About
middle-age, white, American, middle-class, heterosexual, differently-abled, traumatized, Buddhist female using she/her pronouns
The nature of revolution - the oppressed unify against the oppressors (hierarchy v equality) and when the oppressed is defeated, they shift their revolutionary energy inward to resolve their differences about the philosophical foundations of the new world they wish to build and the most ethical strategies by which to build it (force/fear v compassion). If we agree on the ethical foundations of the revolution first then we can avoid imploding over philosophical differences and leaving a power vacuum for the old power structure to rebuild itself after the oppressed successfully break open the opportunity for change.
Brainstorm how to improve the social system without limiting ourselves to the laws of the current system. After all, it’s the foundational laws that need replacing in the first place.
Clarify the strengths and weaknesses of the current system.
Engage in detailed and constructive evaluations of the current social system and its harmful consequences.
a set of foundational principles and an open discussion with ground rules for respect, logic, and truth.
Encourage honest and passionate debate, and welcome all supported perspectives.
Monitor comment submissions and do not publish any comments violating the guidelines below:
No personal attacks
No solicitation
Must directly address the site’s content or the topic being discussed
No advocacy of harm to another human being will be tolerated.
I am angry. Very angry. I make great effort to take responsibility for my behavior and actions, act in a way that is supportive and consistent with my goals and values, and make others feel heard, supported, and respected. But as much as I try, I still find myself suffering the consequences of others’ actions; actions that are outside my control but still impact my wellbeing, productivity, and reputation. Our society encourages and rewards individualism and competition, placing the responsibility for one’s success, happiness, and health solely on the individual, but yet, as much as we can do to act responsibly and intentionally, our lives are inevitably impacted by circumstances beyond our control, either systemic, natural, or external. So why is my value, worth, and reputation solely my responsibility when I have no control over it? And when I try to improve my value, worth, and reputation by controlling the things that impact them, I am only left angry and frustrated because of the impossibility of my efforts. Thus, society deems it my fault for the circumstances in which I find myself, but many of the things that determined my current situation were completely out of my control, and while I did the best I could to deal with the unwelcome circumstances, I feel like I continue to suffer the consequences of actions that weren’t my own. And this makes me angry. I am angry that I am blamed for circumstances I had no control over; I am angry that I suffer for the behavior and actions of others; and I am angry that no one will help me through this suffering because it is not their responsibility. And holding all of this anger is exhausting. My body hurts, my heart hurts, and I have no energy left to help those around me that are also suffering.
They say the solution is acceptance. Acceptance that we live in the society we do; acceptance that we suffer for things we cannot control; and acceptance that we will be judged and valued accordingly. But to accept this is to accept injustice, exploitation, and oppression. For in this world, our survival and wellbeing are directly linked to, if not controlled by, those that have the disproportionate power to judge and place value on our lives. Not to mention those for whom we disproportionately suffer the consequences of their actions. It is us that suffer, and them that place value and control the means of production survival. It is them who dictate what “life,” “dignity,” and “health” mean. And they have convinced us that their dictations are in fact the natural state of humans and society. Well, to that I say BULLSHIT! Our natural state is what WE dictate it is. And in this way we do have control. We have control over what our own human nature is and how we interact in society. And while this is easier said than done when the exhaustion of anger and powerlessness has rendered us numb and paralyzed, one way we can change our circumstance is to redirect our energy from fueling our individualized anger at circumstances beyond our control to helping each other struggle through this collective suffering and develop solutions to ease the anger. But I can’t do this alone. Alone I am just one angry person, exhausted, depleted, and exploited. But together, together we can help each other, take turns enduring the suffering, and contribute what we can so that others will suffer less in the future. We have the knowledge, we have the tools, now we just need the willingness to work collectively. For it is only by collective effort that humans have evolved from hunter-gatherers, to agriculture and specialization, to industrialization (for better or worse). It IS in our nature to act collectively towards a common goal. And to anyone who says differently, I say BULLSHIT!
This website is a work in progress. Thank you for your patience!