The biggest divide in our society today isn’t necessarily a political one.
It’s an ethical one that comes down to the individual versus the collective.
Individualists believe in respecting the sanctity of the inherent rights of every person without regard to their race, sex, religion or credit score.
Collectivists hold that our rights are communal in nature and therefore subject to the whims of the majority.
You can guess which side of this equation is obsessed with trying to control the people around them and which one is content to let others peacefully make their own choices.
As G. Ed Griffin points out:
“Because individualists do not accept group supremacy, collectivists often portray them as being selfish and insensitive to the needs of others. But individualism is not based on ego. It is based on principle.”
Instead of trying to control everyone around us, the way to improve the world is to instead focus on becoming the best individuals we can be.
This means we must be willing to stop spitting and hissing over who or what we resent and get our own act together.
When we are engaged in our own individual hero’s journey, we become a civilized force for good rather than more division.
Collectivism absolves us from personal responsibility and encourages us to stagnate in our development.
Heroic individualism requires that we have skin in the game.
The higher our objective, the more refined our methods should be to achieve it.
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