Emotions cloud judgment.
Is there anyone in the world who would disagree with that statement?
Isn’t it true that there are many such phrases, such statements of truth that everyone in the world can agree with? Logical statements like “the sun will come up tomorrow” or “everyone has their own preference” seem so innocuous and obvious that they almost don’t even need to be said at all—except when someone needs a reminder.
And right now, a lot of Americans need a reminder.
As I’ve been discussing since last week, I believe that we need a vision, a vision for the future, a vision of unity that catapults American culture beyond the bickering, vitriol, and perpetual conflict that’s baked into our corrupt two-party system.
Wouldn’t it be nice if people could get along and agree to disagree long enough to take care of the practical things, like making civil decisions and managing our communities? We don’t have to fight over women’s rights to fill the potholes, right?
Wouldn’t it be something if people could once again work side-by-side with other people—with people who think and believe differently—to achieve common goals?
I realize this may all sound Pollyanna-ish, like it’s an impossibility, like we’re beyond this point of working together, and I don’t disagree… BUT, wouldn’t it be nice?
That’s the thing about a vision. It has to project an ideal, an ideal that in theory is attainable, yet nonetheless seems so distant and remote that it causes people to wonder: is it possible? Is it possible to uproot the entrenched two-party system? Can we put the two party platforms to rest and pave a way toward a fresh political process?
I ask because I do not believe that it will be possible to correct course and restore our republic unless we deal with the very large, very real, very obstinate, obese, and power crazed beasts standing in our way. The great archetypes of the Elephant and the Donkey, what the Republican and Democrat parties have come to represent, are completely incongruent with the way things are, or the way we hope things to be.
This is our greatest obstacle.
These are the withering remnants of an old way of life, old ways of thinking, outdated processes, and vestiges of a political system rooted in and stemming from a bygone era. Things are not as they were, and there is no way of going back to the way it was.
We cannot put the genie back in the bottle. We cannot deny what we now know.
Nor can we ignore the perilous importance of our current circumstance. This is a moment in history that will define what the foreseeable future will look like. We are in the midst of a fourth turning—to draw upon the generational theory of Strauss & Howe—and history has shown this societal crisis was predictable, and now it must run its course. Out of the rubble of existing order, a new social structure will rise.
They understand this.
But do we understand this passing of the old to make room for the new?
By they, I mean the globalists, the “secret cabal” of global elites who conspire through their myriad international organizations and public-private partnerships to forcefully impose their will upon the whole of humanity. They intend to cull and control the herd with unrestricted authority, to “proportion the population” to whatever level they decide is sustainable, and dictate the structure and details of our daily lives.
Their collectivist vision for the future is one of digital bondage, wherein every person must succumb to the will of the state, accepting every state mandate, complying with every state regulation, paying every state tax, reporting every time the state asks, doing whatever the state says to do, saying whatever the state says to say, and thinking whatever the state wants you to think. You are not allowed to believe or behave beyond the carefully managed social expectations imposed by the state, under the threat of penalty, imprisonment, and pain.
This is the vision of centralized control.
They will call it efficient and necessary. They will claim it’s to serve the most vulnerable, to keep people safe, that we have to save the planet, that it’s for the greater good. Global problems require global solutions, or so they say, and using this erroneous justification they will mystify the masses with science, data, and law.
The Science is predetermined.
The Data is covertly created.
The Law becomes sacred in nature.
Who can question the science? Who can deny the data? Who can escape the law?
The answer is We The People.
We must stay curious.
Who paid for this science? Who collected this data? Who wrote this law?
Are these tasks not completed by humans? Are humans not fallible and wrong?
It does not matter if one is labeled an “expert”—experts are humans too. That means that experts make mistakes. Experts confuse facts and opinions. Experts evaluate life through the prism of their own subjective human experience.
Experts are our equals. If one believes in the idea of equality, this statement must necessarily be true. Experts are equally as likely to have a bad day, overlook some critical detail, or be bold in their making mistakes. This is all part of being human.
Same goes for politicians.
This is precisely why any form of top-down centralized control inevitably fails—because the people at the top inevitably fail. The people at the top are still human, though more and more they’ve become infected with transhumanist fantasies of becoming some sort of monstrous, tech-enhanced cyborg. Then they can really be powerful. Then they can really rule by force. Then they can really be like gods.
At least in their own twisted minds.
Back in reality, the world keeps turning, the seasons keep changing, and humanity keeps evolving as time marches on infinitely into the wild mystery of the great unknown. Kingdoms rise and fall. Epochs come and go. Prophecy runs its course.
This is all objectively verifiable, intuitively true, and directly observable fact.
It’s so obvious that it goes without saying, and yet many people need a reminder.
Zoom out.
Any unifying vision must account for such universal facts, just as much as one must account for the reality, limitations, and opportunities of current circumstance. Nature, which is the foundation and source of Natural Law, is ruthlessly indifferent to the human plight. Nature shines upon the criminals, the clergy, and the children just the same. The storm does not care what it destroys. Luck and chance will affect us all.
By extension, any political order that is predicated on Natural Law must be similarly indifferent to the whims of human emotion. This is critical, because if political order is not based on Natural Law—if it is based on malleable emotions, wishful thinking, false assumptions, or concepts that are incongruent with reality—then society is destined to collapse. Perhaps societies are always destined to collapse, if only because human nature tends to drift further away Nature’s nature, and chaos inevitably ensues.
As a result, unnatural behavior leads to painful and unnecessary outcomes.
Unnatural behavior is thus undesirable, or at least it should be.
But, in order to bring this all back down to a practical level, we need not pontificate about the nuance of unnatural human behavior. Evil is just as natural and inherent as goodness, and that means we must address these evils when casting a broader vision.
It is evil that is ruling the day and driving this unfolding crisis. It is evil that fuels the fourth turning, as well as the righteous desire to resist and battle to restore natural balance.
What am I getting at here?
Friends, I realize this may all seem like extemporaneous philosophical fluff—but it’s important extemporaneous philosophical fluff. I am erecting the pillars of logic upon which I hope to construct a vision that appeals to the innate intelligence embedded within human nature. I am not naive enough to believe everyone will agree, or that everyone will even desire to understand. I am thinking this through for myself, and inviting your mind to join me on the journey.
We do need a vision. It must reconcile with Natural Reality.
Our vision for the future must bridge the divide between different beliefs. It must appeal equally to those who are inclined to disagree. It must provide a path forward toward working together on common goals, despite our often conflicting objectives.
Life is not fair. There are winners, and losers, and we don’t all get to be right. Some level of conflict is inevitable. There will always be bad people in the world. There will always be corrupt politicians and other criminal elements. Humanity is messy like that—and yet we are incredible creatures. There are no limits to what we can accomplish, except those imposed through our individual and collective ignorance.
It is for these reasons that I believe any vision for a Great American Reset must begin with a friendly reminder of the obvious, a gentle recalibration of thought and reconciliation of personal perspective with the objective reality that engulfs us.
I understand that most people will never take this mental journey, but I believe the path forward will be forged by those who do. Peer into the future. What do you see?
Look beyond the destruction.
Do you see the people coming together? Do you see the tears streaming down dust covered cheeks? Do you see the embrace between enemies? Was it really worth all of the pain? Did we really have to take it that far? Perhaps.
Regardless, it couldn’t have been any other way.
Sometimes we have to suffer to see the light.
(…to be continued.)
PS: Don’t forget, now it’s easy to catch up on previous episodes by listening to The Torch Report on iHeart Radio, Spotify, Google Podcasts, or Apple iTunes —enjoy!
TR 386 - Envisioning a Great American Reset