The Individual Among Us, Part II

The Three Aspects of the Individual

There are three aspects to every individual: the Herd, the Apathetic and the People. These aspects refer to the individual’s attitude toward the ruling class. Attitude is everything. It is a constant battle for the hearts and minds of the individual of the masses and for the continued privilege of the ruling class individual.

The Herd

The holy grail of every ruling class is to breed unquestioning loyalists. This is the herd individual. The herd accepts the existence of ruling class society and its infrastructure as if it was an inevitable product of nature, as if it were as natural and fated as the sky and grass and trees. This is the herd’s outlook. The herd ask no questions, unless their masters ask them. Conventional assumptions of science and official authority hold sway over them. There is no curiosity to look behind the Establishment and question it, they just accept and rationalization. The perfect herd individual lives off the label-thinking dominating their egos. Being a herd individual means above all else complete acceptance of the system, and a perfect cooperation with the Establishment in not asking certain questions. The herd believes voting has, in fact, democratically elected presidents.

The herd individual might not like their ruling class, or even their own life. Being part of the herd does not mean the individual supports those in power. There is no oath of loyalty required. They may loath the immorality of their label-enemy, but they will not question the whole system. Loyalty is freely give to the system and its Establishment consensus. The herd mentality’s likes and dislikes are more or less in line with popular culture. They feel personally insulted when one challenges even the most obvious lies of the Established Order, which seemingly has nothing to do with them personally.

Herd individual “A” can not process the thought, unless instructed by their label-leaders, that one of their own fellow citizens could commit genocide, torture or unnecessary wars. We are, after all, of the same national substance. Wouldn’t that mean herd individual “A” is a bad person too? Only foreign categories do that! This is the dominant, if unconscious logic bequeathed by the Supreme Executive. Americans are taught that Americans are good guys, despite the many acknowledged and uncontroversial atrocities, and their constant hating upon each other on behalf of the ruling class zeitgeist. These are Our well-bred herd individuals.

One of the Establishment’s main tasks is to promote the herd mentality and discourage independent thought. The herd is, of course, most perfectly represented by the dwindling numbers of loyal Liberals and Conservatives. For ruling class minions the perfect society is one in which the herd is the majority of the masses. The ruling class would like nothing more than herd individuals to populate their societies, because the “independent thinking” of the herd individual is strikingly similar to and accommodating to Establishment thinking.

A majority herd society is not the healthiest state for any society, never mind what We might prefer as ruling class members. It would mean that a majority of society unquestioningly supporting their masters. It means social suicide. A society that is majority herd is like rolling out the red carpet for your executioner. As long as everybody else is running toward the cliff, the herd will follow.

The herd individual is the weakest of the aspects. They fear truth more than most. Encouraging the herd to be comfortable within the paradigm is a vitally important and underrated tool for social stability. This makes the middle class the perfect habitat of herd mentality. Squeezed between the notion of economic prosperity and taxes and debt from the top, and the constant looming fear of losing it all keeps the individual more than happy in their little surroundings of TV, couches, video games, nick-knacks, internet, alcohol, and other who think like them. The middle class are the perfect herd for their functionality, ranging from worker to professional and business owner. The ignorance of the middle class stems from the need to deny the realities that may threaten what they have.

The poor also make excellent herd individuals, but they are severely restricted in their functions of work and consumption, and the general dysfunction of poverty.

The Apathetic

The apathetic individual is essentially an apolitical creature. Generally speaking, they cannot be bothered with politics, i.e., who controls, conditions and determines their world. The apathetic say things like, “They’re all crooks!” “Politicians are greed assholes”, “You can only trust them as far as you can throw them!” And yet many of the apathetic couldn’t articulate some basic things that about who runs their world and why.

In field studies conducted by the Preservation Society, Our informant tells Us about Stuart. Stuart worked as a proofreader and enjoyed fantasy baseball and football. He also played fantasy basketball at one time, but dropped it because it was taking up too much of his time. Stuart’s favorite refrain about politics was, “waste of time! They’re all crooks!”

Instead, Stuart preferred spending an inordinate amount of time “keeping the books” for his fantasy sports games. He kept wrinkled pieces of paper on his desk. They were filled with lists of names and statistics for which he was responsible. In between proofreading jobs he poured over them and rarely left his chair. Sometimes he complained, “now I have to do the numbers.”

“Sounds like you don’t want to do it,” inquired Our informant.

“Oh, I love it.” Stuart was quick to respond. “But it can be tough. It takes a lot of dedication and patience. You just have to work through it.”

