How We Can Wage a Meaningful Revolution Against a Rigged Society

Without setting things on fire

Rage Against the Machine was one of my favorite bands in high school.

It wasn’t just their music that got me hooked. It was also what they stood for. Rage Against the Machine’s anti-establishment, fuck the man, fuck the system message resonated so much with me.

I considered myself an activist when I was younger. I read political books in my spare time and was always plugged into current events. In college, I majored in public administration and dreamt of working in politics. My first job after graduation was as a canvasser, collecting signatures and donations for organizations that supported nuclear disarmament and LGBTQ rights.

But, as we all know, life has a funny way of leading down unexpected roads. My political career never came to be.

Instead, I became a nurse. And with that change in career trajectory also came a shift in perspective. Even though I remain informed and educated about current events, I no longer have the same activist mindset I once had.

A big part of my shift involves disillusionment with the establishment.

The establishment sucks. It really does. It’s better for your spouse to gift you a molar extraction on your anniversary than expect the establishment to make meaningful changes.

The problem isn’t that the movers and shakers lack ideas. They’re smart (I think). And I bet they know exactly what is right for most of us. Sadly, the common good doesn’t always jive with what’s good for a few privileged people.

Unfortunately, it’s these plutocrats that bankroll our leaders…

We can kick and scream and “make our voices heard.” But at the end of the day, those who possess deep pockets shall win the attention of our “public servants.”

I’m not here to shit on the idea of civil disobedience.

But standing in picket lines, boycotting companies, and waving banners isn’t enough anymore…

Activism alone can’t fix inflation, defeat bigotry, defend civil liberties, or save Social Security.

We need new ways to fight back.

The good news? We can do so by not fighting at all.

Instead, we can change the way we think.

Everything — from the type of underwear we wear to our collective decision of success — is shaped by the decision makers of society who possess deep connections and even deeper pockets.

Throughout our lives, they’ve leveraged their deep connections and even deeper pockets to dictate what success should mean.

We’re told that:

• The bigger your house, the “wealthier” you are
• You’ve “made it” if you have luxury cars and a collection of gold watches
• Going to college, getting into ridiculous amounts of debt, and working ungodly hours while you burn away your soul and identity for 30–40+ years is a sign of being “industrious” and “self-sufficient.”

There’s nothing wrong with having material wealth, going to college, or working long hours if that’s what you genuinely want.

But if you look closely enough, you’ll notice that the current standards of success almost always involve buying more, owning more, and running endlessly on a hamster wheel so we can afford lives we can’t afford.

It all makes sense when you think about it. The ruling class needs a steady stream of workers and customers, and those are precisely what they want us to be.

We are brainwashed to want MORE because satisfaction is terrible for the bottom line. Anyone who dares to dream of a life of having LESS is dismissed as having no ambitions or being unmotivated.

So yes, the game is rigged.

But clamoring for change from those benefiting from our rigged system won’t get us anywhere. Doing so would require playing a game we can’t win.

The solution is to play an entirely different game.

Here are a few ideas on how we can do that:

• Rather than envy your neighbor with a bigger house, love your own.
• Buy an economy sedan instead of a luxury SUV with an atrocious monthly payment. Or ride a bike.
• Instead of signing a 100K college loan, consider what you want from life and if college really fits into the equation.
• Use windfalls to eliminate debt. Or, put more money into your investment accounts instead of shopping for things you’ll soon forget you own.

We don’t need yelling, rioting, shooting, and chaos to ignite a revolution.

Instead, we must realize that the standards we’ve accepted as inescapable realities of life are designed to keep us poor and unhappy. Once we do, we’ll be more likely to change how we approach our lives.

It’s time to treat our lives, not money, as the most valuable currency.

Henry David Thoreau once said,

The price of anything is the amount of life you exchange for it.

Money is nothing but a symbol of value. Its meaning is derived from a social contract. On its own, money is meaningless.

Life, however, is intrinsically valuable. Life is what enables us to seek purpose and happiness. While there is life, there is hope. We can’t hope if we’re dead.

Sadly, hustle culture and an often unfounded desire to “get ahead” have blinded us to what matters. Our consumer-driven, “bigger is better” society taught us that giving up pieces of our lives in the name of money is OK. It’s no wonder we miss birthdays, forget anniversaries, and lose touch with friends and family for years.

The movers and shakers of society will have you believe that there’s nothing wrong. That we’re doing exactly what we should.

Don’t believe it. It’s time to unplug yourself from the matrix. You deserve so much more, and you know it.

So go ahead. Stage your quiet revolution.

Choose simplicity in a society that rewards excess.

Choose life in a society that glorifies money.

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