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so in the last week or two, I've heard two different people use the same argument to criticize things which they didn't like. the things, by the way, were Burning Man (which I don't especially care for either) and Slam (about which my feelings are mixed). the criticism was: "with the world going to hell in a handbasket, why are people wasting their time on such frivolous shit?"
this twiddling-while-rome-burns complaint is one with which I agree, but it can be a problematic criticism. I mean, yeah...the world is in flames, the US has gone bonkers, and the massive shit is about one squeeze away from massively hitting the massive fan. but what should we do it about it?
well, "whatever we can" seems like a good answer. write to your elected officials. call them. fax them. vote. take to the streets. carry a sign. shop responsibly. donate money or time to activist or political organizations that you can support whole-heartedly. think for yourself. don't laugh or stay silent when people start joking about genocide. speak truth to power. speak truth to the powerless. speak truth.
and lots of other things.
there's a lot that everyone can do, ranging from something as simple as what to have for dinner, to something as complex as joining a Movement and getting beaten up or gassed.
but...
does the hell-in-a-handbasketness of the situation mean that certain activities become pointless? or rather, does it mean that certain activities which have always been pretty pointless suddenly become criminally frivolous?
to my mind, Burning Man is pretty pointless. so is Slam. so are baseball, bobsledding, board games, billiards, beer, sex, video games, dancing, television, and approximately 84.5% of all conversations. to name only a few of the many, many pointless things that people enjoy doing with their time.
lots of things are pointless, but does that mean they're not worth doing?
sure, playing pool might not save a soul or a life, but if I couldn't play pool every couple weeks, I'd start to go nuts. and if I also couldn't have sex, watch tv or drink beer at least once in a while, I'd go *completely* nuts. and then I wouldn't be very much use to anyone, would I? I don't want to spend 16 hours a day at work, and I don't want to spend 16 hours a day on global handbasket duty either.
all of which reminds me of a conversation I once had with my ex-girlfriend karin:
K: what's a hen basket?
c: a what?
K: a hen basket. like in that expression "going to hell in a hen basket".
c: that's hand basket. not hen. hand.
K: what's a hand basket?
c: a basket that you carry in your hand, I think.
K: oh. that doesn't make any sense.
c: oh, and "hen basket" does? what the hell is a hen basket?
K: a basket that you use to carry your hen.
c: why would you want to put your hen in a basket?
K: so you can carry it around!
c: where would you need to carry your hen in a hen basket?
K: how should I know? to Hell?
c: oh yeah. I guess you have a point there.
so when it comes to deciding what to do with your time, and evaluating how other people spend their time, consider that there are a lot of things worth doing...sometimes even pointless ones. consider that "you should be an activist" and "you should go to Burning Man" are not mutually exclusive. and, whatever you do, don't put all your hens in one basket. or they might all end up in Hell.
this twiddling-while-rome-burns complaint is one with which I agree, but it can be a problematic criticism. I mean, yeah...the world is in flames, the US has gone bonkers, and the massive shit is about one squeeze away from massively hitting the massive fan. but what should we do it about it?
well, "whatever we can" seems like a good answer. write to your elected officials. call them. fax them. vote. take to the streets. carry a sign. shop responsibly. donate money or time to activist or political organizations that you can support whole-heartedly. think for yourself. don't laugh or stay silent when people start joking about genocide. speak truth to power. speak truth to the powerless. speak truth.
and lots of other things.
there's a lot that everyone can do, ranging from something as simple as what to have for dinner, to something as complex as joining a Movement and getting beaten up or gassed.
but...
does the hell-in-a-handbasketness of the situation mean that certain activities become pointless? or rather, does it mean that certain activities which have always been pretty pointless suddenly become criminally frivolous?
to my mind, Burning Man is pretty pointless. so is Slam. so are baseball, bobsledding, board games, billiards, beer, sex, video games, dancing, television, and approximately 84.5% of all conversations. to name only a few of the many, many pointless things that people enjoy doing with their time.
lots of things are pointless, but does that mean they're not worth doing?
sure, playing pool might not save a soul or a life, but if I couldn't play pool every couple weeks, I'd start to go nuts. and if I also couldn't have sex, watch tv or drink beer at least once in a while, I'd go *completely* nuts. and then I wouldn't be very much use to anyone, would I? I don't want to spend 16 hours a day at work, and I don't want to spend 16 hours a day on global handbasket duty either.
all of which reminds me of a conversation I once had with my ex-girlfriend karin:
K: what's a hen basket?
c: a what?
K: a hen basket. like in that expression "going to hell in a hen basket".
c: that's hand basket. not hen. hand.
K: what's a hand basket?
c: a basket that you carry in your hand, I think.
K: oh. that doesn't make any sense.
c: oh, and "hen basket" does? what the hell is a hen basket?
K: a basket that you use to carry your hen.
c: why would you want to put your hen in a basket?
K: so you can carry it around!
c: where would you need to carry your hen in a hen basket?
K: how should I know? to Hell?
c: oh yeah. I guess you have a point there.
so when it comes to deciding what to do with your time, and evaluating how other people spend their time, consider that there are a lot of things worth doing...sometimes even pointless ones. consider that "you should be an activist" and "you should go to Burning Man" are not mutually exclusive. and, whatever you do, don't put all your hens in one basket. or they might all end up in Hell.
