As yet another day unfolds in the cyber-WONDERLAND of "Strange ATTRACTORS" and "psychic ATTACKERS" I have been starting to get the sense of the benefits (and pitfalls) which arise from the unique freedoms, and absence of centralized censorship, afforded by the blockchain technology, and how these play out right here on Steemit. We are, after all, moving HEADLONG into a new phase of civilization, where the "rules of engagement" of MOST human affairs are being TORN ASUNDER, leaving most of us SCRAMBLING to develop some sort of a new "policies and procedures manual" to carry us through to the other side (relatively) intact. Many of us are questioning whether the massive social disruption being brought on by the onslaught of technological innovation will lead us closer towards Thomas Hobbe's "nasty, brutish, and short" dystopian world, where we all engage in a perpetual ORGY of VIOLENCE and INTRIGUE in the struggle for physical, mental, and spiritual survival. Others struggle to maintain FAITH that the current evolutionary changes in the fabric of our reality will lead us to a place where we ultimately have MORE freedom than ever before. I am personally on the fence in this debate, PARTIALLY because I feel that "freedom" is a double-edged sword.
"Strange Attractors" And "Psychic Attackers"
For the past two months I have been observing the various kinds of social interactions going on in the Steemiverse. Like many people, I have been pleasantly surprised to see the higher-than-average level of general support and morale-boosting shared among the serious people participating here. Since, in my opinion, Steemit ultimately poses a HEALTHY, yet formidable, challenge for us - within the realm of creative and personal growth - I believe that this type of support amongst Steemians is VITAL to the progress of the platform as a whole, and the individuals participating in it. There are LOTS of interesting, genuine, decent people here, channeling their hearts and minds into creating something POSITIVE and STABLE in a world which often feels like it's TEEMING with NEGATIVITY and CHAOS.
At the same time, I have been starting to notice some significant CRACKS in the SURFACE layer of CORDIALITY. Many of us "fall in love" when we first encounter Steemit. She is something NOVEL and INTRIGUING. She gives us that "numb and tingling" feeling all over. She STIMULATES our GLANDS, boosting our dopamine levels upwards into the realm of METH-HEADS at 3 AM. We encounter INTERESTING people doing INTERESTING things with their INTERESTS, and in general, they ALL seem to be calling out to us as if to say "Let's all JOIN HANDS and go forth into the PROMISED LAND!" What AMPLIFIES our initial LUST for Steemit is the fact that the INHERENT characteristics of the blockchain provide ADDITIONAL impetus for this "honeymoon" stage. Since Steemit incentivizes people for being AUTHENTIC, and for sharing their most interesting - and often MOST INTIMATE - ideas and feelings, in a manner which is most easily received by others, people are more willing to loosen their boundaries. THIS is only COMPOUNDED by the decentralized nature of Steemit's blockchain-based protocol, which minimizes censorship to levels which most people are simply NOT USED to.
Put Up Or Shut Up
Humanity has been living under SO MANY forms of censorship, for so many hundreds - if not THOUSANDS - of years (at least, in current "accepted" RECORDED history), that most people DON'T EVEN KNOW what it's like to NOT exist under such mental and social control. We're experiencing a sort of "TECHNOLOGICAL culture shock" where the CONSTRAINTS of censorship are being progressively lifted, and like BATTERED SPOUSES we don't know anything BUT our ABUSE, and our ABUSERS. We have to LEARN how to live in a state of NOT BEING ABUSED. We have to LEARN to live in a NEW WORLD where we are NO LONGER being ABUSED by the CONFINING FORCE of censorship, and that makes us feel UNSAFE. With censorship comes SAFETY, which is one of main "positive" reasons why censorship EXISTS in the first place. Censorship is, in some ways, considered a form of PROTECTION. It is a TOOL by which people are protected from the MORE REALISTIC aspects of existence. It CLOAKS us in a CACOON of safety. Yet, at the same time, it paradoxically LIMITS our awareness and potential for self-growth.
