Why have we lost our individuality to think and process without interference? What is this gathering momentum to 'not be left out' of a situation. Stop and think.
Undoubtedly a good cause to put funds into Motor Neurone Disease charity (note if it goes to ALS this benefits American research), but this is just one of many millions of good causes around the world. Personally if the money went into sorting out the developing world's water crisis I'd support that whole heartily. Water, or the lack of it will destroy the Planet, and in not too many years ahead I'm afraid. But I digress.
The disconnectedness of social media allows millions of friends on Facebook, Twitter and other social media platforms to demand a service from an individual without a second thought. I'm not including Alex here but recent research has revealed that 53% of people doing the ice bucket challenge never gave any money to charity, and a third had no idea why they were doing it, with a sizeable number saying they did it as self promotion. And there was me thinking giving to charity was an altruistic move. What worries me more with this increasing collective wave of social media is that it is an unstoppable wave of pressure on the individual to conform to what society wants us to be. You may think I'm wrong, you may think I'm just a grumpy 50 year old, and that is your right to do so, but let me explain.
None of us would write an e-mail or a letter to our friends or family and say you must give £60 to this charity because I say so, it just would not happen. (Social media seems to have forgotten the challenge is give £60 OR, I REPEAT OR, forfeit that with a dousing of ice water over the head - people are doing both). In the same way there is often a certain uneasiness reading the invitation recently dropped through the letterbox; Sam and Pete would like you to come to our wedding, and suggest a donation to this animal charity instead of wedding gifts.
Yet social media is rapidly becoming the vehicle for a blunt ended weapon of pressure that 'you must conform'.
Increasingly I feel that social media's disconnectivity is a dangerous tool in the control of the many by a few. Its the same disconnectivity that allows car drivers to behave appallingly on our roads shielded by their metal box; they'd of course never cut people up in person or walk right up behind them for miles because the individual wasn't walking fast enough. Disconnection cultivates individual bravado (and in serious cases cyber bullying) and mass hysteria.
I've recently deactivated my Twitter account for this reason, as anyone who puts their head up above the baying masses parapet was immediately shot, then hung drawn and quartered, before having their photo put on Instagram, by people who know much less of the discussed argument than the instigator. And that's not healthy. Debate is healthy, something the late Tony Benn spoke passionately about. We need to understand others views, but, more importantly we need to listen to the views of others. Listening is the most important thing any individual can do. Don't talk, don't lecture, open up you mind to another way by just listening, and listen silently.
Listening and understanding are something I strongly feel social media is stifling - the mob is right the individual is wrong. That is of course until another 'viral sensation' comes along and like a pack of hounds chasing a foxes scent they move in the opposite direction onto another victim. If you have ever watched the train station crowd scene as they change platforms at the beginning of Jaques Tati's 1953 film Monsieur Hurlot's holiday then you'll get the idea. There is undoubtedly some good coming out of social media, but boy have I seen some collective baying of hounds. It's like the man on the eighteenth century gallows who facing the voyeuristic unwashed mob, contemplates his death for killing a deer to feed his starving family because the landowner he poached from didn't pay him living wage. How many in the crowd pitied him I wonder.
Monty Python's Life of Brian is an excellent summation of this. Brian, addressing the masses outside his bedroom window in an attempt to get them to go away, the crowd thinking he's the Messiah....... (with thanks to Wikiquotes)
Brian: Look, you've got it all wrong! You don't need to follow me. You don't need to follow anybody! You've got to think for yourselves! You're all individuals!
Crowd: [in unison] Yes! We're all individuals!
Brian: You're all different!
Crowd: [in unison] Yes, we are all different!
Man in crowd: I'm not...
Crowd: Shhh!
.
And that's my point. If individuals wish to do the ice bucket challenge and post their efforts on Facebook, then do so, I'm happy. Equally, if I refuse to take part, then I'm at liberty to do so. I also worry that mass media coverage of ALS or MND will divert monies away from other research, other possibly smaller charities (we all have limited disposable income) and so what will that effect be in the long run. On the same day I saw a posting for a chap called Christian Nock who walked the 8,000 mile British coastline to raise funds for the homeless ex soldiers which this country happily just spits out and forgets about once they're of little use to our country's security. He himself ended up homeless. His target was a modest £200,000, (£181,849 raised so far) yet hardly any media coverage has followed him, I certainly didn't know about him before yesterday even though he finished the walk in March. And so, I shall donate to him retrospectively, and not to the now swelled coffers of the ALS charity. I am exercising my individuality, but conforming in a way as I rarely give to charity, so thank you Alex. If it hadn't been you who nominated me for the Ice Bucket Challenge I may have just said no and forgotten about it. But as it's you and I'm fond of you, Christian Nock actually doing something himself for others, gets the 50p.
And finally well done Alex, you did the ice challenge because you wanted to - and for that you make me happy.
I completely agree with this. Two points to make: (1) there is acute disconnection, from each other and within ourselves, and disconnection thrives because there are too many human beings on the planet, and (2) rre: your point about listening, we were meant to listen more than talk, that's why we have 2 ears but only 1 mouth. Keep exercising your individuality. Julie x
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