Can Our Downward Course Be Halted?!
Guest Post by Alton C. Thompson
In 1982, while in the local Barnes & Noble bookstore (which is now a hospital!), and looking through the “remainders” box, I found, and purchased, two books—and those books have had a profound influence on my thinking since then! Eugene Linden’s Affluence and Discontent (1979) taught me that our species has long been on a downward course; and David Barash’s Introduction to Socioiology (1977) gave me an explanation of that downward course—that explanation being the “discrepancy” that began to develop, during the Neolithic Revolution, between:
The way of life for which we had become “designed” (during the lengthy period—about 97% of our existence—when our ancestors lived by gathering, scavenging, and hunting); and
The new ways of life that began to develop during that Revolution—which made life increasingly unnatural for those forced to live them! And, thereby, “helping” propel our species on its downward course.
Given the historical developments—intellectual and institutional—that put our species on its downward course (relative to Earth System, that is!), along with the reason behind that downward course (the Discrepancy), it might seem that our species will continue on that course until “apocalypse” occurs (the term used by Linden on p. 178 of his book). Until, that is, we proceed over the waterfall—to allude to the figure, left.) Were Linden writing that book now in 2023, it’s likely that he would use “extinction” instead of “apocal-ypse”!—for some scientists are predicting a “ghastly” future for our species—including the possibility that our species will be extinct by 2030!
The reason for expecting a “ghastly” future is that at some point in the future warming is likely to begin “feeding on itself”—that some of the consequences of global warming (such as the thawing of permafrost) will themselves begin to become causes of further warming! Temperature change will then be “sudden and catasclysmic”! The fact that global warming is now accelerating may mean that “runaway” has now begun!
Because of that possibility, our situation today appears to be hopeless!—which caused me to write Ten Reasons Why We Are Doomed a little over a year ago!
But should we, then, simply “roll over and play dead”?! I, for one, am unwilling to do so!
But in developing a “cure” for the “illness” that afflicts us now, the first thing that needs attention is to identify the direct cause of our failure to act (the ultimate cause being the Discrepancy). And in my looking to Thorstein Veblen’s [1857 – 1929] The Theory of the Leisure Class (1899) for that direct cause (and then writing Veblen and Our “Race” to Oblivion, last month, I reach these conclusions:
What Veblen’s Theory book seemingly suggests is that:
Because invidious comparison is a “given” in our society;
And such a mentality is “behind” the consumption that occurs in our society;
Reducing the consumption that is “behind” the two major causes of the global warming now occurring (our burning of fossil fuels and deforestation activities), will be virtually impossible to accomplish!
But is there some way to change the mentality that’s directly “behind” the global warming now occurring—and even now accelerating (and thereby “bringing world ‘dangerously close’ to irreversible change”!)? I suggest a possibility below.
What I suggest is that we create formal discussion groups that replicate, in important respects, the way of life for which we had become designed in the distant past! And in doing so, we first recognize that we became designed:
To be different in abilities, interests, etc.; these differences having a genetic basis.
To be social creatures—who both need and want contact with other humans.
To live in small groups—with each member of a group using his/her particular abilities to contribute to the common good of the group. That is, the different abilities/interests in the group complement one another.
With relationships within the group usually being of a harmonious nature—and if disharmony seems to be developing within the group, one or more members will recognize this, and do what they can to restore the harmony that had previously existed. This might result in ejecting one or more members from the group, as a last resort.
The design of a discussion group, then, should replicate, in important respects, the features of a forager band of old. So that by doing so, a mentality can be created within the group that will have carry-over value—so that in being carried over into one’s everyday life, it will enable one to cease being a captive of the society’s dominant mentality, with its emphasis on invidious thinking.
My expectation is that the thinking of those who agree to become members of the discussion group envisioned here will be tainted with invidious thinking; but that with exposure to the discussion group, that sort of thinking will diminish in importance, and perhaps do so in “the blink of an eye”! And once that occurs, their behaviors will begin reflecting their new mentality—and will impact, positively, the mentality and behavior of those with whom they have contact! Thus, what begins with a few can diffuse throughout the society!
Perhaps I am being overly optimistic here, regarding the potential of the particular discussion group to be introduced here—but if you think that you have a better solution to the mess that our species is in at present, by all means make it public!!
As the nature of the discussion group that I have in mind is discussed in this 16-page paper (The Discussion Group), I will restrict my comments here to just a few points that I regard as of particular importance:
Each session will have a “leader,” that person “chosen” using a random procedure—the assumption here being that anyone can be a leader!
The leader of a particular session has the responsibility of ensuring that the rules established for meetings are all honored.
Discussion proceeds in a particular way: It begins with the leader, then proceeds to the person on the left, etc. One may only speak when it’s one’s turn to speak.
The discussions that occur during sessions are likely to have numerous consequences—all of them of a positive nature! As my 16-page paper points out in some detail.
In short, I believe that although the current (unnatural!) way of of life tends to impose a certain mentality and way of acting on us that are driving us in the direction of extinction, that it’s possible to acquire—via participation in the sort of discussion group advocated herein—a contrary mentality; and that if enough of us “inmates” do so, actions will be taken that will (possibly, at least!) “save” our species from that fate!
For various reasons, I have not acted on this proposal to create a special sort of discussion group; I hope, though, that someone does!
This could be a “life or death” matter!!
