My Power. My Democracy.
Is hysteria killing democracy?
[I don’t care what kind of CUNT you are, I am a talking to you!!!!!!!]
It made you look.
It’s dirt cheap and effective.
Culture and capitalism, free in cyberspace.
Lots of problems all over this world of ours. It’s overwhelming. And it can feel as if there is nothing to be done in the face of it all. Please, allow me to pull your gaze back just a little and remind you that never before have we been so exposed and able to access so many opinions and points of view. So thank you for reading this.
Never before have quality opinions and ethical reasoning been in such short supply.
Never before has it been so hard to feel empowered, our eyes and ears bombarded with endless unfiltered and untested information.
So we tend to gravitate towards what is familiar, what feels and looks safe. Absolutely normal and human. But there is an inherent risk and threat to the very fabric of our page in history if we do not become aware and equip ourselves to deal with this most human impetus.
We need to take our power back. It’s not hard. In fact it is so easy that all you need to do is take note and allow what I am about to tell you to become part of the many things we think and talk about. Easy, but a lot to ask, I know.
Talking about democracy. Not the brand or the news outlet. But the 2000 year old system that has evolved our civilisation from being ruled by bloodlines to empowering those who want to and can have an active voice in the governance of us all.
It is still as Plato said, more or less, ‘The price good men pay for their indifference to public affairs is to be ruled by evil men.’
It’s a quote I have kept not too far in the back of my mind over the years. It’s a quote that inspires hope in individuals of all classes of society to heed the call, to take the power of democracy and make good others’ lives with it.
But, it is also a weighted personal responsibility, much like unexpected parenting or having a box of puppies dumped at the door. Democracy calls upon us to question what we are doing with our hard-won democratic freedom and what life would be like without it.
A part of the problem is that we as individuals are giving away something, a currency as valuable as money, without a thought or consideration of its worth. Every living day.
How? By looking. Whatever pulls the eye is media currency — social, Medium and traditional.
What gives the media its power? Us. Our eyes and ears. When we move them, money is made and content is produced to make more. And more. And more. The question beckons: Who is dictating taste?
The problem is not so much the Donald circus, but the rest of us, and our hysterical reactions — the new sport of Outrage for the sake of being Entertained. The daily Capitals in the lowercase of our lives. And by allowing someone else to script the narrative, we are actively disengaging and negating the two things that makes us all valued democratic citizens — our attention and opinions. Real, considered, well thought through, weighted points of view. And we are allowing our democratic power to be harvested by those who will say anything to colonise our thought process. Politics and capitalism, free in the physical space.
Individuals and communities held ransom in the mental space.
Who are we listening to? And what authority do they have to speak to us?
We throw our notes of currency at public servants worshipped on Hollywood-styled parades and expect them to serve, well, themselves. Hollywood has no obligation to public servants. Same as most modern media outfits are no longer one of the pillars of democracy. But remember it wasn’t always like this. We once had a closely guarded separation of the First, Second, Third and our beloved, Fourth estate. We’re not in new territory, people are still people, a spade is still a spade, and we are not obliged to accept the quality we are being provided.
Why do we give our eyes to a media that only takes from us?
WE can turn off the media horn, get out of our heads and our safe houses and realise that breathing fresh air, eating clean food and drinking pure water have never been as political as they are now. We all need better. We all need more of the important things. More from our elected leaders. More from our media pundits. More of the basics needed to service a healthy democratic society. We need more Medium.
The shift in balance is ours to make. We can tip it back in our favour. If the masses demand better quality… well then, the powers that be must obey, or get out of the way.
I leave you demanding that you demand more. More hand, less eye, better quality, less deep-fry. Because there is so so much more to be had.
I thank you,
— Niel Vaughan
#VaughanOnTheHorn
#TooArtistic2Function
