23. Good Unity and Bad Unity

There's good naked and bad naked, but the only bad steak is a VR one

Another Matrix Reference

I love the steak scene in The Matrix as a fable of contemporary life. In it, the character Cypher is dining in a high-end restaurant inside the Matrix. He's having a conversation with Agent Smith, saying he wants to betray his comrades and return to the simulated reality of the Matrix.

He savors a delicious-looking steak while acknowledging that it isn't real; it's simply a product of data fed to his brain by the Matrix, creating the illusion of satisfaction.

I’ve been referencing The Matrix a lot recently in TMMW. Partly it's because I’m wrapping up writing a sci-fi book that ruminates on similar themes, so this stuff is top of mind. But really, I do believe some themes in that movie are increasingly relevant.

I know it’s weird for someone to say that because, well, that movie depicts humanity living entirely inside little pods immersed in an artificial VR.

When I first saw it years ago, I thought it was comically absurd to imagine that humans would ever opt into such a life. Every sci-fi has things you’re supposed to suspend disbelief about. But I couldn’t buy the basic premise—I mean, what the hell would it take to convince the whole of humanity that it’s a good idea to be born inside a virtual reality simulation?

I wish I could say it still seemed implausible. OK, I’m aware it’s a work of fiction. But I also believe there’s value in entertaining the possibility that it depicts a future that we are actively driving towards. At some point, the brightest minds in humanity will even think it’s a really good idea— that virtual life is safe, ethical, and even more spiritual.

Who is this we?

Yeah, I don't think anyone reading this is necessarily interested in living in one of those matrix pods and living a life trapped in a virtual reality simulation. So who am I talking about?

1. The leadership driving large corporations and tech companies

Here, don't get me wrong -- I'm not tech-bashing, and I’m not CEO-bashing, not by any stretch.

What steers an organization more than any one person is the collective wounding of those who belong to that organization. This "we" refers to the unspoken organizational imperatives that somehow emerge when a group of people cohere within a corporate entity.

It is mysterious to me how corporate motives always veer ever so subtly towards sociopathic growth, which would, over time, turn a nifty search bar into a massive whole-life-tracking targeted ad network in the guise of “free information”.

If a product is free, you're the product.

The solution probably isn’t restriction or regulation but people building something better.

2. The parts of every human that are less than perfectly conscious

By conscious, I mean free and able to choose their actions.

With each passing year, humanity grows increasingly addicted to our phones and more disconnected from each other, our innate creativity, and even our own bodies and emotions.

That right there is the Matrix effect -- a growing division and alienation. Algorithms and social isolation enforce dull little bubbles and echo chambers. Increasingly, I hear from people who actually hate their phones and loathe how they get hooked into wasting time on social media.

It’s unproductive to blame ourselves or each other for being tech addicted. That’s what it is being increasingly designed to do.

Good Unity and Bad Unity

Just as Seinfeld posits that there is “good naked” and “bad naked,” there’s definitely also a good unity and bad unity.

Bad unity is the matrix: Humanity universally agrees to have nothing to do with each other and live in safe little bubbles.

Good unity is what happens when the 99 percent stops fighting itself.

Remember the 99 percent movement? There was a collective rally around the realization that 1% of the population controlled nearly all the wealth.

What was coolest about this was not that the 1% is the enemy. It's that almost everyone belongs to the same basic group in comparison with the one-percenters.

source

There isn't much disparity between the poorest and everyone else in the middle percentile. The disparity begins to grow at the 90th percentile, but not by much. The 90th percentile earns three times the average.

That’s the difference between coach and first class, but at least we all fly on the same plane. Flying on your own jet is a whole different category.

What's even crazier, though, is that the higher you move up in income, the more you also generate wealth from sources other than income. Lower income is all income. Higher income is just a mountain of money working to make you money.

So if we’re so much alike, why are we so divisive?

It’s a big question, and I’d like to write more about it in future posts. If you have thoughts on this topic, let me know. I would really appreciate your input.

I do know that things got weirder after the pandemic. Things were weird during the pandemic, and that became the new normal.

Cultivate Unity

We’re irreversibly taking baby steps toward a matrix-like dystopia unless we consciously build better systems and communities.

I'm dubious about the role that regulation can play. Cookie banners aren't really making my life better.

Unity—the “good” kind—is something you have to create within yourself and actively hold space for.

Stretch yourself beyond your comfort zone and perceived limits—and don't judge others for doing the same.

Unity… yeah, it’s not going to jump out at you. So I think it has to be something we actively look for. Seek common ground and shared values. Build the muscle of empathy. Accept people where they are. Seek creative possibilities above conclusions.

Devote yourself to what you’re passionate about.

Connect with each other around sources of inspiration, truth, and beauty.

…And read the newspaper naked, if you’d like.