So, I randomly had a look at LinkedIn today, not something I do often anymore for the simple reason that it represents a life that is no longer familiar to me. As I was looking at LinkedIn, I was actually thinking about closing my profile down when I came across a post that a former colleague had shared. It talked about the how the ‘Paypal Mafia’ had put JD Vance into a position to be considered as Vice President through supporting him his entire career pretty much, and then strong-armed Trump into selecting him. Apparently, the ‘Paypal Mafia’ is strongly influenced by the writings of Curtis Yarvin, known also by his pen name Mencius Moldbug (surely a reference to Harry Potter here?). Yarvin is a far-right ‘monarchist’ who co-founded the Dark Enlightenment movement – an oxymoron if I ever heard one. Essentially, where the people are too stupid to be entrusted with the vote so there should be a world where government is taken over by the private sector and a dictator running the country. With the ordinary people just ‘happily’ scurrying along doing their thing while the rich get richer and the poor get poorer I suppose. Thiel, the co-leader of DOGE, is an advocate as is presumably, Musk. Thiel is also the person who bankrolled JD Vance’s run for Senate, is his old boss, introduced him to Yarvin’s view I’m guessing, and is probably sitting behind him pulling the strings along with a couple of other Senators he has bankrolled. So far so scary.
The next thing I checked were the responses to this. I always like to do this to get a feel for the polarity in arguments. And I wasn’t disappointed. One in particular provided a video from Facebook of someone detailing how DOGE had found that the US Government was spending US$736m on an organisation that called out lawyers and judges who misgendered immigrants. I will stress here that no evidence was provided either by the person making these claims nor the person sharing the Facebook post on LinkedIn. That’s not to say it isn’t true, I simply don’t know and as there is no evidence, I can’t follow a chain. I did try to Google it, but nothing came up. What happened on LinkedIn was the inevitable blow up. A typical ‘I’m right, you’re wrong’ approach to the argument. The author of the original post came across, frankly, as unnecessarily aggressive while the commentor responded in kind and was equally unnecessarily aggressive. Neither proved a point other than they were utterly intolerant of the other’s views, so set were they in their positions.
Now, for me, here is the rub. The fact remains that both posts could be true. There is a reality where both of these issues can exist at the same time. Hitting one of these ‘truths’ with another ‘truth’ doesn’t negate the other nor does it make any point other than ‘I don’t agree with you’. But that doesn’t make either of them untrue which is the point both authors were trying to get to. And failing miserably. What it said to me, though, and what I expressed in a response to this argument, was that this polarity, this inability to grasp that both might actually be right is what is polarising this world. And the end result of that? People like Yarvin almost have their point proven. Because when people are so busy being, frankly, obnoxious to each other, they are entirely missing that politics in the western world is fundamentally changing – and not in a way either side of this equation will likely like. We are allowing the proverbial coach and horses to be driven through us by those who have a vested interest in us not being connected. And it is only in that connection are we going to be able to stop the dystopian ideal spouted by Yarvin from coming true. Because I don’t know about you, but his idea of the public being too stupid to be given the responsibility of selecting their own leaders, where the private sector runs the government – just NO – and where we have a dictator – another NO – is not the world I want to leave for my son and any grandchildren, great-grandchildren etc that I may have. A very hard NO.
I might be in the UK, but we all know that when America sneezes the rest of the world catches a cold. So, this has an effect on me and mine. I also have a soft spot for the Americans, I have American friends and I have always found them to be nice people who may go about things in a misguided way at times, but who generally want the best for the world. They do, though, also have a tendency to want to mould the world into their shape – and if this is the road they are going down, frankly they can keep it.
No, I’m choosing connection. I am choosing love. I am choosing faith in my fellow man that we can come up with a strong and robust fight against this. Because apart from anything else, the thought of the private sector running government fills me with horror. There are some services that should not be delivered for a profit – looking after our vulnerable people is top of my list on that. You cannot make a profit out of services aimed at caring for people and keep taxation low which is one of the things that pleases the majority of people. So, what do you do? You still make a profit, you keep taxation low but the service for the vulnerable is seriously compromised. Isn’t that a hop, skip and a jump to the thinking of Hitler and his ilk who decided to rid themselves of their vulnerable before the war even began? I had the phrase ‘life isn’t linear’ pop into my head this morning, but I’m afraid I think this journey is pretty linear if the likes of Yarvin get his way.
In the argument on LinkedIn, the point was missed that life is not black and white, it is very much the grey in between. In that way, life is not linear. It reminded me of the Hermetic Principles and the point about the waves of good and bad and where peace and harmony is found in the mid-point. The grey area. When I was younger, I was passionate about many things, I still am. But I had no concept of the grey area, my passion for something was focused on the fact that my opinion was right and everyone else’s was wrong who disagreed with me. I see it in my son now. That is the beauty of youth. And seeing the grey area is where we see ourselves as having matured, as having gained some wisdom. Of having a balanced approach to life and society because, no, we are not completely right all the time in our beliefs. I can often be heard saying – everyone is entitled to an opinion, but everyone else is equally entitled to disagree with it or to not have to listen to it. I can get passionate about the politics of my country, I have my views and sometimes I will refuse to see the good that the political view I do not support can do. It’s not a trait I am proud of. I have been known to respond to clickbaiters and professional antagonists on X (before I deleted my account because I was doing so), and get into heated discussions about points made. But, really, what’s the point of that? All it is doing is keeping us disconnected to each other, and I do passionately believe that our only way forward is through connection.
The collective conscious is absorbing all of this, all the disconnection, all the sowing of disharmony seeds, the deliberate divisions being created. Instead of point-scoring by throwing out videos of information that may or may not be true, why are we not asking: who and what gains by us arguing so aggressively? What is going on while we are at each other’s throats? Is the light deliberately being shone elsewhere to mask something else going on? One of the fastest ways to stress and burnout is to try and control the opinions, thoughts and reactions of other people. It’s in Stephen Covey’s seminal work “The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People” – stick to your circle of concern, the things that you can directly have control over which is you and your reaction to the actions of others usually. Don’t try to change what others are saying and doing, try to control your reaction to it so that it has the greatest impact. Because in controlling your reaction, you actually extend your circle of concern. So, instead of petty point-scoring, why not think – what in this is triggering me so much? Why am I so convinced that I am right and they are wrong? Can we both not be right? And in that, what am I most unhappy about? The waste of taxpayers’ money? Hell, yes. The prospect of a dictatorship? Hopefully, another hell, yes.
So, the answer is – let’s find the mid-point together. Prove Yarvin wrong, that we aren’t too stupid. That actually, we are more insightful and intelligent than him because we are aware that all of our actions have an impact on the collective conscious and we want that impact to be positive. So, reach out and be constructive in the response. And in so doing perhaps the other person will have a constructive response too…but that can’t be controlled. In reality, the chances are they will come back with a constructive response and between the two perhaps that mid-point, that grey area can be found. And a small fragment of connection, alignment can be created. Which can grow, and grow and outwit and defeat those who want to push the agenda of the Yarvin’s of this world.
We the people are mighty, we are strong. Don’t ever let anyone else tell you any different no matter how much money they, or their friends, have.
Louisa Simpson 