My Errant Mind

What is it that brings people together or sets them apart?

There are the obvious answers, of course—race, religion, ethnicity, geography and so forth. There are other answers that aren’t so obvious, because they are personal and different for everyone.

Those of us who blog think we have something worth saying. Those of us who read blogs think there is something worth reading.

Out there (or is it here?) in the blogosphere, we are being human.

In the blogosphere, we’re evolving.

The Compulsion To Share Thoughts

Everyone has something they believe resolutely in. It may be an idea or notion, a set of morals and values, some dream for life, thoughts about a way of life, or ideals and gut feelings that we base our world-view around.

And, perhaps, we all think—even if only a little—that sharing those things with others is important to defining our place in life?

Perhaps it is just being human, giving in to the need that we as a species have to communicate, and nothing more?

Perhaps it is partly that we seek meaning in all aspects of life, and—being human—we long to share with those around us the least thing we discover that we think might have some meaning or be of importance?

The Compulsion To Live Among Those Of A Like Mind

We seem as a species to prefer living among those who share a world-view similar to our own. Animals mostly just care about whether or not those in the herd, pack, or flock are of the same species.

Not so with humans. We come together in clans, tribes, cities, states and nations, seeking out and fostering a homogeneous sociality.

However, rapidly advancing technology and science has wrought great change among the world’s civilizations. Travel is easier, communication faster, and communities are increasingly diversified as a result of the morphing of global economics.

Yet, there is an attraction to living among your own kind. Is it merely biological, or is there more to it?

I wonder if the simple answer is that it just makes us feel good? But how does that explain that we also enjoy, sometimes even require—and thrive on and because of—the presence of those who are different from us and that we disagree with?

The Compulsion To Live Among Those Of An Unlike Mind

Some people are attracted to a particular country or city or village because it has a diverse composition. Again, I think this attraction goes back to a need for communication and the need to find and share meaning in life.

Hence, some people prefer to live in an area where most people are more similar to their own ethnic and social and political composition.

Others seek diversity; some people find they thrive in an atmosphere of flux and conflicting ideals and social tensions. If you’ve ever been in a country when there is political unrest in the air—such as before riots and major protests—you understand.

There’s something palpable in the air. You feel the tension.

Just before you reach that particular sort of tension, there is the healthy and even welcome tension that comes from the collision of cultures and ideas. For many people, there’s an inexplicable attraction to it all, an urge which must be satisfied, a need which must be sated.

Perhaps this is why the blogosphere is so fascinating? It is, after all, the easiest way for those who enjoy that particular collision of cultures and ideas to find that tension at any given time, from any place with a connection to the Internet.

Best Of Both In The Blogosphere

Blogging is cathartic for a lot of people.

[Note: Cathartic can mean pertaining to catharsis and cathartical both. The former is releasing things pent up in the mind, the latter is a releasing of things pent up in the bowels. Given the range of what is to be found in the blogosphere, I thought it more fitting to use cathartic than wrap a sentence around catharsis, which would have cheated the spirit of this particular section.]

You can write about, learn about, and discuss anything and everything. And to the degree you choose. Only time and willingness challenge you.

And perhaps carpal tunnel syndrome.

I could be wrong, of course. But, for me, this is one way I seek discovery—sharing ideas and awaiting feedback. It helps fill in the gaps that I find in life.

Social Evolution Has A New Catalyst

WordPress helps me evolve.

It is my current blogging solution of choice. That may change, but for now, it works.

It allows me to reach out and speak to you. It allows you to speak to me. Ideas and vague notions take shape, morph, grow, and fade away.

Ephemeral postings are relegated to archives of mental evolution.

Blogging is anthropological evidence of evolution for a new age. We’re seeing the cataloging of humankind’s collective thoughts as never before. Whatever the pros and cons are of spending one’s time kicking about in the blogosphere, there’s one thing that is undeniable.

We’re gaining valuable insight into our species.

And change happens because of it. Ideas creep into peripheries or leap across divides, and lives are changed. People begin to think, act, and live differently—sometimes in subtle ways, sometimes in not-so-subtle ways.

Social evolution has found a new catalyst for a new age. It’s called blogging.

Make no mistake. Social evolution will lead to changes in science and technology as our ideas, beliefs, and odd notions direct our energies and research efforts. Future advances will shape the lives of future generations and people will adapt to new lifestyles.

Meaning Is Revealed

We are on the cusp of shaping our evolution by our own hands, rather than solely by the dictates of our environment. We humans are are realizing that perhaps there’s more in store for our species than the fruits of having faithfully contributed to a 401k plan.

Blogging is yet another window into our collective human soul. Looking through it, we can find evidence for meaning, even if it is not yet clear to us what it is.

Yes, there may yet be fog on the window, making it hard to see inside clearly. But we see enough to keep looking—because we can sense the moment of pending Clarity might be just around the corner (on Clary’s blog, no less).

We begin to realize and confront what the fuzzy images inside our collective soul tell us about ourselves as a species.

We find meaning.

And so: I blog, therefore I am.