and we don't care because we don't know.
It seems as though one needs to CARE enough about what is important in order to want to actively search through the mess of distractions.
And in order to have enough energy and drive to actively search for it, one needs to KNOW and understand just how important it is, and how much it is worth the effort.
Just how chaotic is the current state of the world's economy? How does it affects me and my family's future? Will the geopolitics of the Middle East affect my living conditions at home? Will the US government ever declare martial law on it's citizens? Just how safe is the food I'm consuming? Or the water I'm drinking? If these things are known and properly understood then there's no way you can't care.
It is a sort of chicken and the egg paradox.
Or a vicious cycle.
And it has to break somewhere.
And in addition, sadly, some of us even avoid the truth.
Some of us hide from it like a child who shuts his eyes and believes that the world around him magically disappears.
Some of us have grown comfortable in our denial.
But how long can denial remain comfortable? For how long can you fake a smile? In conclusion, the message is this: Be aware of where your interests lie.
If it lies with things that aren't beneficial to you or your family's future, then you're wasting time.
Be aware.
Be knowledgeable.
Stop being concerned with reality TV.
Stop being concerned with celebrities, they don't care about you.
Stop watching music videos.
Men, stop being obsessed with sports.
Limit the time you spend on movies as well.
That's two hours of your day.
Watch a documentary instead.
There are too many concerns in our world that vitally affect us all, and the powers that be intend keep us unaware.
Be aware folks.
Struck by the obvious disconnection, ignorance and aloofness a second friend had displayed while listening in.
I was struck perhaps, because of my wrongful assumption that the three of us would all share the same amount of interest and knowledge in these topics.
Perhaps it was because of my failure to recognize that my own world interests had become so specified to the point that I had no longer noticed the bigger picture.
Or perhaps it was more so because of the fact that I had truly considered this second friend of mine to be sensible and intelligent, though we hadn't necessarily engaged in such topics as the fluoridation of the tap water, or the GMO monopoly.
But even then, I did expect there to at least be an inkling of awareness in regards to these apparent world issues.
Nevertheless, there was an obvious disparity in knowledge and concern between the friend who was "aware", and the friend who wasn't.
As I had mentioned, my second friend is quite sensible and intelligent.
So what had boggled my mind was this: If he truly is a sensible person, why did he appear to lack concern for issues that are obviously important to the well being of humanity? And if he truly is intelligent, why was he ignorant of such issues? And why do some people find themselves fortunate enough to bear this information? So begun my search for the answer to this question: In regards to important world issues, is the ignorance of the populous a result of a lack of exposure to information, or is it more so a result of a lack of concern to search for it? After some reflecting, I had come to understand that perhaps it is both, and that the two are quite closely related.
An ugly dichotomy.
We don't know because we don't care, and we don't care because we don't know, if you will.
As technology advances and as society becomes more complex, the flow of information becomes increasingly dense and increasingly vast.
And although it is a blessing to those who desire to be knowledgeable, it can be a curse to those who easily allow themselves to be distracted.
Since the amount of information flowing through our monitors, cellphones, and TV screens is so dense, it is extremely easy for the stuff that matters to get lost in the mix.
And since the information that is vital to the well being of the public is often under the control of governing officials, access to that information is that much more difficult to attain.
Go back 50 years, 100 years, 1000 years.
To a time when access to information was less cluttered, and a lot simpler.
News and information were brought to the public through a black and white TV, a newspaper, a scroll, a raven, or a messenger on horseback.
There were no feeds to customize.
Government had more control over the flow of information because there were fewer ways of delivering it, but recipients of the information had little control over how and even if they receive it.
Thus the worldview of the populous was more homogenized.
In this day and age, recipients of information have more control over how it is received, and government has less control of the flow.
The amount of available information has increased dramatically, thus so has the means of delivery, and thus the worldview of the populous is less homogenized.
The unfortunate thing is, that there is so much freedom in the ability to filter out the preferable from the unpreferable, that one can end up missing the most vital information.
Those who are interested in sports can, if they so choose, be fed with only sports related topics.
Those who are interested in reality TV and the private lives celebrities do have the option to be fed with that as well.
How appropriate is the term RSS "feed"? What a strange responsibility for us as humans, that our understanding of the world is dependent on our own mental palette for the world.
With the paradigm that we live in right now, in order to continue being aware of what matters, we are given the responsibility of having to actively seek out the important information.
Which brings me back to the original dichotomy: We don't know because we don't care and we don't care because we don't know.
It seems as though one needs to CARE enough about what is important in order to want to actively search through the mess of distractions.
And in order to have enough energy and drive to actively search for it, one needs to KNOW and understand just how important it is, and how much it is worth the effort.
Just how chaotic is the current state of the world's economy? How does it affects me and my family's future? Will the geopolitics of the Middle East affect my living conditions at home? Will the US government ever declare martial law on it's citizens? Just how safe is the food I'm consuming? Or the water I'm drinking? If these things are known and properly understood then there's no way you can't care.
It is a sort of chicken and the egg paradox.
Or a vicious cycle.
And it has to break somewhere.
And in addition, sadly, some of us even avoid the truth.
Some of us hide from it like a child who shuts his eyes and believes that the world around him magically disappears.
Some of us have grown comfortable in our denial.
But how long can denial remain comfortable? For how long can you fake a smile? In conclusion, the message is this: Be aware of where your interests lie.
If it lies with things that aren't beneficial to you or your family's future, then you're wasting time.
Be aware.
Be knowledgeable.
Stop being concerned with reality TV.
Stop being concerned with celebrities, they don't care about you.
Stop watching music videos.
Men, stop being obsessed with sports.
Limit the time you spend on movies as well.
That's two hours of your day.
Watch a documentary instead.
There are too many concerns in our world that vitally affect us all, and the powers that be intend keep us unaware.
Be aware folks.