what is happening society and why is everyone experiencing an existential crisis? 

it seems like the last couple of years has been fraught with tension after tension

the catholic church scandal, the me too movement, blm, stop asian hate, trump, trans politics etc etc 

but why?

founder ~ spuddie.ai ✨twitter.com/emmabwaldron

let’s look at how *and why* societies evolved into what they are today 

for the majority of human history people lived in small communities fishing and farming. they were ruled by a local chief and were pagans worshipping the sun, moon and stars. there was no need for organized religion.

as cities grew, the need for organization and socialization grew along with them. 

first it came in the form of the roman empire. rome was one of the biggest cities pre industrial revolution and its population was still just 1 million at its height.

it is famous for its engineering constructing sophisticated infrastructure like aqueducts, invented urban planning, advanced dwellings with public and private quarters. 

they developed a legal system, social order and a road network as part of conquering other territories

romanization was an actual term for the spreading of roman culture, values and language in a similar way to how americanization is used today to describe the spread of american culture

but as the roman empire grew in size and diversity a new power was needed.. christianity.

as the empire grew in size and complexity, traditional social bonds & institutions began to break down, and people were left feeling isolated and disconnected. 

christianity offered a sense of fellowship, mutual support & a shared sense of purpose and mission…

religion created a bond, moral framework, sense of purpose and community that was lacking 

today we have witnessed the erosion of religion and many of the social bonds that connected us

the nuclear family where we historically found responsibility and thus meaning is being undermined

trad world religions where people find community, belonging and their values reflected back to them is no longer important to our generation

and our workplace has been dismantled both by covid and more interestingly because of the nature of work for a lot of folks there is no longer a need for an office

side note: it’s ironic that everyone was worried that ai would replace low-skilled workers but turns out software developers have made themselves redundant with ai 😂

so because people can now work from anywhere they are moving out of urban environments 

back into smaller communities, tier 2 cities or outside of but in close proximity to tier 1 cities 

so knowing that in order for societies to function religion has been the single biggest determinant of success, what do we do now?

for as long as people have been around people have worshiped 

newgrange in ireland is a burial chamber older than the pyramids containing swirls representing the stars and sun 

we are predisposed to worship and it can be a force for good for the majority..

there is a desire amoungst many for equality that they cannot find in a capitalist society and so communist / marxist ideals are creeping in and we all know how that story ends 

so how do we create something akin to a religion that is a force for upward mobility for society that was used for 100s of yrs to benefit all

i don’t have the answer.. but i’m pondering it because without it, it will lead to the destruction of civilization and possibly before agi destroys us lolz

there was extreme economic inequality where power and wealth in rome was held by a few but the majority of roman’s lived in poverty 

christianity offered a world view where everyone is equal in the eyes of god

sound familiar?