People are not meant to be alone.
I have been watching the framing of violence in the United States since the most recent mass shooting occurred… noting how the “solutionism” of gun regulation places agency and blame on machines that are external to us as a people.
Then this morning I read this fantastic article about the opioid crisis — and how the United States has become such a psychologically miserable place to live that millions of people are engaging in various forms of escapism to avoid the pain of living here.
“Anything to avoid the pain of reality” is a testament to the power of depression in this hyper-materialistic, fast-paced, inhuman world.
All of my work on cultural evolution shows me that what it means to be human is to be in healthy relationships with other people. To be in community. To thrive by living, loving, learning, and doing together.
So in our extremely individualistic and materialistic society, where the pursuit of money and widgets surpasses all else. And most of us go about our daily lives with faces sucked into panel displays instead of looking out at nature or into the eyes of another. It surprises me not at all that a chemical mind-altering substance to numb the pain would achieve epidemic status.
Violence does not stem from access to machines. It stems from absence of meaningful human contact.
Sit with this. Ponder it in seriousness. Then get up from your machine. Go connect with another human being. You will thank me for it later.
Onward, fellow humans.
— Joe Brewer
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