With over seven billion people on this planet, why are we allowing ourselves to be herded into a set of mazes by just a few thousand men?
Of Moose and Men
I’m sure there’s not a social scientist alive who doesn’t already know this, and if I had read it someplace myself, it would’ve seemed perfectly obvious. That is, when people have their basic needs covered, they are more able to look outside themselves, think outside the constricting “box” of everyday needs, so to speak.
I formed this theory recently after seeing videos of animals who made deliberate efforts to save other animals. There was a moose who saved a little marmot (about the size of a squirrel) from a water tank. One of the zookeepers voiced her opinion which really hit the nail on the head.
The moose took around 10 or 15 minutes maneuvering himself to be able to dip his head into the tank and lift the little critter out with his mouth. He then put it on the ground and nudged the marmot with his hoof to get it moving.
There was only one reason for the moose to do what he did; altruism. Just helping another living being in need.
Then there was the bear who was caught on camera following a drowning crow in a small stream until it could reach down with his mouth and pull the crow out, then dropping him on the dry ground and walking away. Again, no reason except to help.
Both of these incidents took place in zoos, where the moose and bear each had their daily needs met. Food and shelter, veterinarian care, etc. They had no need to hunt or forage. No need to find shelter for themselves or their kin. No need to fight for space or mates or anything else.
They were able to look up, in a real sense, and pay attention to things they may not have noticed before. They had the freedom to ponder the world around them. And when each of them saw another animal who was drowning, they made a considered decision to help, knowing full well they were saving a life.
This seemed remarkable to me. And I thought how “human” it was.
Then I thought how many humans are in circumstances where they cannot, themselves, look up and see outside their “boxes”. They are, themselves, drowning.
They are living paycheck to paycheck, and those have been shrinking. There are daily challenges that keep them focused on only themselves and their families. They have little or no time to think about others in need. Little or no time to think or plan for their own future. (And never mind politics or voting.)
This ability to look up and see outside of our own small world is what has propelled humans forward as a species.
At the onset of the industrial revolution, automation was supposed to allow us more time and space to think and plan and experiment and innovate. And for a while, we did just that. Americans in particular became the innovators of the world! Better educated than all the other countries and using that education to take great leaps in engineering and invention, medicine and… you name it! Why not the moon!?
The envy of the world, we had the freedom to be “all that we could be”! Then, it began to change.
For a very few, very rich men, ordinary greed evolved into full-blown OCD: Obsessive Compulsive Disorder. Enough was not enough. Individually and in concert, they began long term plans to have it all, and have it all their way.
Gradually, their schemes began to affect the economy. As they used their money to pervert our system, our “freedoms” became too costly for the average American. Everything was given a dollar value and profit motives ruled over patriotism.
It was no accident that middle class wages began to stagnate, and normal inflation began to take a toll, forcing people to work longer and harder than before just to make ends meet. An increasing number of the people living in poverty were no longer able to work their way out.
Higher education became available only to people who already had the money, or were financially secure enough to qualify for massive loans.
Since the eighties, this turnaround has held back and harmed roughly 90% of Americans. Ninety percent! And growing!
An increasingly small number of people, who want to keep the whole “pie” to themselves, have been damaging America and her forward and upward movement.
There is no patriotism, no altruism in their way of thinking. For decades, they have been trying their best to eliminate our safety net of Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, food assistance programs, and affordable housing programs, to name the most pertinent. Elimination would be good, but privatization even better. After all, privatization equals profit. (And an unfortunately high number of our Senators and congress members have been only too happy to help them!)
The most selfish in our current population, that is ‘selfish’ as documented in businesses practices and charitable giving, etc., inherited their wealth. They never needed a thing, their every desire was met. They were born with complete freedom from need. And, by the way, it didn’t take any talent or intelligence on their part!
Our safety net programs were designed to supply a small degree of economic freedom, or relief, to people in real need. Keep them off the streets and fed until they got back on their feet. These programs were and are used for short periods of time; several weeks or months for the vast majority.
There were, and will always be a very small minority who find themselves unable or unwilling to move to independence for a variety of reasons, both good and bad.
If we fully funded these programs, we could supply people in need a safe, clean place to live, enough food for a healthy diet, and re-training to enhance their occupational opportunities.
It’s an absolute fact that in business, you need to spend money to make money. It’s called investment. Putting money where it will multiply over time.
Imagine a country where no one is near starvation, ever. No homeless citizens. No one without access to quality health care. No one who desires higher education would be turned away.
We may never know how many smart, talented people have been lost to our world because they didn’t have the freedom to look up and see outside their boxes.