One of the signs of a healthy skeptic is the willingness to let your opinions evolve as you encounter new facts or ways of looking at things that make more sense than what you were originally thinking. After all, who would want to be wrong when instead they could be right?
Too many, it seems.
It would appear that very few people are interested in living a life of intellectual curiosity and growth. For many, the effort to become wiser and more knowledgeable over time is not worth the effort or attention. They would prefer to let someone else tell them what to think. Ignorance becomes an accepted state of being, a comfortable numbness that allows people to accept the pain and suffering of others, overlook the inequities and inequalities of our society, and justify their lack of compassion and empathy. Add to this the self-interest that motivates many people and the widespread distrust of science and research, and the result can be seen all around us – divided, manipulated, angry and confused.
When you are young and not yet immersed in a life of responsibility, it is easier to see the world as it is, to see the pain, the suffering, the inequity, the inequality. It is easier to feel angry with the world and to want to bring about changes to address the wrongs that you see. There is a nobility and purity to this that should be acknowledged and appreciated. The issues identified and concerns voiced by the young are very real and we would all be better off if we used this as a basis for our actions as a society.
However, there is an arrogance and impatience of the young that comes with having limited life experience and no sense of historical perspective. Societies are complicated and interconnected, and the revolutionary demands for immediate change voiced by the young are frightening and disruptive to most everyone else. Society is set up for evolutionary change, a little at a time. This refusal to consider the needs and rights of others becomes self-defeating because it is rightfully seen as a threat. Moderate voices are not listened to during a revolution. What is heard are the extreme voices, the voices of anger and violence and anarchy. What is seen is the destruction and loss of civility and order. The validity and importance of the issues and concerns of the young become ignored and forgotten, and we all lose because of it.
When you are old and full of life experience, it is harder to see the world as it could be. Every change brings with it the need to adapt and grow, and it can be easier to just hold on to the familiar instead of changing with the times. There is a wearing down of the mind and body that happens to us all as we grow older. There can be a loss of creativity and imagination, accompanied by cognitive and sensory decline. The old can develop a tendency to reflect too much on the past and thereby miss out on the here and now.
There is an obstinance of the old that comes from the inertia of life, and from their unwillingness to acknowledge the effects and limitations of becoming older. Societies continue to change and evolve, and it is easier for society to focus on the new ways and ignore the lessons of the past. The life experience of the old is a valuable resource for the young if they would listen to it. The young can benefit from the perspective of the old, not because of what has happened in the past, but more so as to develop a better perspective and understanding of the present.
This obstinance of the old is of concern right now with so many of our leaders having reached an age where they have lost perspective and are unable to adapt and grow, preferring instead to cling to power and pettiness instead of stepping aside and allowing others to lead. Nancy Pelosi and Mitch McConnell come to mind. If they are unwilling to gracefully step down, then the harsh and humiliating reality is that they must be stripped of their leadership positions so that more reasonable minds can prevail.
When you are neither young nor old, it is ignorance that becomes the issue. The young can be forgiven their arrogance, and the old can be forgiven their obstinance, but the many cannot be forgiven their ignorance.
The definition of ignorance is a lack of knowledge or understanding, but the root of ignorance is a willingness to ignore. The reality of this world is that there is a great deal of pain, suffering, injustice, and sadness all around us. It is easier to act as if none of this exists, or to decide that those who experience these things must have brought it upon themselves. Ignorance is simply a way to deny reality, to avoid thinking about things, and to never have to act to make things better.
The opposite of ignorance is enlightenment. To some, enlightenment is something spiritual and mystical that leads to a higher plane of consciousness, whatever that means. Enlightenment, simply put, means to have the personal courage to see what is real in life, to be willing to consider different ways of thinking, and to act in accordance with a code of personal values that hopefully reflects a sense of our shared human condition.
A little more enlightenment and a little less ignorance would go a long way towards addressing many of the problems that we experience on both a personal level and as a society.