The world EXISTS, and will CONTINUE to exist, on IT'S OWN terms. We're not going to make HUGE changes to this BIG, BAD universe which has existed LONG BEFORE us, and will CONTINUE to exist LONG AFTER we have dissolved back into star-dust. BAD THINGS are going to happen to us. GOOD THINGS are going to happen to us. OTHER PEOPLE are going to do GOOD THINGS to us, and OTHER PEOPLE are going to do BAD THINGS to us. WE OURSELVES are going to do GOOD and BAD things to other people, AND to ourselves. It's just the way things are. Surely, we can take various measures which can help MITIGATE our positive and negative experiences in this world, but in the end we've all got a ONE-WAY ticket on the "EXPRESS TRAIN to the GRAVE", and so we might as well ENJOY the scenery a bit.
You talkin' to me?
As I have started coming down from the ELATED state of my "Steemit honeymoon" I have begun examining more closely some of the "conflict" situations which I have come across; BOTH OTHER people's conflict situations, and those between myself and others. Sure, there are the standard annoyances such as : people spamming, people scamming, people making posts full of GROSS spelling and/or grammar errors, etc. This is to be expected, and will not stop anytime soon. It's human nature. Just looks at the "real world" and then you can EXTRAPOLATE these behaviors into the virtual realm. What has intrigued me MORE though are those conflict situations in which people's ideas and values come to a loggerheads. There was one guy who recently had his account hacked, and then after resolving the hack was able to establish communication with his hacker, at which point they entered into a philosophical debate about the reason for the hacking, and other ethical issues. I actually thought this was quite amusing, and even proposed the idea of pitching this "soap opera"type concept to the "Reality TV" crowd in Hollywood. Yet there IS something there. I mean, perhaps hackers sometimes DO have a justified ethical motive behind their actions (regardless of whether that motive is correct or not). I mean, just look at the whole "anonymous" movement. It's like "virtual good cops" and "virtual bad cops". Then there was another instance where a guy recently sent me a tiny SBD payment with his post link in the "memo" line, which DIDN'T upset me until I read the post to find that it was full of highly biased (and, in my opinion, unreasonable) political content. I wouldn't have had a problem if he had sent a link to something more neutrally interesting (like a poem or photo), but NOT ONLY was he spamming me, but he was also sharing POLARIZING content, so I unfollowed him. I thought about messaging him to let me know WHY I unfollowed, but since I am in the process of conducting my anthropological-style effort to simply STUDY this conflict behavior, I decided not to. But I DID take some time to consider WHY this annoyed ME to the point of unfollowing him, even though this person puts out some good content overall. There was then an incident where an ambitious new follower responded very positively to one of my posts, and then - after asking for some more personal information which I prefer to keep private on Steemit - we connected off of Steemit, but had a "miscommunication" of sorts (nothing big - and easily resolvable - but just enough for me to take some time to SERIOUSLY consider how fast, in what ways, and how much, I want to engage with people who I first encounter on the platform). If nothing else, it may AT LEAST be prudent to TAKE SOME TIME to observe people before initiating more direct contact with them. My goal here is CERTAINLY NOT to make enemies. I joined Steemit with the intention of remaining as anonymous as possible, partly because I am an extremely private person, partly for "branding" purposes, and partly because a higher level of anonymity allows me more freedom in my writing. However, what I am realizing is that it is a bit DIFFICULT to maintain a super-high level of anonymity here, since partly as a result of the nature of the platform, we are constantly communicating with people through our content and comments. So I have now encountered a conundrum - an INNER "conflict point" - where I must consider HOW, and to WHAT DEGREE, I want to interact with people on Steemit.
