Look at the top. Your political and corporate leaders may be well dressed enough, but the downward spiral of their collective moral character has brought them epic lows. As poll after poll shows, there is virtually no measure of respect given to the most powerful — those with the most control over your life and future.
That powerlessness is now fully reflected in the state of our physical, psychological and emotional health. Beaten down and, so far, defeated by the chronic deception, lying and self-serving guile of our leaders, our own self-respect is now counted among the causalities. As a culture, we have fully arrived in the state of “I Don’t Care.” Too many have allowed themselves to become packaged, processed and homogenized like so much of the food, fashion, music and media that are shoved down our throats.
Too many have adopted the ever-sinking standards for how we dress, how we eat, how we nurture our own well being, how we value aesthetics and how we exercise our own moral authority against the political powers and cultural tides that dictate our quality of life.
“I Don’t Care” is a trend line that reflects the extent to which our individuality has been lost. Perhaps this isn’t the case for everyone, but for too many. It is a powerful trend with much momentum. But despite that fact, there are signs that “I Don’t Care” is reaching a compression point. Can it get any worse? Can sameness further permeate how we dress, what music we listen to or where we get our information from? Can we become any fatter or more unhealthy? Can we really tolerate anymore senseless wars, pointless corporate greed or another political party line retreaded to mask the truth and keep us spinning powerlessly?
We think not. And we see evidence of counter movements taking shape. They’re small, quiet and not fully formed, but they are taking shape. We report on them frequently. They include Boomers using their skills and experience in anti-corporate ways — and actually making a living at it. They’re represented by the niche communities forming within larger urban settings that repel corporate brands and big box sameness that are attracting like-minded people to their hipster hotels, unique boutiques and farm-to-table restaurants. They’re seen in the community activists becoming quite adept at using social media and other digital tools to challenge local corrupt governments.
These are just a few examples of the growing number of indications that change is afoot. But it is a steep climb. So while “I Don’t Care” is at its pinnacle, take some solace in the theory that the biggest change often comes when there’s no choice but to change.