“I don’t understand.”, I said. I was hoping he would expand on what he was saying. There is a hint of something more, that he diverts from.
“Let’s use Steve as an example. He has a problem which he believes is a strength. In the business world, it is a strength. He manipulated his way into a position of power where he could influence the direction of his entire industry. He was able to bully and intimidate everyone around him until they did what he wanted. He is still revered as a master of his industry.”
“Here, in Heaven, his gift is not so much a strength, because we are all equal. We have few to rule over. He can bully and torture the slaves all he wants, but it does not get him anything more than the chemical rush which he is addicted to. He does not gain power or control.
After a period of time he needs another rush to satisfy his addition. It causes problems for the rest of us because we have to deal with the consequences of his actions. We can't just keep taking new slaves, because he feels the need to periodically kill someone inferior. We can tell him to calm down, or stop killing the help, but that just turns his resentment on us. It has caused him to lose some of his supporters in recent years.”
“Steve will never recognize he has a problem. He cannot change, because he identifies with his behavior. It has brought him great success. He does not want to give it up. It would be giving up who he is. It is part of his identity.”
“People must want to recognize and solve the problem, if they intend to fix it. If they do not, there is nothing anyone can do. It is the same on a personal level and a social one. On a social level, solutions become more difficult. People have to agree on what the problem is and then agree on how to solve it. In the same way that Steve will not recognize he has a problem, consumers will not recognize that they are causing climate change. They will not give up their lifestyle to make the necessary changes which need to take place. In fact, they are not capable of recognizing that there is a problem directly related to their consumption. Consumers do not want take the steps to solve the climate change problem, because they are the problem. At best, they believe that they can consume better options. However, any products they buy are still produced from resources the earth provides. The act of production is an act of pollution. Consumers cannot continue to consume products and resources, and become sustainable. they also they cannot stop consuming. Consumers would have to give up all of their conveniences and services. They would have to stop being consumers, which would be giving up their core identity.”
“Didn’t you say you created consumers?”, I asked. I had hope I would show him some flaw in his logic, but again I was defeated by his delusions.
“Yes, we did create consumers. We are responsible for the creation of their culture and their existences as a people. Since consumers won’t take responsibility for themselves, and deal with the problems, we have taken it upon ourselves to solve the problem. Of course, it is always much easier for a small number of people to agree on a solution, especially when we are not directly invested in maintaining the problem. We also have both the will and ability to fix the problem. Our solution may not be pretty, or moral, or just, but we have come together to recognize the problem and taken action to fix it. We do have plans to fix climate change, once the overpopulation and other underlying problems, are dealt with.
Projects: