There's a lot of troubling stuff going on in the world right now and that's nothing new. It seems like there's never been a time in my life when there wasn't troubling stuff going on in the world.
But up here in Canada I think, on the whole, we see the troubling stuff and don't sweat it too much. We are basically good people who believe in the basic goodness of people and go about our lives with faith that ultimately goodness will prevail.
My Dad (who, by the way, despite how I may lovingly characterize him from time to time is still the wisest person I know) once told me that on the whole you can pretty safely assume that every person you meet in school, at work, in your neighbourhood (and so on) is good. Those who are not good are such a small minority that while you should look out for them, it's not likely you'll encounter many in your life. And he was right; he is right: I can't think of many people (any?) I've met who weren't basically good.
So goodness prevails, right? Troubling stuff is a phenomenon of somewhere else. All the good people here will stay that way. Our society will ultimately always believe and act as if you should "love thy neighbour" and "do unto others as you would have them do unto you". Right?
Well, maybe. I hope so.
I think we're in danger of taking our eye off that ball. I think good people are becoming distracted. I think good people are becoming fragmented. I think good people are having a hard time finding truth. I think good people are becoming cynical. I think good people are becoming fearful and angry.
- Distracted - many good people who have the energy and will to fix the world are focusing on micro-causes with micro-communities of like-minded people instead of going after the macro issues (like poverty, social inclusion, justice, ...) Many good people are busy looking for jobs, pursuing careers, studying, raising families, and consuming an effectively infinite supply of entertainment. Many good people are focused on their own creature comforts - which abound here in Canada - instead of concerning themselves with those who don't have them.
- Fragmented - we aren't reading the same news, hearing the same opinions, consuming the same entertainment, joining the same conversations, or sharing the same experiences. We are cancelling cable and turning to our own customized stream of content. There's no critical mass around anything. There are lots and lots and lots of small communities of interest, but there is far less community than ever before. We are becoming strangers to each other outside of the tighter and tighter circles into which we are dividing ourselves.
- Unable to find truth - what is truth any more? Where do we turn to find out what really happened? Which side of any given debate is right when anyone can find a 'fact' to support their position? We don't trust science. We don't trust our leaders. Just for fun, we heckle (and thus suppress) people who genuinely try to speak the truth as they see it. It is far easier to find a truth that we like than to be open to one that we don't like.
- Cynical - it is more entertaining to watch bad people doing bad things than to watch good people doing good things. If you believe what you see in television programming, most people are bad and just a few are good. Even the good ones are complex and often have to do bad things for the greater good. "Reality" programming confirms that people are generally bad, weak, selfish, ... The "media" can be used by people with enough money to apply an easily remembered label (e.g. "she's a crook") to someone who doesn't fit what those people want and have that label be accepted, without question, by the masses who rely on that medium for their "news". So of course it's becoming increasingly difficult for good people to believe that a vast majority of others are also good and well-intentioned. It is much easier to assume the worst and to believe in no one but yourself.
- Fearful and angry - of course good people are fearful. Bad and troubling stuff happens every day. And of course they're angry and frustrated. Good people should be angry and frustrated when they see bad things happening that they can't control. There are people in the world who understand that fear and anger are essential to furthering their cause and know very well how to put those tools to use. And they do. And it works.
So take a very large population of generally good people, distract them, divide them, confuse them, make them doubtful of each other, scare them, and piss them off; your chances of having them do something bad just got a whole lot better.
It is not enough to simply believe that goodness will prevail anymore. Good people need to make sure it does.
Good schools and teachers are more important than ever. Parents that teach 'goodness' to their kids - in word and in deed - are more important than ever. Communities that band together to do good things are more important than ever. Inclusion is more important than ever. Leaders who are good people are more important than ever.
There are forces beyond our individual control that are putting all of the above at risk. But what is completely within our control is to "love thy neighbour" and to "do unto others as you would have them do unto you". Start there. The rest follows.
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