Socialization polarizes good and evil, then reverses that polarity because faced with the possibility of embarrassment and social shaming, feelings and emotions take priority over what is right. In a herd, this becomes a circle of vicious idiocy because the individuals of that herd do not wish to be led, yet they have no idea of a way forward except to agree with whomever makes them feel the most optimistic, or most comfortable. Comforting illusion always beats harsh reality. Until that reality catches up and can no longer be ignored.

If truth is heard, it is quickly put to bed and forgotten. Only power is respected, and only good vibes are cheered. But when it comes to actually doing anything that leads to correcting what is wrong, or at least improving what is bad, don’t look to the person to your left because he is only there to consume without thinking, and to take as much as possible while giving back as little as possible. Do not take this to mean that trust does not exist, but that the average individual in a group can’t see the forest for the trees, so even if he avoids the obviously selfish, the person he looks to for support has about as much of a clue as he does. Then no one is surprised when everyone goes home feeling like they could have achieved something but instead they socialized themselves to a point where they were unsure what their own beliefs were.

At the highest level of stupidity, what’s trending is all that matters, and crowds lead themselves into an oblivious stupor, guided by an oligarchy under the guise of democracy, or a democracy that becomes something worse at the dawn of every generation. If you think democracy is the answer to the world’s problems, you’ve been duped by fear of the far right and the far left, even if they are all at fault, left, right and centre. None of this means anything if you don’t care about money, but of course you care because if you do not have it, before long you will seek it out. Else you are a wandering ascetic but even he needs alms to keep going.

If you only care a little, you will note those who care a lot are probably laughable. Their trappings are proudly on display, and the smallest thing, like a flashy car or the fact their child goes to the “best” school, gives their small minds reason for inner cheer, because in fact, it improves their image. They work for the recognition of others, but when that fails to suffice, they work for the envy of others. Your envy, so you can try to emulate them.

But except for money, how are you any different? You need social affirmation for what you do. You beam when others laud your achievements. You cannot do what is right without receiving recognition. Or can you? They’ve given up on what is important, now all they have left is the routine that got them into wealth and power, and even if it happens slowly, they rot from the inside. Then they go back to the daily grind, whether that means actual work, or manipulating others. But the manipulators cannot see they are manipulated, too. Or they see it and accept it begrudgingly like sodomites in the bowels of hell: “oh well, it’s only sodomy, everyone’s doing it.”

So they go on their merry way, and through the groupthink that plays by the rules with no consideration for what is right, they build their ladder of envy. It seems fine: carrot (acclaim) keeps you going, stick (rejection) prevents you from falling, and the faster you climb, the quicker you reach your destination. But it’s a trick ladder. There is no carrot, none worth having. When you reach the top, the trick is revealed, your world is turned upside down, and it is actually the bottom. And there they all rot together.