In the end, identity politics is just that: politics. It is not real life; it is make-believe. In the end, humanity will reject ideas that do not coincide with nature. It may require a big war, perhaps another virus or some other trigger, but it may not. Either way, humanity will turn away from such exaggerations of the ego and establish a balanced and harmonious society where people find their self-expression in manners that contribute to society rather than shatter it into myriad confused and unhappy individuals.
Traditionally, the American people are quite conservative, in the good sense of the word. There are fluctuations back and forth but in the end, I believe that Americans will draw conclusions and follow what is natural and not the bellows of people with trendy ideas that are here today and gone tomorrow.
Changing one’s identity, deciding that I am something other than how I was born, all these are signs of growth. However, growth needs to be guided, or we grow where our ego leads us—away from each other and deeper into ourselves—toward separation, alienation, and sadness. This is where critical race theory and identity politics are leading us, and the residents of Virginia used the gubernatorial elections to refuse this direction. Instead of developing our true identity and realizing its full potential, the ideas that were rejected in this election encourage us to adopt another identity, and then spend the rest of our lives trying to justify our choice. This is not a recipe for happiness.
However, there is a good reason why such ideas are implanted in people. When people are busy trying to determine who (or what) they are, it is easier to govern them.
By nature, rulers want only one thing: to rule. It is easy to handle people when they are confused and deal with other issues besides the government and what it is (or is not) doing for them. Find them an enemy, find them a cause, and they will busy themselves with it and leave the rulers to enjoy the amenities of governance.
Machiavelli wrote about it centuries ago, and human nature has not changed since.
Yet, all this is happening for a reason. The idea of wanting to change who we are is not without merit. It stems from an inherent yearning to find a higher purpose in life. Wanting to break the boundaries of nature is an expression of our disagreement with who we are.
Unlike any other being, it is an inherent desire in human beings to search for answers about their existence. Where do I come from? Why was I born? Why is there pain? Why was I born into my sex and not into another? Can I change who I am? And in the end, what is the purpose of my existence? These years I have been given, is there a meaning and a purpose to them beyond just passing the time as best as I can? And if there is, what is it? These questions are characteristic of humankind and drive us into the frenzied confusion that we are in today.
However, we will not find the answers to them within ourselves. We will find them in our connections with others. The shattering of our society “helps us,” in a warped kind of way, understand that we have built an ill society, and we must rebuild it if we want to be happy.
But we needn’t change anything within ourselves. There is nothing wrong with any of us as individuals. The only thing that is wrong is the way we treat each other. Therefore, our relation to each other is all we have to correct.
When we begin to feel more united, that we belong to one another like family members belong to one another, we won’t need to change who we are because we will focus on making other people feel loved and cared for.
In a good family, people don’t worry about themselves; they worry about each other and about the whole family. But because everyone in the family thinks this way, everyone is happy because everyone feels loved and cared for.
These days, when everyone is dependent upon everyone else the world over, we have to start building this feeling not just in our families, but among everyone. Eventually, this blanket of concern should cover all the people in the world.
Granted, it is a long journey, but its end is bliss, and nature is willy-nilly pushing us that way. Therefore, the sooner we align with nature, the happier we will be. In the end, isn’t this what we all want?
Photo Caption:
Virginia Republican gubernatorial nominee Glenn Youngkin speaks during his election night party at a hotel in Chantilly, Virginia, U.S., November 3, 2021. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst
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