SOCIETY

“Don’t Just Sit With Folded Hands and Become Blind”

We may have an impression that there is a lot of negative thoughts in the world. What should we do in relation to all the negativity?

Sometimes when my mood is down and I need to lift myself a little, I listen to music. The music can sometimes be purely instrumental like for instance “Ricochet, part 2” by Tangerine Dream. Listening to such music can give me a better day, because the music gives me rest and peace of mind, and sometimes even energy.

Other times I listen to music with words, like songs from epic music artists like Springsteen, Cohen and Mumford & Sons. Here is a line from a song by Mumford & Sons that gave me a spiritual and emotional boost today:

“ don’t just sit with folded hands and become blind” (Mumford & Sons, “Guiding Light”)

The positive in life

Every human being can benefit from being reminded of the positive in life. It is deeply human and far too easy for us to just sit passive and inactive when the world seems painful and difficult to meet. Good music and good words in songs and poems can help us out of this unfortunate development. For it is an unfortunate development, a prison when we are stuck in negative thoughts, or just as crazy — we are stuck in habitual thoughts and we uncritically accept what should not be accepted. We are sometimes unable to resist the manipulation of human minds that some out there are engaging in.

In recent years, social media has gained an increasing impact. When we look around on social media today, it is striking how many negative comments and other similar negative statements we can see. Social media has gained such a large place in people’s lives, there has been a huge change in how much negativity, criticism, hopelessness, untruths and lies we can see wherever we go, that is, in social media, in the comments section of newspapers and similar. That’s when we — as Mumford & Sons sing — may need a “guiding light”.

Is this new?

Is it the case that all this negativity is something new that has happened or is it something that has always existed?

What is certain, at least, is that the negative is visible to many more now. People who express a negative opinion can today reach many more people with their negativity, and they can thus help to create an impression that there is a lot of negativity in the world. When someone is negative, intolerant and angry, it is much easier to reach many people today than it was before. In earlier times, people could be angry and resentful, but they did not reach as many people because they had to go through a filter called the editor of the newspaper or the editor of the publication in which he wanted to publish his angry outburst.

Today we will not go far online before we come across negative comments and statements that make one a little sad, because one sees so much negativity. We often know that we should not let the negative affect us, but it can sometimes be difficult to overlook.

Humans have always criticized each other and come up with negative opinions and utterances, and that is perfectly normal. What’s new today is that the negativity and irritation becomes so easily visible because it’s just a matter of writing a few sour words, pressing a button on the phone and vips — then it’s out online! And soon you can start to see how many people visit the website and see what you have written, how many people like your negative statements and support you in the crap you do against an unknown person.

The question is whether we should let this go to us. Should we be sad because of all the unreasonable and negative things we are constantly confronted with? It is the case that when we read something negative it affects us. We get upset, and maybe a little annoyed. It is a normal and healthy reaction. This means that we still have intact the compass that says we are on the right course in relation to moral issues and ethics. But if sour-stomached outbursts, unreasonable criticism and ugly comments are not directed at us, we do not need to worry. Yes, we can care on behalf of others. Especially if someone is inadvertently subjected to ugly verbal attacks. But otherwise, in my view, it should mostly be about making the negativity invisible, preventing it from affecting the public image, the scenes where we communicate.

We must remember that those who engage in this type of utterance on social media and elsewhere — they are people who are looking to put their negative mark on our common reality in the media, both in the social and in other media.

Sometimes they are also looking for power, and power is what they sometimes achieve. They gain power over us in the way that they influence and control our thoughts and feelings in certain directions, and they use untruths and outright lies. We call what they do with one simple word manipulation. Often they also engage in indoctrination. Those who try to manipulate us play on feelings and prejudices, and they try to establish room for “alternative truths (which is another expression of lies!).

For the last four years we have had ample opportunity to observe this type of activity, where a single man with the help of Twitter and other social media and the support of millions of uncritical supporters has managed to destroy a lot when it comes to values ​​such as truth, honesty and morality in society. For example, it is disturbing that millions of people in one of the largest countries in the world seem to believe in QAnon conspiracy theories.

This massive iron curtain of negative outcomes cannot be easily suppressed or removed. But there is hope. Here and now, and in the long run, there is a medicine that helps, and that is to speak and write truth, and to hold high the moral compass that shows us direction:

“Do to others as you want them to do to you.“

2020 © Øivind H. Solheim , @oivind47, teacher, author of novels, poetry, articles, essays, short fiction and experimental writing. [email protected]