This leads me back to my examination of how the unique attributes of the merger of blockchain and social media technologies play out here on Steemit. First of all, Steemit is an "open" network, like Twitter, in that your profile (and basically all other information - in fact, EVEN MORE information) is available openly to the mass global public. This means that you are highly visible to begin with, and you NEVER KNOW who (or WHAT) is going to manifest in the comments section of your posts, and/or your "followers" list. Then, when you start SIGNIFICANTLY minimizing the level of censorship of social media it FORCES people to deal with a LARGER RANGE of interpersonal interactions, which of course only INCREASES the probability of some of those interactions being "difficult".
Just Let It All Hang Out
But what does "difficult" REALLY mean in this sense? You see, for AT LEAST the past few hundred years, the human race has been living in a state of OVER-PROTECTION. Of course, the level of this over-protection DIFFERS between different cultures, depending on their overall level of "development", as well as several other factors, including : political, economic, religious, etc. For instance, in most of the "developing" world daily newspapers are FULL of graphic photographs of GNARLY traffic accidents, and other more realistic images of daily existence. In the "developed" world, on the other hand, the news is put through a filter where all of the REALITY is stripped out of it. The question REALLY is : Which one is better? That is: Is it actually PSYCHOLOGICALLY more healthy for the mass population to be fed images of BLOODY car wrecks, and/or television commercials with women showing off their BIG BOOBS to advertise the latest bra fashions? Or is it more healthy to live under a HIGHLY SANITIZED (and also MANIPULATED) version of reality, where no one BLEEDS, or DIES, or LUSTS? I think we are reaching a BREAKING POINT in civilization, where the UNNATURAL force of censorship is actually FUELING the process of de-humanization which has now grown into a CANCER in the modern world, and it is separating humanity from its roots to the point where our COLLECTIVE SUBCONSCIOUS "being" is beginning to force its way out in various forms, such as : violence, protest, and the seeking and development of alternative technologies which evade censorship - such as Steemit and other blockchain applications. In addition, I believe that if we were to CONTINUE on the trajectory of DEHUMANIZING CENSORSHIP the end result could be EXTREMELY destructive for the human race.
The ULTIMATE POINT I am trying to hone in on here is that we (as humans) are MATURING. We are entering into a new stage of development of our species; one where we can NO LONGER be content with the "training wheels" of censorship, as the constriction of our consciousness leads ONLY to an unhealthy suppression of the BASIC IMPULSES which make us human. I am NOT saying that we all need to be ALLOWED to "run wild" in order to SATIATE our CARNAL DESIRES at the expense of others. What I AM saying is the UNHEALTHY state of censorship which we have been living under for TOO LONG has essentially LIMITED our ability and potential to evolve. We need to SEE the pain of others. We need to HEAR the pain of others. We need to FEEL the pain of others. We need to EXPERIENCE the reality of the human (and non-human) condition, and THROUGH THAT we can then BEGIN to develop the level of maturity and sensitivity which has been ROBBED from us by the COLD OBJECTIVITY and ARTIFICIALITY of the modern era. You want to know POVERTY? Go take a walk in the GHETTO. You want to know war? Go have lunch in a WAR ZONE. Let's start experiencing the REAL "real world", and stop letting our consciousness be FILTERED by parties and forces which DO NOT - and possibly CAN NOT - have our best interests at heart.
To Be, Or Not To Be (On Steemit)? That Is The Question
Why are we really here, folks? I mean why are we REALLY here... on Steemit? Is it for the MONEY? Maybe, for some. Is it for the POPULARITY? Maybe, for some. Are we here to simply "STRUT OUR STUFF"; to INDULGE our already INSATIABLE egos with more superficial "psychic junk food"? Maybe, for some. But perhaps there is a HIGHER calling for some of us here - BOTH ON and OFF of Steemit. Perhaps we are here to achieve, and build, something greater - to leave our own MONUMENTAL TIME-STAMPS in the perennial fabric of space-time.
