Civilization is not spread evenly. The Sistine Chapel is a masterpiece. Yet it was built in a world where much of humanity lived in mud huts. Don’t get cocky; some people still live in mud huts.
Nor is civilization evenly distributed across time. A lot of people assume everything inevitably “progresses” forward; upward and better. This is an incorrect assumption made by folks who have seen nothing else. Anyone who’s experienced mud huts in real-time is not so dismissive of modern comforts and will happily struggle to keep the lights on.
Civilization ebbs and flows. It mirrors the society which fosters or erodes it. Society reflects the character of its people. None of this implies things must get better or can’t get worse. Nor are you limited to the level of the society in which you’re stuck. A life lived well can and should be independent of the masses.
Chuck Mangione died this week. He produced this song in 1979. I remember hearing it on the radio. I lived in a world where this song was popular, commercially successful, and performed (or broadcast) to willing audiences.
Cardi B is still among us. She produced this in 2020. I remember hearing it on the radio. I live in a world where this song was popular, commercially successful, and performed (or broadcast) to willing audiences. S0 do you.
I apologize for exposing y’all to Cardi B. I wanted to make a point that 41 years forward in time doesn’t guarantee (or even imply) 41 years forward in civilization. The songs I picked are just an example. It’s not a perfect representation. If I wanted to play devil’s advocate I could’ve picked the best of 2025 and compare it to the worst of 1979… but I know damn well it would be a harder search.
When I first heard WAP on the radio I was shocked. Here’s the funny part, I wasn’t shocked by a woman in heat chanting about her vagina; good lord there’s no indecency left unexplored (not necessarily just in rap, pretty much anything on any media is awash in perversion). The thing that hit me was that people listened to that crap voluntarily.
To me, it’s almost painfully bad. It’s objectively… crap. I don’t like exposing myself to it. I wouldn’t rub dogshit on my face, why listen to Cardi B?
Anyway, when someone (often tied to politics) is telling you “progress” must go forward they’re fools. It’s a two way street and always has been.
The good news is that society can go in the tank or fly to the stars and that has nothing to do with you. You may improve or you may degrade… it’s a journey you take alone. The collective’s failings and strengths will reflect in the state of civilization at that particular time and place but if it all goes to shit you can (and should) choose to disengage.
The trick is knowing when you’re in the Sistine Chapel and when you’re rubbing dog shit on your face. Once you figure that out, you can shake it off and walk toward the light.
Good luck y’all.