Fear and Harp

Have you ever had a chance to sit and talk to your favorite bartender(s) when they weren't working? I had this opportunity last night at the venerable John Barleycorn pub in Lower Nob Hill. It was one of those time when you knew ahead of time, that you need to go to the ATM and prepare yourself along the way to stay up all night.

To make a long story short, after Dash joined me, we stayed until 1AM (6 hours) and our conversations finished with:

". . .So in effect, society is built upon a solid ground of fear and cynicism, and is only progressed by the occasional burst of independent, fearless thought-turned-effort. It takes one person to come along and refuse to believe that their idea is flawed or impossible, and to be fearless enough to go forward with it. That person proves it to others, which in effect ameliorates their fear and doubt of the now-not-so-unknown and adds greater plausibility to the idea; it now becomes a concept. The next step involves transmuting the abstract concept into a concrete product, hence production.

The difficult part is now attempting, with product in hand, to change the minds of a large part of the population. Depending on the desired effect, there are a certain number of forces working in direct opposition to the product.

The first two, as previously stated, are fear and cynicism. On a basic consumer product level, these are represented by examples such as:

• Surgeon General's (government) Warnings.
• Popular media taking a stance on the product/concept/idea.
• A perceived lack of "sameness" from easily recognizable brands.
• For products with severely disruptive properties (i.e. alcohol, drugs, guns), agencies (in this case, the ATF) and legislation are created to specifically control and monitor their usage, and to use force against their "misuse" when necessary.
  

However, the dynamic becomes much more cloudy when the the concept behind the product is what is being marketed. That requires the means of control to work much harder to shroud in a blanket of fear and doubt, effectively limiting the potential for large scale embrace of the concept and thus societal change. For example: the MPAA rates movies based on a dodgy set of criteria, and has the power to limit a movie's audience based solely on fear. That rating, plus what critics say about it, effect the overall impact of the film once it is released. The analogy would be a hurricane that loses force as it approaches land.

And even further, when an Idea is the focus of the marketing, the movement by those in power is to suppress that idea, once it is determined that the idea is contrary to the doctrine set forth by the rulers. Ron Paul, the outspoken but blacklisted candidate for the Republican nomination for President get no media attention, is branded by government as certifiable, and is ridiculed by the peons for his ability to think independently.

The bottom line is that ideas are the greatest threat to any governing body, whether it be civil, occupational, or even family. The only thing that can upset the status quo is the successful execution and realization of a contrary idea. Animals in nature tend toward homeostasis, effectively rendering the idea process unnatural. However, everything that has been achieved by humans, is as a result of bucking the system. The natural homeostatic quality of humanity is fear and cynicism. I make this assertion in the hopes that, at this juncture in my life, I can use this to constantly remind myself the the only rewards in life will come as the resut of an uphill, hard-fought battle against every other human in existence.

The above is what happens when you engage two 50+ year old bartenders in philosophic and political rhetoric-sharing over a half dozen pints of Harp lager. Cheers.