It took me longer than usual to finally get these words out of my mind and onto the screen. I had to take a few extra days to give myself the time to properly meditate on the topic presented here, and at first I really COULDN'T EVEN FIGURE OUT what that topic ACTUALLY WAS. Within that time period SEVERAL new, significant revelations have started surfacing in the media which have HELPED reinforce the URGENCY of the point I am trying to make - BOTH related to massive disclosures of criminal behavior in prominent international institutions. However, I will likely STILL need a few more posts to really SUSS out what I am trying to express here, but I THINK I have fine-tuned it down ENOUGH at this stage to lay the foundation to build upon further into the future. I think the proper level of CLOSURE came when asked myself the simple question : Why do I write?
Why Even Bother?
Why do I write, you ask? I WRITE because it makes me feel LESS "not-RIGHT". I write to help make some SENSE of this world. I write because I KNOW I'm not PERFECT, but I STRIVE to be LESS "not perfect". I write to leave SOME SORT of mark in the world; to have SOME sort of SENSE of CONTROL in this modern world which is CONSUMED by ABSURDITY and CONFUSION. In this age of materialism it is EASY to feel insignificant. It is easy for one's SPIRIT to drown in the "sea of despair". I write because it's one of the FEW things that make me feel ALIVE. Yeah, I've been "down and out". I've been MORE "down and out" than many can imagine. But AT LEAST I've LIVED! How many others out there are ROTTING in offices of jobs they HATE, or are glued to their televisions, being PERPETUALLY BITCH-IFIED by "the puppetmasters" who pull the strings of the MASSES? How many have never had the PLEASURE of waking up BRUISED, BEATEN and PARTIALLY-naked, in a parking lot dumpster on the WRONG side of town, BARELY-conscious after a weeklong bender of HARD LIQUOR and/or crack-cocaine?
The point is that we CAN'T REALLY LIVE until we REMOVE the shackles which prevent us from experiencing BOTH the positive AND the "negative" aspects of the world. If the BUBBLE of censorship is imposed ON US (from outside), or from WITHIN US (SELF-censorship), we fall short of REALLY LIVING. We end up living in a superficial world, and our level of CONSCIOUSNESS is limited as a consequence. So go out there and LIVE! Start seeking out REAL experience. Stop being a BITCH of the materialistic, lower-vibrational forces which permeate the modern world.
Today's Dreaded Homework Task
For the next week, direct your meditative focus to those occasions where someone's Steemit posts or comments "rub you the wrong way", or where YOUR posts or comments rub OTHERS the wrong way. WITHOUT immediately reacting, put the situation in your mind's focal point and begin to ask yourself : Why does this bother me? Why am I REALLY reacting negatively to what this person is saying? Could it be that this person's words have "struck a chord" of an unresolved conflict within myself? Maybe, or maybe not. But if it has, then maybe it would be worth the time and effort to think about this internal conflict to see if what this person is saying MAY provide some productive input which can help me make better sense of this inner conflict. For instance, when the guy I mentioned earlier in the post made contact with the person who criminally hacked his account, did the hacker INDEED have SOME KIND of a justified point in his accusations? Perhaps not, but isn't it AT LEAST worth considering? I mean, after all, the victim HAD made the effort to REACH OUT to his assailant and request some sort of explanation for the attack. The point here is that the "flip-side" to meeting all those "great, friendly, helpful, supportive" people out there on Steemit is that we also open ourselves up to those interactions which are NOT quite so "pleasant". But COULD it be that those "negative" interactions are ALSO opportunities to learn and grow? This is what I am suggesting with this homework task. See if you can find SOME kind of opportunity for GROWTH within these conflictual experiences on Steemit, just like when martial artists spar in order to help each other reveal their weak spots in order to develop their skills and grow stronger. Kept within SAFE and REASONABLE doses, we CAN use these conflict points to reveal areas of improvement within ourselves. I am ALMOST SURE you will this to be true. Give it a try, just as I have done in the process of writing this post. It can't hurt. You've got everything to gain and nothing to lose.
As usual, feel free to share your thoughts, ideas, challenges, insults, etc., and as you continue moving forward, just remember to take life (both ON and OFF Steemit)...
"One nervous breakdown at a time".
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