Socially necessary value of oneself

An interesting observation by a fellow rationale was reported to me, about me having a broad network with wide range of people in it (not on Facebook!), but the real people network. Well, even if I was quite aware of this, another aspect of the reporting was about the recognition/id'ing I end up having in this diverse diaspora. As in, the way I value the people in my network, they too I presume value me for some worth in me.

After encountering this idea, I started wondering what is it that makes someone in my network to give heed to my words, observe my actions, and eventually at least pretend that I bear some value to them.

Using a derived idea, I call this "The Socially necessary value of oneself".

Every sect of this network has a commonality between their interests and mine. As long as I am able to cater to the interests of this particular sect, and if I also happen to maintain a gradient, or at least camouflage obscurity as a gradient, the interactions happen in a mutually respectful and responsive manner. The efforts I invest in catering to each of these sects is what I call as the "socially necessary value". This is not me trying to cater to someone else consciously, although that ends up being a ramification. It is more of an exercise of expanding the self.

Now, it might not be a generalization, but based on my interactions for quite a substantial period of time, what I have come to realize is that a gradient helps in getting people to give heed to you. And the more diverse one's realms of gradients are, broader will the diaspora grow into.

The incessant efforts I put in, to keep pace with these other sects conversely are building up my skills and that's not something I might want to complain about.

Information gradient

Asymmetric Polarization has been a certain trait of society, as far as all the documented history of human race have revealed. This conscious polarization of the society into one small advantageous section, and a large suppressed section has been true since the times of patriarchal settlements to the current civilized democracies.

Creating a gradient in the society using various manipulable parameters, with an ultimate motive of facilitating oppression has been the unwritten rule throughout. The parameters, which have been manipulated at various epochs of History have been different: Class, Caste, Gender, Land, industries, and today we are at a point where Information is this gradient causing agent.

Controlled knowledge as misinformation, and suppressed information in the form of secrets have become the weapons of 'mass' destruction in today's Information society. While there is information mining on certain type of information using all means possible; there is also an astronomical way of suppressing another kind of information.

Stuck in the middle of this Information Revolution, most of us are the ignorant technologists paradoxically driving the motors of this oppression regime. Like I usually end up saying,
The problem often is not arriving at the solution, but in many cases realizing the existence of the problem itself!

Even in this case, the lack of cognizance amongst us about the perils of the information gradient, that we are very much a part of, is of more concern than even the contemplation on the solution to this threat.

As instances of whistleblowing, RTI's and WikiLeaks in general have shown the ever increasing risks involved with the just attempts of declassifying high level classified information should put us at alert, and we must begin to analyze the inertness of ourselves and the hyperactivity of the suppressors who would in turn manipulate and try disabling us!

We help build the gradient which is favourable to them, while ironically is perilous to ourselves.

Confessions of an Economic Hitman

Reading this autobiographical, tell-all book by John Perkins seemed surreal.
I am not someone who is very naive about manipulations; I would at least be able to discern between genuine attempts of foreign support, with those of attempts towards hegemonic domination, better than a lot many of us who are blinded and fooled by the corporate media.

But, this detailed reporting from an insider sends shivers down my spine.

A "superpower", pushing beyond the realms of being anything but ethical in order to dominate countries under its vindicative goverment, run by selfish, greed mongers in the background is hard to believe. The USA with its ancient Manifest Destiny and other crap, now has accomplished an indomitable position, where it has the say about anything and everything about every country.

While even countries like India (ironically the largest democracy in the world) is far from being soveriegn, as revealed in the recent WikiLeaks cables, where a cabinet reshuffle in Indian Ministers portfolio was instigated by the lobbyisits of US. When such is the case with the largest democracy, other countries in the middle east, African continent and Latin America, except for a 'few nations' are all entangled in this web unleashed by the aspirations of one country in its distopian dreams of a global empire with a "free" world market, based on exploitation of the majority for the benefits of a small minority, increasing the disparity ruthlessly at a global scale, including amongst its own people.

Instiutions such as the IMF, World Bank and even the UN have evolved to become primary tools used by this superpower and its allies to arm twist countries retaliating against the submissive nature of their hegemony.

