Social Solidarity
Why Them Instead of Me?
Besides the demand for a more even division of wealth, people feel bitter about any inequalities, including the lack of equal opportunities. However, the truth is that no just division will help until we develop a social awareness that supports mutual guarantee. Favoring one sector of the population over another will only trigger anger and bitterness among other sectors. Without the mindset of mutual guarantee, people who will not be on the receiving end will always feel resentment and will ask themselves, “Why them and not me?”
What Is Mutual Guarantee?
Mutual guarantee is a reciprocal connection requiring that we consider everyone as if they were our closest kin. We may find it hard to believe that this is possible, but the evolution of human society will lead us to a state where we will feel the whole world within us, similar to the way we feel our kin. We will feel who among our kin needs help and what kind of help they need—whether the need concerns aged parents, small children, unexpected expenses and payments, ill health, etc.. Naturally, we prioritize our family’s needs according to urgency. Would we neglect an ailing grandfather? Not if we are a normal family. The sense of commitment, of mutual guarantee, compels us to be that way. This is how we must approach our relationships with the rest of humanity.
What Is Equality?
Equality is a state in which each of us possesses equal opportunities and personal possibilities for constructive self expression in the collective system—to give and to receive, to be balanced with the rest of humanity.
For example, the heart is equal to the lungs; the lungs are equal to the liver; the liver is equal to the kidneys, which are equal to the legs, which are equal to the hands...
In what are they equal? They all operate in reciprocity for the body’s benefit. However, each part of the body focuses on different functions required for the well-being of the entire body. This is what keeps us (the organism) alive and healthy.
Similarly, if one person belongs to one part of humanity, it doesn’t make him or her any less worthy than another person from another part. To paraphrase, I may belong to the “heart” of humanity and someone else may belong to the “brain” of humanity, or to humanity’s “liver.” These are conditions into which we were born and which were predetermined for us. But to sustain the health and well-being of humanity, we must work together as equals where we were positioned, and not regard ourselves as superior or inferior because we were positioned in one place and not in another.
We are all born to different families, with different genes, and different upbringing. Our worldviews may be very different and we may also feel different from each other. But if each of us feels in harmony with others, we will achieve equality.
The Mover, the Geek, and Equality
Let’s assume that we have two people: one is a 6’5” hulking mover working 12 hours a day, and the other is a 5’1” weedy computer geek. The mover makes $15 an hour plus tips, and the geek, whose furniture he is moving today, makes $150 an hour, plus bonuses and options. Is this fair?
One was given strength, another was given brains. They both use what they were given by Nature with equal diligence, so why should one make more than the other? They both contribute what they can and what they do best to society, so in their contribution, they are equal. Why doesn’t this apply to their salaries?
Let’s change the description a little. What if the mover and the geek were brothers? Would the geek still be oblivious to his brother’s financial hardship? Even better, what if the geek were the mover’s father? Would he let his son go hungry or broke just because he didn’t get his father’s brains but a bulky physique instead?
Today, the mindset that we are all equal when we expend equal efforts is the only one that can keep our society intact. The way toward that mindset is by consistently reeducating ourselves until we have absorbed the reality that we are all actually kin. Once we place mutual guarantee at the top of our priority list, we will discover that the world has suddenly become a place where life can truly be easy and joyful.
A New Social Ladder
What can make us naturally self-centered humans put the public’s benefit above our own? Only the influence of the environment! Therefore, we must change our social values so that people are appreciated for their contribution to society, not according to the size of their bank accounts. When will life be good on this planet? It will happen when we all think not of ourselves first, but after everyone else.