Nihilism, Fundamentalism, or Activism: How Will You Respond to the End of The World?

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Clearly the world as we know it is coming to an end. In my recent article, The End of America: What Are the Warning Signs?  I talked about the signs of change I saw in the U.S. However, Global Warming, Peak Oil, Population Increases, and Economic Disruptions are impacting people all over the world and remind us that we can not go on the way we have been. At the core of our dilemma is the fact that we have been living on planet earth and using up resources in a way that is clearly unsustainable. More and more people are waking up from our denial and accepting that things must change. There are three ways we can handle the reality of our lives as we approach the end of 2007: Nihilism, Fundamentalism, or Activism. Which one will you choose?

When my wife, Carlin, and I visited Australia a few years ago I was drawn to "the other side of the world" to learn some things about my life and what I had to look forward to in the second half. I’ll be 65 years old next year and I’m looking forward to another 65. Richard Eckersley is a researcher on progress and well-being and visiting fellow at the National Centre for Epidemiology and Population Health at the Australian National University. He is a founding director of Australia 21, www.Australia21.org.au. I found there were many things we can learn by looking "down under."

Writing in the January-February, 2008 issue of The Futurist Eckersley says, "We are being drawn in at least three directions by suspicions of an impending apocalypse (in either a literal, religious sense or figuratively speaking. The ‘business as usual’ denial that has been the dominant response until recently is giving way to nihilism, fundamentalism, and activism."

Nihilism: Decadence Rules

"Nihilism," says Eckersley, "is the abandonment of belief in a social or moral order." When we feel the rules of social interaction are broken beyond repair, we think "I might as well get as much as I can for myself." If everything is about to end, we might as well have our last meal and accumulate as much material pleasure as we can round up. With this mind set we want to "eat, drink, and be merry (and make as much money as we can so we can eat more, drink more, and merry more.)

Fundamentalism: Dogma Rules

"Fundamentalism," says Eckersley, "refers to the retreat to the certainty of dogmatic beliefs, whether secular or religious." In reflecting on how he sees this response operating in our country he says, "In an extreme form, this is ‘end time’ thinking—rife among fundamentalist Christians in the United States—in which global war and warming are embraced as harbingers of the Rapture and Christ’s return to Earth." It’s a philosophy that President Bush often seems to embrace (See my recent article George Needs a Job. Can You Help?

Activism: Hope Rules

"Activism," says Eckersley, "reflects the desire to create a new conceptual framework or worldview (stories, values, beliefs) that will make a sustainable, equitable future possible." Activism’s political cutting edge is the global development of what social activist and entrepreneur Paul Hawken describes in his recent book, Blessed Unrest, as the largest social movement in history.

I like to think of myself as an activist. In my day-to-day life I act on my belief that we have the potential to move from an old, unsustainable world order to one that is based on living in balance with nature. However, I also recognize that there are times when I feel the pull of a nihilistic "fuck it" philosophy that says, "To hell with the world. Let it burn itself up. Give me a good bottle of scotch, all the Sushi I can eat, and a last sexual fling with my wife, and I’ll die a happy man."

I also have fantasies of becoming the emperor of the world, killing off all those who believe differently from me, and whipping the rest of the crazy humans into shape.

Generally my balance sheet looks something like this:

Nihilism = 10%

Fundamentalism = 5%

Activism = 85%.

It isn’t easy maintaining the hope that Activism requires, but I keep working at it.

A lot depends on our beliefs about our future, what we tell ourselves about our world, the stories we live by. "A key task," concludes Eckersley, "is to ensure that these stories reflect neither the decadence and degeneracy of nihilism nor the dogma and rigidity of fundamentalism, but the hope and creative energy of activism."

What do you think? What’s your balance sheet look like these days? What percentage of your time do you spend in nihilism, fundamentalism, and activism?