This book gives a scintillating account of all the dirty tricks, evil ploys and inhumane nature of functioning of the system as it is today.

Defying the system when it is this hostile is the most natural response anyone who recognizes this hostility would end up doing. But, the efficacy of this system has been its subtle and orchestrated perpetration which keeps all of this hostility hidden from us.

That system is our enemy. But when you're inside, you look around, what do you see? Businessmen, teachers, lawyers, carpenters. The very minds of the people we are trying to save. But until we do, these people are still a part of that system, and that makes them our enemy. You have to understand, most of these people are not ready to be unplugged. And many of them are so inured, so hopelessly dependent on the system, that they will fight to protect it.
Something on the lines of what Morpheus says to Neo in The Matrix, is the current state of the world.

Nonetheless, this ain't no movie - People are dying, countries are getting impoverished and future is getting bleaker. We are all part of this megaplan of hegemony and exploitation,both by getting exploited and exploiting at various levels.

Defy and change!
We need to change it to a different world: A world as we dream of it, as John perkins puts it in the book.
Now what is the dream of the world we wish to live in is upto each individual to choose upon.

Secluded in the cities

Over a casual chat, a friend discussed an observation to me, which was rather very interesting, and worth pondering further, beyond the discussion.

According to him,in the daily urban chaos, the aspect of socializing (in the real terms), which is the essence of all humanity is being lost, and that we are getting narrowed down to really small, shrinking diaspora, which consists of very few people.

And after thinking some more on these lines, I tend to agree with his observation. It ain't even individualism that is being practiced. These conditions which are getting so ubiquitous around us, I might want to term them as a kind of forced urban seclusion, and that has come to be the widely agreed standard. Each is left with little, or no time to bother about anything apart from very personal matters.

Socializing (only) on online networks has deteriorated the already bad situation. While it can never be a replacement to interpersonal rapport, these networks have played the subtle but hostile roles of alienating the social beings within us.

Coming back to the point of forced urban seclusion, it is a convergence of the hectic and reckless lives that the city drives one to lead, with no care whatsoever to the conditions around. It is a pathetic state to be in, for, it breeds cynicism about the (world minus us), and an expanding void within.

There is little that the 'bhag bhag' lifestyle has ultimately showered us with on the bright side. While there's a lot more it has forced upon us to crib about.

All said and done, if one wants to break free, there's all the control given, but then aren't most of us either way, comfortably, or uncomfortably numb about it ?

The Free Culture imperative

Excellent painting depicting One World, by Joe Average

Being part of a movement which in the grand picture aspires towards freedom of knowledge in the digital domain, and a future with access to free knowledge to all of humanity is an incessantly revelatory experience. Every event and interaction brings more clarity about the big daunting task in front of each of us: The big task of getting back to the Free Culture environment.

If we are the social beings, who have evolved to acquire this cooperative intelligence as the niche aspect of evolution in the race to survival, curbing it would not only be unnatural, but a major disadvantage as well.

The creativity each one of us is packaged with, if utilized collectively,  and at the same time allowing our individual work open to improvisation by others is the only natural law we have to stay bound to. That is how a community thrives.

The culture of sharing, although is superficially professed in most cultures, the contradictory behavioral impact renders most of the individuals socially crippled. They feel it antagonistic to collaborate with others. A weird sense of animosity can be observed in people by the time they grow beyond their childhood.

In this regard, the Free Knowledge Movement has more than adequately proven to the world, that working together with shared contributions is the way to go forward for humanity. It isn't something new to us, but something that is at the verge of oblivion, due to increasing noise of self centeredness amongst the people. The only difference of the shared contributions then and today is the tangibility of measuring today's results:
Within a decade, the most comprehensive embodiment of all the information we ought to know has been created out of purely shared and collective contributions - The Wikipedia.
Creative Commons, within a few years has enabled the best of the community talent in the form of  literature, pictures, music, videos etc to get richer and better.
And needless to mention, all of the Free Software, which has been beautifully created, with more love and passion than the technology drive itself.

These many paramount manifestations convey one absolute message to the world: Endorse Free Culture, by which I mean openness in every social aspect of life. The future is bleak if we do not grasp the imperative for Free Culture, across the world.