I'm OK, You're Not OK And The State Of STEEM

A Little Over A Year Ago...

...I wrote a post about a book called Pendulum: How Past Generations Shape Our Present And Predict Our Future by Roy H. Williams and Michael R. Drew.

At the time, I wrote about it mostly because of the contention so prevalent (and still ongoing) in the political system and thus throughout society, particularly the United States.

However, given what is happening now on and around STEEM, I thought the message of that earlier post merits a revisit, without repeating all of the details, but adding some now very pertinent information not shared in the previous version.

A Short Review

Pendulum takes a look at 80-year spans of time and breaks them down into smaller 40-year and 20-year increments. Each 40-year period corresponds to either an age of Me, where the emphasis is on the individual, or of We, when, you guessed it, the collective or community is more the focus.

Since 2013, according to the authors, Western Civilization began the upswing to a We zenith, a 20-year period of time (so, through 2033) concisely characterized as I'm OK, you're not OK.

It has been during such a score period, particularly the ten years leading up to the zenith, where the pendulum begins to rock the other way, when "...virtually every instance of widespread viciousness in Western society has happened..."

As I mentioned in the other post, that doesn't mean every last horrible and tragic thing occurs, but rather, societal shifts in thought and behavior lead to excesses that then allow for things to happen that don't seem to happen on such a scale during other periods. For a taste, here's a look at 80 years ago and farther back:

The idea that history repeats itself seems to be spelled out here. The accompanying thought that the reason why it repeats itself is because people forget is only partially right. Typically, those who experienced the last round are mostly gone or widely dismissed as old, out of touch, senile, etc., even if they do offer a warning cry.

In other words, "Okay, Boomer."

You'll note that with 1783, 1863, and 1943, there were major wars (particularly for the U.S.) raging or nearing an end, but in addition, other things were happening, either leading up to or continuing after those zenith points.

Some things take time to build up and boil over, and then, like a ripple effect, they can be felt for a period of time after.

So, Am I Predicting Something?

Not really. I'm just pointing out that history has continually repeated itself, and if we don't manage to somehow avoid some kind of major calamity, the next three years in particular could be volatile, with the fallout continuing for sometime after.

What Does This Have To Do With The State Of STEEM?

Well, you'll note that I've referred to this current 20 year period of I'm OK, You're Not Okay pertaining to Western society. That leaves a whole other half of the planet that just so happens to be in a different part of the 80 year cycle. In fact, they are 40 years behind or ahead, depending on how you wish to look at it.

Regardless, while we are heading to the zenith of a We, Eastern civilization is approaching the zenith of a Me. That 20-year period is characterized as I'm not OK, You're Okay. And, unfortunately, that's the second worst period to be in.

This idea of West and East is very appropriate, given where STEEM is in our current battle for custody, for lack of a better phrasing, with Justin Sun. While many on STEEM are not from the West, most of the top Witnesses, and thus the prevailing movers of thought, seem to be mostly occidental, while Sun, TRON, the exchanges helping him, etc., are more oriental in origin and thus thought.

Why We Can't Have Nice Things

Humans tend to take a good thing too far. As show in the above image, ideals that may have good qualities if taken to the extreme, become the opposite of what was intended.

So, if you look at the second row in both the We and the Me, you see basically where West and East as separate wholes are assumably heading.

Not only are they in opposition to the their own ideals, they don't play very well with the others' ideals either.

The first row of either the We or Me in terms of where we are now represents where Western and Eastern societies are coming out of, while the second row essentially lists where we are going for the next, in this case, 13 years.

Primary Motivators

Expanding upon the above lists, we can see what has been propelling each side forward.

In my mind, with potential exceptions, those last two images describe what's currently happening to us, on the macro scale of the entire world, and on the more micro level of STEEM.

Is it any wonder, if any of this can be taken seriously (and I propose it certainly should give us a moment's pause at the very least), that we just seem hellbent on not getting along? It's because both sides, West and East, STEEM community and Sun, are at the points where both value sets are being taken too far, to the point where they're losing their luster. The bloom is off the rose, as it were.

Well, Ain't That Peachy

While I leave that for you to ponder, it might be easy to arrive to the conclusion that all of this is inevitable. Perhaps it is, at least on the macro. But I don't believe in fate, and I reject the idea that individuals have no control over their own actions or who they may become. In my mind, overcoming human nature is at the core of why we are here. It is our main and central purpose.

But what to do? A pendulum has a lot of momentum. The winds of change won't be very evident for at least another decade. What can we do?

Well, aside from hoping and holding on for a better tomorrow, authors and Williams and Drew offer a simple remedy, a two part immunization that might not cure the disease, but it might help to ease it.

Not surprisingly, it's advice we've heard before, and quite frankly, should and can be applied in any period up and back along the pendulum's path.

So, It's Just That Easy?

Probably not. At least, not immediately. If it were to be applied in the case of STEEM community vs. Sun, it might take a while to get there, because trust at this point seems worst than fleeting.

However, talks after a sorts have begun. A meeting took place today and other was/is (?) scheduled for tomorrow. The community participants can show up as a mob, demanding absolutes, or they can attempt to look at things from Sun's point of view, and offer alternatives that can be mutually beneficial, thus putting Sun in the position of doing the same.

I guess it all depends on whether we only want to give into our baser nature, or are willing to fight against the tide.

We have an opportunity here of knowing where we're going by knowing, and acknowledging, where we've been.

_{Images source—Pendulum digital copy}