[Paleopsych] useless people

[Michael Christopher]

On the subject of "useless people", It's been
intersting (and a little scary) to watch almost
fascist attitudes creep into mainstream culture. The
idea of "useless people" is taken seriously by a lot
of people now, it's as if we've lost our humanity and
are working on becoming an efficient machine that
casts off everyone who doesn't fit. TV shows are often
based on the theme of 'throwing someone off the
island', usually a person whose loss increases the
fitness of the remaining members. Often this means
casting off the more qualified people so that others
can stay safely included. I see this as a widespread
pattern, turning our culture into a funnel that sucks
people downward, even those who are well qualified in
work terms but unable to play the social games that
keep a person included in a group. This is certainly
true of high schools, and from friends who have been
involved in corporate culture, it's true there too.
Where are our human values going? It seems to me we've
lost any sense of what human beings are FOR, beyond
building and maintaining an efficient economic
machine. Meaning is reduced to productivity. Are
people machines that are judged solely by their
ability to "carry their weight", or are they
inherently meaningful? Do people have a need for
employment alone, or for employment that contributes
meaning to their lives, makes them feel they're doing
something of value beyond serving a machine that
drives the species off a cliff? And can these
questions be related to Howard's notion of capitalism
with soul?

Michael


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