Elders Should Be Seen — Not Heard
Mothers and fathers, give up on your dreams; your life is no longer about YOU. It is about the future. You had your chance to chase your dreams; to change the world. Your time is over. Now it’s time to support the future generations in achieving their dreams; their visions. We will fail the future generations if we do not focus on what THEY want and do everything in our power to deliver on their desires. That is what a parent does and we are all parents of the future. While the old were complacent with the systems they inherited, the new breed must scrap everything immediately and start over. The elderly should help and not lead.
We are not discounting the value of the human life which has gained experience in this world. We are elevating the importance of maximizing resource efficiency and effectiveness. The old generation typically holds power of resources and uses those resources to their advantage rather than for the greater good. The less time that a person has in this world, the less influence they should have in matters. We may not all agree on what happens at the end of our lives, but we do agree that we cannot take physical possessions with us. Ownership is an outdated concept and requires a new approach. Ownership encourages greed and greed leads to catastrophe.
Should our leaders be qualified by age? The President of the United States must be at least 35 years old to be voted into office. The Founding Fathers most likely came to the conclusion that maturity should be reached before power could be properly managed. The average life expectancy was much lower than it is today. The Founding Fathers did not have to worry about someone living twice the minimum age during their time. If they thought 70-year-old men and woman would be common, they may have created a maximum age restriction. Anyone at that age should be listened to as counsel, but cannot possibly understand the newest generation of young constituents. Evolution leaves behind the person, but takes with it the impressions of that life. People should not be put in a position of power, especially when they are no longer relevant. The reality is that it is not possible for a human to control their power.
Civilization is leaderless. What we have is not civilization. Our current state of affairs is barbaric, disgusting, and unimaginable. What we have is what is left from the previous generations of savages. Old people overlook the harm their infrastructure has on humanity because they have grown up with it; it is as much a part of them as they are of it. This is our inheritance. They have left us with a giant flaming bag of poop. Should we stomp?
It is the nature of the youth to push progress, to build on top of their predecessors, to move closer to the truth — and to stomp. The nature of the older generation is in direct opposition. One way to rectify this conflict is for the youth to forcefully take control. A more preferred option is for the old generation to join the youth in an attempt to make this world as good as it can be in the time they have left. With the support of the eldest generation, it is possible to make immediate global change. We live in a world integrated with technology, changing because of technology, and technology is leading this change. So why are our leaders not technologists? Why are we being led by old people who are still trying to figure out how to set the time on their VCR? The People don’t need to take anything from anyone. We have to agree to solve our own problems and wait for the old to pass. They can’t take it with them; they never owned it in the first place.
The next big thing in our lifetime is not a new technology or gadget, it is a global social change. We are putting our resources in the hands of the few and it serves their interests well. The important global problems are right in front of us, sitting next to many potential solutions, and all we have to do is put in some work. We need to enact a global initiative to connect all people as a matter of communication and logistics. Our existing technology is capable of carrying out this (r)evolution. Old solutions may not still be the best solutions and should be considered suspect. War is outdated and inhumane. The People have the resources to serve the world and provide everyone with their basic human needs.
The youth are pushing for (r)evolution and the youth will revolt. Be that cool grandpa or hip grandma and join the youth in the (r)evolution. What do you have to lose? Live life! It’s time to put evolution into hyper-speed. It’s time to start Hacking Capitalism.
