In re:  Postmodernism: Deconstructed (Salon's Rantoholic: the oral report)

Dear Mr. Cary Tennis –

After listening twice to your recent “rant”, I feel compelled to tell you this: there is no post-modern crisis.  Overarching, holistic descriptions of our state of affairs exist, a story that tells it all.  Things really do continue to matter; they’re not the same things that have mattered before.  Scratch that: it’s not “things” that matter, it’s values and concepts that matter.  It’s a change in the way we view the world.  It’s this shift in perception that’s occurring, not a really a crisis.

First, let’s step back to the 50,000 foot level and look at historical shifts between generations as presented in the Massey Tapes.  (Remember them? Morris Massey’s theory that you are what happened to you?  Okay, maybe I’m a lot older than I feel…)  There is a natural progression between generations, the last such shift described in Generations of Youth.  At the immediate level of day-to-day life, it’s difficult to see the naturalness of this progression; it appears as a disruption at a more intimate point of view.  These disruptions are normal “waves” or passes on a spiral, a pendulum rotation responding to creative tension.  Significant events during our formative years shape our values and opinions; as each generation has different experiences, their values will differ as well.  To some extent, each generation is also shaped by rebound and rebellion against the previous set of values – a natural swing of the pendulum.  Generations before have experienced the same distancing between themselves and the next for this reason.  Each of these swings of the pendulum mark a substantive change in a new generation’s worldview from the previous generation’s worldview.  Look at the world events and technological developments of the past couple of decades, and imagine how they’ve affected the pendulum’s propulsion in the direction of its current swing.  It’s become a global culture we’re talking about, isn’t it?

Next, let’s look at evolutionary theories of consciousness and human emergence.  Professor Jenny Wade’s work on the evolution of human consciousness suggests that contemporary Western humans are on the verge of moving from two states of consciousness to a new state.  Because such shifts occur along a distribution curve, there are already a small people in the population who have made the shift to another state while a substantial portion of the curve is still trending toward that shift.  In today’s society, most adult humans experience consciousness from achievement and affiliative states – meaning, we orient ourselves towards action and accomplishment (attaining a recognized state of power), or relationships between others and ourselves (emphasis on belonging and being needed).  The next level of consciousness to which humans may expect to evolve is an authentic state – one in which all other states of consciousness are grasped empathically and one lives to attain personal growth, fulfill a personal mission through more innovative, systemic, holistic thinking and actions.

Perhaps you are under the bell of the standard distribution curve – meaning, you have a lot of company.  But don’t fret about those at the front 1 to 3 standard deviations away in consciousness; they’re aware of us, and they’ll solve it for us, with us.  (Or perhaps you’re already on the leading edge of the curve and you’re seeing the debris and detritus of change behind you…)

The shift in human consciousness progresses as we experience fundamental changes in our values systems.  Rather, our values are manifestations of our changing consciousness and worldview.  In earlier history and in lower states of consciousness, humans were more territorial, perceiving reality as us against them; our values of absolutism and intolerance reflected this consciousness.  Don Edward Beck and Christopher Cowan model shifts in values as humans progressed and emerged along a spiral (based on Clare Graves’ fundamental theories of emergence); they predict the next point to which humans will trend.  Although I've not yet read it, I’m confident you’ll find the observations in Generations of Youth follow this model.  The shift to an ego-centric, narcissistic culture (Boomers) from the previous generation could be foretold.  The previous generation/culture was driven by external fears (nuclear war, post-World War II and post-Depression resource shortages); the Boomers were freed from these external fears, allowing them to concentrate on their internal concerns (fear of death, ego identification).  With these concerns having been addressed through much navel-gazing in the 70’s and 80’s (period of maturation for the ‘Me Generation’), Generations X and Y have been increasingly free to transition away from ego drivers and look to external values for motivation.  Gens X and Y do things not solely for traditional motivations like money and security, but increasingly for self-actualization and self-determination.  They choose based on a values system predicated on concepts, not based on material things and concrete measures.  There is a lack of need for bonding to a culture – ego and culture of birth no longer offer security, and frankly, don’t need to offer security.  X and Y are free to embrace all cultures; they’re free to seek the authentic beyond enculturation, free even to act androgynously.  They live externally, not internally; hence the lack of ego-defensiveness.  “No Fear” is not just a sticker on their car window, but a genuine state of existence.

