4 Ways to Improve our Society (Part 1)

You may be wondering why I’d write this blog; well, it is very simple. I’ve been wondering for many years why many people are choosing to be identified by a single restrictive identifier. For example. ‘I am a flexitarian.’ when it comes to what they eat. And if you don’t know what a flexitarian is. According to my dictionary a flexitarian is a person who has a primarily vegetarian diet but occasionally eats meat or fish.

So, what is the importance of people knowing what you eat, or how you eat?

I really believe these identifiers are a way of making them feel significant, as the person that hears what they are, will slot them into a particular condition or class, and then treat them in their own way.

This was emphasized by an article I read on-line called, “35 Things People Embody So Deeply That Their Entire Personality Revolves Around It’. In the article it gave examples of people wanting to be described as OCD, their work, by an Astrological sign, brands of clothing they wear, being sick, or the conspiracy theories they like.

According to the American Psychological Association; “Personality refers to individual differences in characteristic patterns of thinking, feeling and behaving. The study of personality focuses on two broad areas: One is understanding individual differences in particular personality characteristics, such as sociability or irritability. The other is understanding how the various parts of a person come together as a whole.” And it is the last part of this quote that jumps out at me – “the various parts come together as a whole”, that brings the entire issue into perspective for me.

So, what is this ‘whole’?

To me this “coming together as a whole” is about being a human being. Of all the creatures on Earth, human beings are the only one’s capable of;

• self-analysis,
• imagination,
• systematic thought or conceptualizing,
• cultural establishment, and
• morality.

These higher-level skills separate us from the animals. And I believe that if you ignore that human aspect of your being, you have forgotten the core of who you are.

When we adapt identity politics it demands the reduction of individual true-self. This is because when people hold on to collective identities, they cease to be individuals with hopes, dreams, talents, fears and opinions. If the most important thing about you is your sexual identity, your race, or your background; you are defining yourself but also your enemies. That meaning that if your only identity is female, your enemy is males; if your only identity is being LGBTQ, your opponents are heterosexuals; and if your only identity is being Muslim, your enemies are Christians for example.

So, what happens after people adopt an identity?

It is that universal values like equality, solidarity and freedom are set aside for a partisan preference. Labels like:

• ‘I am a feminist’ leads to declarations like ‘all men are toxic’.
• The ‘Black Lives Matter’ concept, lead to the idea of getting rid of police forces.

The biggest concern for me in the blaming is that some of those involved in specific partisan groups are not looking at the big picture. And speaking of not looking at the big picture, why have governments ignored the biological facts of identifying what gender or sex a person is. Men and women are genetically unique. Females have 2 X chromosomes and males have an X and a Y chromosome. Science will not and cannot argue with these facts.

And yet, our politicians ignore the truth all for the sake of votes and get re-elected. And these people are our leaders. But, what kind of a leader will ignore the facts in order to gain support?

In Part 2 you will hear what the American Psychological Association says and the 4 ways we can improve our society.