Nick's Journal
If you read through the articles in the blog in their entirety, I imagine that you will come across many themes that will seem to repeat in some form or another. This is somewhat unavoidable when you focus on things like virtues, philosophical framings and ways in which to conduct yourself. They will invariably overlap and necessitate acknowledgement in any number of different discussions.
I think today will be an example of such a topic, in particular how it relates to decision-making and how you navigate the world. The topic I am focused on this week, that of Noise versus Signal, is likely one that will resonate even with younger readers, due to its near overwhelming prevalence in the online world.
It is probably helpful that I define my usage of these terms before diving deeper into why they are such an important topic in the modern world, though I suspect the majority of you will understand them in this same context. Noise, as it relates to this discussion, refers to the low-effort, impulsive and often emotion driven and reactive thought that have become the lion’s share of what is posted online. There are many reasons for this, not the least of which is the oft-discussed algorithm and its obsessive quest to maximize attention.
Signal, in this same context, would be essentially the opposite to that. It is the careful and considered thought, the thought that requires introspection, honesty, vulnerability and possibly even outright reputational cost in order to put out into the world. Rather than seek engagement for engagement’s sake, it seeks it only if it comes with good intention, a willingness to engage with the reality of a topic and not just its softer or safer sides. And more than anything, it seeks the truth, even if that truth means that it is wrong or requires a sacrifice.
The last decade has been terrible for those who seek out and desire balanced and thoughtful discussion. Noise has become the default setting, the economically rewarded one, the socially expected one. For those of us who experienced a before and after, it is stark and bleak in its contrast to what came before it. To those who never had the benefit of a before, I can only imagine how damaging the implications.
For those who do not read, do not seek out other forms of media, and whose lives revolve around social media, online forums or other such repositories, you would start to have your views formed by the least worthy opinions. Opinions which are almost always tailored to evoke a reaction, to antagonize one side versus another. You would think that love is simply a game of who manipulates the other party the best while seeming to miss the obvious, that those posting such strategies are invariably those least successful in long-term relationships. You would look at politics as a sport, one where you pick a team and follow it blindly, unable to understand anything about civic responsibility, the implications of policies and the very real consequences of your actions.
And yet, this is the world now. The reasoned opinion is either drowned out by the sea of noise or outright attacked as naïve, or wishful thinking, or any number of other epithets which are thrown its way. To post in such a manner is to invite derision, not thoughtful discourse. It is to be ignored, not engaged with.
Now, this is not to say that younger generations are less capable. Far from it, as they see the issue clearly, feel it in their very souls. How could they not, as the Divine, if nothing else, is honed around Truth. They know even as they read the nonsense that permeates the entirety of the online world that something seems off, that there is nothing aspirational in hating the other sex, in hating your neighbor over every difference, in hating your country, your ancestors and your history. That all of that runs counter to the things that should matter, the striving to improve and build and grow from the mistakes of the past, rather than condemn, persecute and outright attack its descendants.
So what is one to do to avoid falling into the trap that this presents? Like everything else in life, it falls on the individual to understand what is happening, to understand its true cause, and to make decisions that acknowledge the whole and allow you to continue forward. You must not allow despair to take hold, you must not allow your views of those around you to lessen, you must not simply succumb to the lies and the falsehoods, for if you do, you will find no salvation in their embrace.
Signal is never more important than when it is near impossible to find. It has never mattered more to be able to find your voice and express opinions that go against what you know to be wrong. They will come at a cost, a cost that is as high as it has ever been in my lifetime. They have carried such costs in the past as well though. Persecution is not unique to the online world, it is a theme that runs throughout history. If Truth was easy, if it was rewarded, then it would barely be needed at all, as it would be the default. The fact that lies are all that surround you should tell you everything you need to know about the road you will face in trying to uphold it.
If you do seek to walk that path, know that you must do it with the same tact that you would anything in your life. You cannot use it as a path to status or superiority, in which you cast yourself as better than those in the throes of the noise. You cannot shout them into submission, cannot cast aside all their opinions as worthless. You must engage, understand, provide perspective and be prepared for rejection, time and time again. For the path to Truth comes from walking paths both right and wrong, from learning for yourself which of the versions that you have been told were true and which false.
It is not a path arrived at overnight, or through a single interaction. It is a journey that will encapsulate your life, and theirs. Nearly everyone you meet will be at a different stage, and understanding this and allowing both to walk as they must is how you can navigate life together rather than apart.
Regardless of where you are on your journey, I hope that you read this and understand what is written here. If you have bothered reading it at all then I suspect that you will. And if you are on this journey, then consider perhaps a more assertive stance. A stance I will call the Defiant Divine. For we are all at our best when we stand up and believe in what we are doing, not in expectation of reward but in spite of its absence.
Truth will seem like a burden, it will seem like a never ending struggle, it will seem like the very definition of a Sisyphean task. And yet, once started and understood, it becomes the least heavy weight of all, the task that makes sense of all the rest, the task that always mattered most.
A task to build a life around.
Much love as always,
Nick