Ken Wilber, the foremost theorist of human emergence, lays out the matrix of human emergence in A Theory of Everything.  Not only do humans emerge in values along a spiral, but the entirety of our human experience is actually a matrix, a fabric, along and about which we continually shift as individuals and as a society.  Wilber demonstrates in this seminal text that we are all multi-dimensional and capable of reaching all levels; real emergence will require those at the forefront to not only move each of their own individual selves along the way, but move previous hierarchies (segments of population, in this case at earlier levels of emergence) along with them.  Those that are in or beyond the post-modern will lift others along, just as a tide lifts all boats.

Lastly, note Professor Richard Florida’s comments in his text, The Rise of the Creative Class, regarding the changes that have occurred over the last one hundred years.  In terms of societal impact, changes in technology are greater than social change between 1900 and 1950, but it’s social changes that are greater than technological change between 1950 and 2000.  On this same curve we could reasonably expect that social changes will be continue to have greater impact on human development than technology.  Your “rant” discusses the overwhelming choices available and the bombardment of media – but it’s not the material things that are important, hence the marketer’s frustrated flailing excess in attempting to reach those you label post-modern.  It’s the authentic, the real that’s of value.  Current youth generations aren’t necessarily adept at “navigating” the vast bombardment of choice; they’re adept at seeing through the propaganda, can tune out selectively and see things for what they are, as pure hype versus the real and authentic.   Older readers may remember a time in which advertising was seen as the truth (anyone remember “healthful smoking”?)  Post-moderns assume quite the opposite.  Hype is a pretty toy, a fluffy plaything to post-moderns; I certainly wouldn’t bet my company’s profits on marketing hype and excess being effective on post-moderns over the long run.

You can perceive the post-modern shift under way; you’ve got a foot in that world.  Making the transition merely requires a change in consciousness, shifting from the focus on achievement, through or past consciousness of relationships, to a state of being aware of and finding value in the authentic.  Define the authentic, seek it, and you are there.  And if you don’t feel you’re making this shift, you’ll be propelled along as we all progress together.  Hang on, it could be a wild ride.  Certainly not a crisis.

And that’s the big story that explains it all.

4:31:40 PM    comment []

RantsCounterRants:  The Sign Says “Slow, Deflation Ahead”

Credit Suisse’s U.S. economist Christoph Bianchet is such a cutie…like Ben Affleck spouting monetarist policy.  I could watch him, listen to him all day.  The Swiss accent is a bonus, too...try that on for size, Affleck.

In spite of his cuteness, I am actually listening closely to what he’s saying this afternoon on CNBC.  He’s been rather concerned about deflationary trends in the U.S.  There are, after all, some similarities between the U.S. situation today and Japan’s recent situation. 

No surprise – I’ve been worried about deflation since the Big 3 started this last wave of 0% financing for vehicles.  Sure, 0% financing was a shrewd move a year ago after September 11.  But pricing at this level now is cutting into future car sales and flooding the market with used cars.  Example:  We’ve got a 1999 Pontiac Grand Prix, priced $3000 less than other cars of same year and model, can’t sell it.  There are 2 others just like it listed and re-listed in the paper, also not moving.  Been trying to move this car for 4 months now.  For the payment someone would make on this used car, someone might be able to get a new car.  We’re stuck with this beast, devaluing by the second.

And I won’t even go into real estate…ask Rob Salkowitz whether his girlfriend’s condo sold yet.

I’m going to have to learn more about deflation – admittedly, it’s not something I know much about.  Our entire U.S. economy has been geared for more than a decade towards slowing inflation.  I don’t know that any of us are ramping up to deal with deflation, let alone as quickly as we should.

Think I need to pay a visit to my favorite economist, Paul Krugman, and see what he has to say about the subject (he’s probably got something squirreled away on the subjects of deflation and Japan’s economic crisis at his old website).  Let me know if you have any other resources you’d suggest on deflationary measures.

3:58:24 PM    comment []