Intrinsic
Values
“The
findings are in keeping with something called self-determination theory, which
holds that human beings need three basic things in order to be content: they
need to feel competent at what they do; they need to feel authentic in their
lives; and they need to feel connected to others. These values are considered ‘intrinsic’
to human happiness and far outweigh ‘extrinsic’ values such as beauty, money
and status.”
Sebastian
Junger (Tribe, p. 21-22)
If you
are interested in reading a book that will make you think long and hard about
capitalism as a societal foundation, try Junger’s book, Tribe. The first chapter
outlines the fallacy of more-is-better, tracing the research and long history
of hominids on Earth. He compares the health and well-being of affluent cultures
with that of primitive peoples who live in small tribal groups, and finds that,
believe it or not, we come up on the short end of that stick. Quoting a 2012
article from the Journal of Affective Disorders, he writes, “In effect,
humans have dragged a body with a long hominid history into an overfed,
malnourished, sedentary, sunlight-deficient, sleep-deprived, competitive, inequitable,
and socially-isolating environment with dire consequences.” (p. 23) We,
here in the most affluent nation on the planet, have the highest rates of
depression—"as much as eight times the rate of poorer countries.” Also,
“people in countries with large income disparities—like the United States—run
a much higher lifelong risk of developing severe mood disorders.” (p. 20)
The bottom line is this: “poor
people are forced to share their time and resources more than wealthy people are,
and as a result they live in closer communities.” And, people who live in closer
communities experience less isolation, more cooperation, and report a greater
degree of contentment. To be sure, poverty comes with its own set of
difficulties, especially in affluent countries. But, overall, the rate of
reported happiness is higher in countries like Nigeria, and in rural
communities as opposed to urban. Here’s the kicker: “urban, North American women—the
most affluent demographic of the study—were most likely to experience
depression.” (p. 20)
This book
is a good one to read while we are in stay-at-home mode. It’s almost as though an
angry god has said, “Enough! Sit down and listen!” Not everything is wrong with
America, but we have grown to have an unsustainable level of speed, greed, and spiritual
neglect. We have gotten out of control with our every-man-for-himself, me-first
attitude, which has led us to abandon our moral compass, and engage in the
national equivalent of an “Animal House” food fight. It is not a pretty
sight and it has to change.
I hope
this time of forced isolation will cause us to think deeply about how we want
to resume life when the pandemic is over. We thought we would simply pick up where
we left off, but our infection rate skyrocketed. That same angry god is demanding
that we stay put until we have recovered our senses and realized that there is
no going back to life as usual. Now we have an opportunity to get it right, to
get it fair, and to get it compassionate. Such a gift!
In
the Spirit,
Jane
No comments:
Post a Comment