“Do you always do the numbers?”

“Yeah.”

“Why?”

“I don’t have to pay dues if I do the paper work. And I’m very good with numbers”.

Our informant observed that Stuart was quite proud of his accounting skills, but he had no idea what the Affordable Care Act. He was “passionate” about an inconsequential thing that might not have had much interest for him if he had more than limited options. Is this how a democracy should work? When asked, he couldn’t name a thing happening in Washington DC. He waved his hand as if he was asked an idiotic questions. He guessed the name of the vice president. “John Biden?”

Perhaps such activities as Stuart engages in are in line with your tastes. We do not bring this up to disparage individuals’ hobbies and activities. But, it makes the point all the more obvious that individuals’ priorities, even on a conscious and casual level are warped. Involvement in politics might seem remote to individuals, but to the ruling class, individual involvement is the start of mass involvement.

Another lower order wage earner Mel, unlike Stuart, is politically aware. He was knowledgeable about the issues. He ridiculed the political environment, and even went far beyond Establishment thinking. But Mel did not challenge its supremacy either. He understood the farce of it all, but did not question the legitimacy of the system he labored under. This college graduate did not put the two together — the farce of Establishment thinking and the system he labored under.

Mel accepted the myth that the wealthy by and large “earned” their excessive riches, and even deserve it. He believed that capitalism, harmful as it is, is the best system possible and that socialism was pie in the sky. It struck Our reporter as oddly naive and rote. He recalled what Mel once told him about why he quit smoking marijuana: “you have to grow up some time.” One might have asked Mel if he had grown up about politics, and yet he is politically aware!

Still, Mel’s attitude is the respectable and “normal” position. The ignorance of politics and society, and indifference to the system is so normal that it is not even considered except in others who do not wear the same label. By contrast, the herd gladly accepts the Establishment and participates in and defends system. It is a generally held You are not considered to be hypocrite if you like capitalism and are willfully blind to its negative balance sheet — in addition to being ignorant of other possible realities. We are a “civilized” society after all. “Civilization” is, of course, socially acceptable hypocrisy.

Stuart at least had the sense to not take capitalism too seriously. Neither he nor Mel, as apathetics, contributed to any campaign, would not bother voting. Both know it’s all inane. They are not the unquestioning herd in that regard. And yet they are. Stuart, like Mel, does not challenge the system either (though they may question it, insult it or ridicule it). He thinks his rich friend is brilliant because he’s rich. But the supposed “illegitimacy” of Washington politics also gave Stuart “license” to ignore the system altogether, whereas Mel is politically aware, if dormant. And both of them pay the price of removing themselves from participating in shaping their world. The reader might say, “social involvement? Sounds good but nothing happens and it’s thankless and waste of time.” Is this not a combination of truth (in this society) and proper breeding? This is a product of a functional ruling class.

A nation of apathetic individuals makes for an easy to exploit society. The apathetic remove themselves from the fight for political self-determination of their own being by, at a minimum, not paying attention. They effectively abandon their fellow citizens in the constant battle and struggle between the ruling class and its masses. However, the apathetic straddles the threshold between People and herd. Pushed too far, the apathetic, is forced to reckon with that which they have hitherto ignored (while the herd maybe pushed into apathy).

Stuart rather mentally masturbate with his fantasy games than engage in a discussion of his circumstances — others can decide that for him. Mel is comforted in his view that things are as good as their going to get, even if the politics are stupid. This makes the apathetic a ruling class ally, despite any pretense of defiance. A nation full of such individuals is almost as bad as one full of the herd — though the apathetic are a step closer to opposing their ruling class.

The apathetic are not independent thinkers, but lazy ones. They often accept the dominant ideologies but may not participate in them, or believe in them too heavily. They may even see through them. The apathetic prefer to do “their own thing” as an excuse not to learn and participate in politics. Frequently, the indignation of the apathetic masks a hopelessness. It signifies resignation and lethargy. The herd believes change is around the corner, if things aren’t the best they can be already. The apathetic don’t have hope things will change. They may not really “care” as a result. Many apathetic defend the system but think it’s corrupt to the core. There are many variations in which the apathy may express itself.

The People

An individual of the people is genuine independent thinking individual in certain areas. They are essentially a malfunction of the system. The ruling class is supposed to breed herd loyalists, and out pops the people’s individual!

Raring the masses is not a perfect science. The people’s individual does not gel harmoniously with the Established Order in certain ways. Some experience or lesson might have turned this individual on, whereas it might have turned the apathetic off. The people oppose, some part or maybe all, of the ruling class agenda, whereas the apathetic ignore it, and the herd accepts it.

