Goooood Morning SuperForest,
Several weeks ago, I posted on this lovely site about my experimentation with joining the welfare state and I’d like to share with you my findings thus far…
I expected a backlash. I expected some judgments. I hoped to kick start conversation. What happened in the comments section of that post made me proud to be a human being and a SuperForester.
People came out and shared their experiences. Folks who I’d known for a long time and never suspected of being a part of the welfare state came forward and shared the ways “being on food stamps” or “accepting hand outs” had made them feel judged by the culture around them.
Comments were made both for and against the welfare state, for and against me and my motives, but all were genuine reactions from human beings who had been moved by my post, which made me very happy. And the discourse created by my post was fair and balanced, heartfelt and informative, and only one person called out my mother. A win for SuperForest, commentors, and commenting :)
You see, I believe very strongly in the welfare state, and if you give me a moment, I’d like to show you how you probably do too.
Let’s start at the beginning…
This site and movement is built around The Humanifesto, a document that says in short: You are the environment. What you say and do controls the environment around you, so if you say and do positive things, you create an environment of positivity.
In the Humanifesto, six freedoms are mentioned, and they are things that I personally feel that every human being has the inalienable right to.
They are:
Clean Water.
Nutritious un-modified food.
Shelter.
Education.
Open source communication.
Freedom from oppression and fascism.
If you believe in the Humanifesto as I believe in it, then you too feel it would be a tremendous “goodness” to work to extend these six benefits to all human beings, free of charge.
A world where simply by being born one automatically was given access to the six freedoms is the world I and all SuperForesters are trying to create.
That world is a world-wide welfare state. A welfare state so egalitarian and comprehensive, that no human being ever had to starve to death again. No human ever had to die of exposure because they were homeless ever again. No human ever died uneducated and in poverty again.
We can create a system where humans and human growth and happiness are the main consideration. To support the humans, one must also support the planet.
A planet with such a system could find an equilibrium between human growth, and environmental stewardship that allowed for both. Growth AND the conservation and rebuilding of the Earth and its natural resources. Have one’s cake and eat it too.
I realized through my experimentation that a very insidious idea stands between us and the realization of this techno-forest oasis planet, and that idea is: INDEPENDENCE.
As Americans, we are taught to seek out this wonderful and fleeting thing called independence. To achieve it, apparently one must spin one’s car in huge doughnuts across a great salt lake, kicking up huge spumes of dust, while a luxury stereo system plays rock music. Independence says that if you buy the right kind of shoes, then you’ll be an elite rebel. Independence tells you to live in your very own apartment and make your own money and not rely on your parents or the government like some sort of loser. Independence just called you a loser! And a jerk!
Well, this independence is a myth. As I wrote in my first post, we are all on a form of food stamps.
We are conditioned to seek “independence” without ever being told what it is. We are taught to not ask for help because asking for help is weak and asking for help is what losers do.
It’s this independence idea that has us all living in isolated little boxes, each of us owning a copy of everything one needs, sharing nothing, living in fear. 20 can openers for 8 humans.
The myth of independence makes unity and togetherness very difficult, and it is unity and togetherness that this planet needs right now. Judgments about each other, and comparisons to one another, and the deification of wealth and the wealthy are all side effects of this independence myth.
For we are all completely interdependent. We are totally dependent on one another, and on this planet and its many systems. Employees are dependent on their employers, and vice versa.
A near-perfect welfare state once existed before. It was simply called Nature, and it represented an incredibly complex dance between humans and the planet. It took care of every human need, and allowed humans to live and grow in peace for hundreds of thousands of years.
Ten thousand years ago it was broken. Now it is up to us to rebuild it, using today’s technology to hybridize with ancient skill sets. Time to rebuild Eden. Time to re-garden Paradise.
What I learned through this experiment was that the main question was not: Should I, Jackson Nash, be on food stamps? I qualified fair and square, and took my ration of abuse for having it, and have to deal with people’s ideas and expectations about me having it. Fine with me.
The question was whether the welfare state should exist at all.
Well, I believe that it should, and that its benefits should automatically extend to include all human life. And I truly believe that deep inside, you believe this too. That’s why you are here on this site, reading these words.
When I was able to reprogram the faulty “seek independence” program that was fouling my operating system, I could finally relax into the truth of my interdependent existence, without judgments or fears.
I even had a nice chat with my mother about my food stamps. While she and I don’t see eye to eye about my use of the welfare state, we still treat each other with love and aloha. Free from judgment and malice. We can agree to disagree.
When I got over my judgments of myself, and the welfare state, and what my parents, or my friends would think, I was simply left very grateful that someone would create a system that gave so freely. I asked for help, and I received it.
May we all be so blessed.
All my love and aloha,
Jackson
(top image via flickr user Jordi Domenech)
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