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IN DANGEROUS DECLINE How Close Are We, Really, to Societal Collapse? ... Our persistent, delusional belief systems are leading to social and ecological catastrophe 
Photo by Chris Gallagher on Unsplash Original article: https://aninjusticemag.com/how-close-are-we-really-to-societal-collapse-5d3a13d95d04 Peter Burgess COMMENTARY Peter Burgess | ||
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How Close Are We, Really, to Societal Collapse?
Our persistent, delusional belief systems are leading to social and ecological catastrophe Richard Lowenthal September 26th 2022 Back in the 70s, left-leaning friends of mine and I used to discuss and dissect all the weird aberrations of U.S. politics and our capitalist system. We firmly believed that our entire society was SO out of balance, and so unjust, that it couldn’t possibly last much longer. Instead of being “too big to fail” (like the big mega-banks in the 2008–09 financial crisis), we thought our system was doomed to fail, and soon. It was on its way out, for sure — we just knew it. Of course, we were wrong — at the time. We totally underestimated the combined power of social habit, capitalist propaganda, and socially-approved greed, which together keep on propagating and shoring up our flailing society — mainly to protect the massive wealth of those at the very top of our economic pyramid scheme, and to further enable their ongoing, furious wealth-snatching. Something very similar happened with the New Age movement in the late 80s and 90s. “New Agers” were convinced that a global shift into a higher consciousness was happening and that a new age of peace and harmony was fast unfolding — literally the dawning of a wondrous new “Age of Aquarius”. Of course, that didn’t happen either — at least, not in the comforting ways people imagined and hoped for. But let’s zoom way, way out for a much larger, longer-term perspective. Were my friends and I really totally wrong? Is our socioeconomic system actually quite resilient and “built to last”? Were the “New Agers” also dead wrong? Or alternatively… were our imagined time frames just way off? Perhaps our analyses and “predictions” were actually correct in the evolutionary long view — but were wildly incorrect in our naive assessments of just how long human social and cultural transformation would actually take. Maybe the vital transformations we envisioned would take… not years, or even decades, but possibly centuries. Ideas (even truly awful ones) really DO rule the world When I was young my father, a conservative political science professor, repeatedly told me that “Ideas rule the world” (the human world, that is). That brief, simple statement seems quite simplistic as well, but over time I’ve come to appreciate its depth and importance — because it’s really a vital truth. I’ve come to see that human beings in general don’t seem to experience our collective reality — either social (man-made) or environmental (natural) — directly. Instead, peoples’ life experiences seem to be formed by and filtered through their ideas and concepts about our reality. To me, this leads directly to a central and crucial truth about humanity and human evolution: Our ideas rule our perceptions, and our beliefs and perceptions rule our social worlds and underlie all of our social, political, and economic systems. In any long-term conflict between human greed and activities and the larger world of nature, in the end… nature always wins. Please bear with me here as I briefly examine the deep implications of this central truth. This means that our dominant ideas and belief systems are the critical components of society and of social change and transformation as well. And if there is such a thing as an observable “reality” — and I think there is — then our ideas or belief systems can be assessed or evaluated according to how accurately they reflect or “explain” our reality. Modern science and “empirical” philosophy are both based on this concept — empiricism — and I’d argue that this basic, foundational concept should apply to all our knowledge and understanding. Now, if we apply these ideas to modern society, capitalism, and today’s consumer-oriented economy and lifestyles, and empirically assess the degree to which they accurately reflect our overall reality, I think we’d have to say: Not well at all. For instance, our long-held beliefs about our “superiority” to and separateness from nature, and the resulting strong tendency to abuse and misuse the natural world around us, have turned out to be incredibly dangerous and damaging. Since the 1970s we’ve belatedly tried to rectify or reverse some of the damage done by these erroneous beliefs, through forward-thinking programs like the environmental movement, the EPA, and efforts to reduce our carbon emissions and slow climate change… but sadly, it all seems to be “too little, too late”. Think about it: Our modern industrial and technological societies have only existed for the past couple of centuries — and mainly just the most recent century, since the early 1900s — yet in that brief time span, our societies have “conquered” the planet and greatly damaged the planetary ecosphere upon which all life depends. This is c-r-a-z-y. And utterly unsustainable. So my conclusion about the underlying ideas and beliefs that create and sustain our modern societies is this: They’re not accurate, they’re not realistic, they’re destructive, and they simply don’t work from either a social OR ecological point of view. We desperately need a major paradigm shift, an expanded vision and understanding of life and “reality” — and in this, my friends and I and the “New Agers” were all correct. We were right. Yet these destructive ideas and belief systems persist and persist. Clearly, they DO work for some of us — or they wouldn’t still exist and be so strongly promoted. And I’d say that the small portion of humanity that these ideas do work for is the group of uber-wealthy, parasitic human beings at the very top of the global wealth pyramid. What’s happening around the world right now is that our dysfunctional social and economic systems, based on erroneous, antisocial, and outdated