The Dumbing Down of Humanity

Apparently, people will sink to the lowest level available to them. They will not strive to be better, only sufficient. They do not wonder about the world around them, and only expect the world to fit into their way of thinking. As creatures of habit, they always expect things to remain the same and are shocked when they do not. Sometimes they seem to glory in their ignorance, and feel threatened by and are hostile to, anything scientific, even though it is that very scientific understanding that has allowed them to survive and flourish in today's society.

I come from a challenging world, where building things that did not previously exist, was an exciting way to look at the world, where thinking was not something to be embarrassed about.

Looking at the "users" in the current world order, they can use their little black boxes (iphones, ipods, ipads, laptops, etc.) and all their simplified software or Apps and have absolutely no concept of how these things work, what these are actually doing, and how these things are performing their functions. The understanding of the majority of people becomes whether these things are "good" or "bad" for what they want to use them for. I understand that these things have become higher level tools, but when the underpinning of functional understanding evaporates for the bulk of humanity, how long will it be until a crisis arises and we are plunged into another Dark Ages, with most of our former knowledge lost.

I once had a boss who was so proud of his expensive piece of automated equipment, he said, "even a monkey could run this." Well, maybe he was right, but should that be the goal of our societies, to produce people with mentalities no greater than a monkey (not to insult monkeys). If we do not challenge people, one psychological study showed, they will not strive to be better. They will be no better than what people expect them to be. Advertisers always target people as if they have a forth grade mentality, and it seems to work for them. Is that what we all will become?

The Meanness of People

Dismiss, dehumanize, insult or just ignore, all in a typical day. We have our own motives for acting the way we do, usually looking out for ourselves, or protecting the "world" we have constructed around ourselves (real or imaginative), but the cruelty, heartlessness and vicious way that some people treat others who disturb them, get in their way, slow them down, disagree with them or upset their blissfully imaginative connection to their own reality is beyond frightening. It can leave a deep sadness on our overall impression of the limits to the heights that humanity may ever achieve.

The pride in themselves, the feeling that they deserve to be treated in a way close to Royalty, that their time is more valuable than anyone else's. Stomping on the necks of others is just a normal way of "doing business".

Yes, they may have some justification, with some people out there being just incompetent, careless and thoughtless, not buying into the concept that doing a "good" job has some value to society and to themselves. These people can frustrate others, but still do not excuse the kind of human behavior that pervades society and extends beyond assertive into the realm of abusive.

Perhaps the Buddhist philosophy has some of this right, insisting that control of our "wild" thoughts will be to the benefit of ourselves and eventually everyone around us. We have to live with others, we are not isolated from other people (we can not live that way and survive for long). Determining a way to live, where we do not leave the crushed and broken bodies of others in our wake, will be a better way in the long run. Consider the words we use, before they are spoken. Always try to transpose ourselves with those we come in contact with, in order to feel the effect of what we do or say has on them. This perspective would allow us to realize that the feeling we have may not be a pleasant one and may encourage the softening of our words to others.

Is This Game Rigged?

Try as many may to "get ahead", we find that we are fighting a loosing battle. Is this the way that modern society is structured? Yes, we all get older (some faster than others), and try to do things basically the "right" way, put away something for a rainy day or retirement, work for the things we would like in our lives, try to treat others decently, and hope for the best in our and our loved ones lives. Things do happen beyond our control to knock us off of our planned path, like illness, accident or worse. But it is the things that we think we have some control or say-so in that can hit us from out of the blue. Sometimes it is just our own unrealistic expectations, but many times it is the "system" itself that drives these things. Laws, rules, whims of politicians, appointees or people in positions of "power", and their "friends".

Why is it that the poorest people are paying the highest interest rates on loans? Why is it that the term "usury" has conveniently fell out of the English language? Why are people so concerned about "illegal" aliens violating immigration laws and not so concerned about violations in minimum wage laws, work-time laws, work-safety laws or social security laws? Why is it that Banks can hold your money and find ways to steal it from you? Why is it that your home can be taken from you by Government entities and handed over to for-profit companies? Why is it that Credit Card companies are allowed to disembowel the population and no-one lifts a finger to stop them? Why can companies dump toxic wastes, making whole populations ill, and no-one does anything about it?

Is getting ahead, accumulating wealth and making a good life for yourself and your decendents just a myth created by other people with their own agenda?

Holier than Thou

Maybe it's all about Power. They value Power above all. They are driven by it, they will flaunt it, they will use it over others without hesitation. They justify it as the Moral way to be, that only they or their group or philosophy knows what is right or the best for others. That the balance of the world is too ignorant to make the Right choices. They are Protecting their way of life, their friends, their possessions, their money. They will kill or allow killing in their zealousy to enforce their way. They are unconcerned or conciously oblivious to the suffering that they cause, and the lives that they destroy.