What politics gives us

It is almost foolish to argue directly with culture. To solve a cultural problem within a generation, or even within a lifetime, is a daunting task. Perhaps our challenge, then, is how to use culture to our advantage, to flip a situation.

Perhaps hard, cultural problems can be addressed through our moral foundations, helping us move forward.

An idea must be accepted locally if it is to become a long-term change, but it does not need to begin there. The government can use our moral foundation of authority to help an idea take root. Yet, the path taken by our government is an unsteady, sometimes backwards one.

Out of a frustration with the government, apolitical movements are born. We try to ignore the authority of the government, but we will set up a new authority, as it is our moral nature as people, and nothing has changed.

Being apolitical in itself is not wrong, but it might be helpful to recognize the authority dynamics that are taking place, and what process rules the group. That is, when we form a group, we need to ask ourselves, what is driving the culture? How is the culture defined, and under what authority?

It is important to understand what politics gives us – moral authority – and how it operates, depending on the system of government. I suggest that without a moral authority in place in our groups, nothing can happen.

To explore this idea of authority, think of policies. What do policies do for our companies? They try to communicate what's important to our leaders, what our priorities are. Without them, a smart individual can get by, even flourish, but a group without a policy slowly becomes bogged down with the overhead of getting on the same page, so to speak.

Getting on the same page requires a finding a common authority, whoever or whatever that may be.

To explore this idea further, replace "government" with "religion," above.

Daylight

People are figuring it out every night. Over wine, over cocktails, over a few beers. Peace is found, with friends, with our kin. We are made this way. Outside of this environment, in the daylight, we struggle. This has been noted many times, with much worry and anxiety. Still, we can write in the warm candlelight of a bar, and all is well.

The "wise" often tell us we're struggling because we are doing it wrong. We are the enemy. But where does that leave us, besides doubting our humanity? I have been told to doubt myself for thirty years, and I have tried to oblige. Today, I see little reason to continue.

Doubt – the notion that we should refrain from doing – leads to doing nothing. We need something to guide us, something to do. Our doubt leads to our inaction; the action of others, however ill-informed, fills the void. Only a positive suggestion can lead to something.

Still, on the whole, we do in fact struggle. We commit crimes against each other. We hurt each other. We build glass ceilings. This is true. Why is that? Why is progress so difficult?

What are we doing to change? In our nights and weekends, we are in love with our harmless TV shows. We are reading our celebrity gossip and our sports dramas. We are hiking and dancing, finding a release, a distraction that we desperately need. What we do is necessary; it is the follow-through to our days.

As we acknowledge our need for release, what we need to change becomes obvious:

Our days.

How do we even begin?