socioeconomic concepts, are colliding head-on with the actual social and natural realities that surround and enfold us. These ruthless and parasitic people use their vast funds to manipulate and control the social narrative — primarily promoting their own self-serving ideas — that they and others utilize to prop up our current socioeconomic systems. Moronic ideas like the horrid “trickle-down” economic theory that shunts the wealth that workers produce into the hands of a tiny, greedy elite… who then will supposedly and “generously” toss the rest of us some nice financial crumbs! Even further, I’d say that this amoral, ruthless robber-elite encourages the (anti)social ideal of constant competition — the belief that there isn’t enough wealth or “stuff” to go around, so we all must viciously compete against each other to get ahead or perhaps even survive. They want us to believe it’s “every man (sic) for himself (sic)” in life, and that cooperation and practical, joint efforts with others are dangerous and lead to that horrible bugaboo (gasp!) Socialism. Of course, all of these ideas and belief systems support the current system as is, and greatly benefit the uber-wealthy elites who work tirelessly to push these antisocial ideas and ensure their acceptance and overwhelming influence. It’s yet another super-successful version of “divide and conquer”. Yes, indeed — Ideas rule the (human) world. I’d also say that unless and until the mass of humanity rises up, claims and utilizes its inherent power, and works together to create a much fairer, more egalitarian economic and social system (for example, democratic socialism)… the same old dysfunctional, greed-driven systems will continue to dominate our social worlds, and undermine or destroy the natural world that sustains us and all life. Societal collapse is already well underway At this point, finally, I can address the question posed in the title of this article: How close are we, really, to societal collapse? Since the dominant “powers that be” have little or NO interest in changing anything (because the current systems work quite well for them), what’s happening around the world right now is that our dysfunctional social and economic systems, based on erroneous, antisocial, and outdated socioeconomic concepts, are colliding head-on with the actual social and natural realities that surround and enfold us. Societal collapse takes place gradually, in an escalating series of small, painful changes, losses, and disruptions. It’s not a single event or several events, it’s an intensifying, ongoing process. Our current highly dysfunctional systems, including our sustained attack (and that IS what it amounts to!) on our natural world, as well as the ridiculous, unconscionable levels of wealth inequality all around the world, are now colliding — BAM! — with the nasty, mushrooming effects these wildly unfair and destructive systems are producing in our societies and in the larger world of nature. And in case it isn’t already obvious, I’ll just point out: In any long-term conflict between human greed and activities and the larger world of nature, in the end… nature always wins. Sure, our ostentatious, crazed consumer society looked quite successful, for a time… but our short-term “success” is now eroding — fast — and being exposed as the superficial, destructive sham that it is. Meanwhile, the natural world itself is “going crazy” due to our massive, continual interference, and is getting ever more imbalanced and more actively hostile to human endeavors. Then we’ve got angry, disappointed masses of Westerners — Americans, Brits, Italians, Swedes, Hungarians, etc. — who are fed up with the lies and excesses and excuses of their current system(s), and are increasingly turning to the latest, more comforting lies and propaganda spouted by rising demagogues and fascists around the globe. Same, continuing problems; new deceptive illusions and lies. “Meet the new boss… Same as the old boss”, as The Who put it in their famed rock anthem “Won’t Get Fooled Again”. All over the world, social and economic pressures are mounting, and the gaping cracks and holes in our current systems are widening, expanding, and becoming ever more obvious and dangerous. And simultaneously, the multiple dangers posed by climate change — extreme drought and floods, more violent storms, disruption of climatic and growing patterns, rising sea levels, and major disruptive impacts on our economies — are also expanding and becoming more frequent and intense. So, again: How close are we, really, to societal collapse? I’m afraid that the realistic, fact-based answer, at this point, is: We’re very close, and descending ever further into “collapse mode” as time goes on. Fact: Even if we turned our carbon-burning economies completely around tomorrow, and suddenly switched to totally “green” energy sources, the excess CO2 (and other greenhouse gases) we’ve already released into our atmosphere would ensure that climate change/global warming continues to escalate for at least another 1–2 decades (minimum). And by then, the collapse of our natural ecosystems and our social and economic systems will be much further along, and much more catastrophic. I agree with Umair Haque and other so-called “alarmists” that we are now entering a time of worldwide societal collapse and restructuring. It’s much needed, it’s inevitable now — and we damn well should be alarmed, since it’s happening as we speak. The thing is, though, that we’re not talking about a discrete event or a sudden “Oh shit!” moment of horror — or even several such events or moments (though these are likely to occur also!). Rather, societal collapse takes place gradually, in an escalating series of small, painful changes, losses, and disruptions. It’s not an event or several events, it’s an intensifying, ongoing process — a gradually worsening, accelerating series of downward spirals. In truth, we’re already in its early stages — and how we respond to intensifying collapse will determine how, or even whether, humanity survives and finds new, better ways to thrive on planet Earth: Our one and only beautiful, irreplaceable Home.
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