The people are despised by the ruling class and its minions. We prefer not to tolerate any challenges to Our rule. The people are actively opposed to conventions. They oppose possible threats to their liberties such as they have them.

The Preservation society is most unique among the ruling class for recognizing the need for popular push back. The people are a vital component in the health of ruling class society. They pierce the Establishment bubble. If the masses don’t know about the “injustices”, the people inform them. If they don’t know where to direct their anger, the people guide them. They protect mass liberty and ensure the integrity of the system. That the people are a “malfunction” of society at the same time they are crucial to its survival and stability demonstrates the ruling class’s unnatural existence. The ruling class needs this “malfunction”.

And Yet the people are the enemy of the ruling class. The people view their mission as righteous, which it usually is. They want to limit ruling class power and increase the power of the masses. The Supreme Executive does not look kindly upon this and feels threatened by the challenge of the people. A successful campaign by the people against ruling class dictates diminishes Our power. Compromise must be sought. This is Ruling class failure from the minion point of view.

The higher orders do not like this. Compromise is vulnerability. It means less wealth extraction, less exploitation. It means less command over the masses. In this way the people preserve the standards of society or improve them. They are the vigilance required to help water the tree of liberty, and so help save the status quo while attempting to change it (or, ruling class forbid, end it). If the Great Institution does not heed the emergence of the people it runs the risk of more individuals of the masses finding their inner person, and thereby truly threatening ruling class existence.

Being the people is not necessarily a heroic conscious choice. One may be pushed into their role by circumstances. They often to do not fit comfortably in their role serving the higher orders. They feel claustrophobic confined to the functions of work and consumption. The people individual is afflicted with a more expansive mind. The effects of higher thinking are mitigated by Establishment breeding, for the expansive mind of the person usually pertains to one or two areas of society. It is a constant on going war for the ego.

The people may not be opposed to every facet of the ruling class but is significantly against some or most of it. The Preservation Society urges its ruling class-mates to consider that supporting the resistance by a few people can help prevent the resistance of an The People.

The Individual in Ruling Class Society

Every individual is a combination of aspects and functions. There are no absolutes here. They may exhibit herd tendencies in one context and have people-like tendencies in another. Self contradiction abounds. It is a complicated interplay of attitudes toward the ruling class and the roles and functions played for the benefit of the Minority.

We all have a myriad of ways in which the three aspects of our individual selves interact in society and between each other. In our private lives we may be more people-like and in public life we may act more herd-like. Liberals tend to be more herd-like toward their fellow Liberals and Liberal “policies”. They tend to feign people-like tendencies towards Conservatives and their policies, and the reverse can be said for the Conservatives.

It is impossible to get every individual to function exactly the same, though the ruling class keeps reaching for that holy grail of breeding the herd. Ruling class minions should not push the masses into this or that line of thought, the Establishment will do that much better on “its own”. The higher orders should accept and encourage the individual who operates in their proper function.

The ruling class does not need, as much as it would like, a majority herd. In fact, the Preservation Society believes that most of the First World is composed of the apathetic first, then the herd, and then the people. It is Our diagnosis that there are too few of the people for a health of society.

It is a nice trick to separate the individual from society. There is strength in numbers, but singly, the individual is overwhelmed by their environment. A particle of dust is extremely vulnerable. But a billion particles in solid union becomes a formidable entity. Ruling class institutions have evolved to prevent this from happening. It is a marked advancement from the past where society was fixed, and therefore limited the growth possibilities of the ruling class. A society of individuals is infinitely more flexible for the Great Institution to control. Society as obligation and responsibility to one faction (excluding the ruling class) has been largely dropped from individual purview because it is no longer a necessary concern for the ruling class. This is “liberation” of the masses.

The ruling class herds its lower orders into divisions and categories that make for easier management. They are corralled into the functions of work and consumption, with an occasional breakout of the people.

This is a constant operation on behalf of the corporate capitalist system. The herd accepts it, aides and abets it. The apathetic throw up their hands, “what can you do?” and goes back to watching TV. And We say, as long as they perform their functions, why force the masses to religion?

But the people won’t have it. They at least inform themselves, if nothing else. There is no doubt that if more individuals found their inner person the standards of their communities would rise. And We can’t lie, the Preservation Society likes its herds and apathetic, but We could use some of the people for ruling class health by way of betterment of the masses. Isn’t that what the masses want? We need those “who will get in the way”, or too many will, and we might just become a society of real people.