Comments on “Atomization: the kaleidoscope of meaning”

The notion of the Atomized Mode leads me to wonder if there’s almost an inversion of the complete stance which recognizes eternalism and nihilism simultaneously, but in the wrong way. Too much meaning, in bite-sized morsels, becomes not enough meaning when those morsels are summed (in the sense that smooth connections are not possible). Or, is this sort of reasoning as easily applicable within the other modes?

This is a wonderful stratification of the current social landscape! I recently watched a music video from a link that contends with the “extremes” that the atomized mode pushes those looking to create unique things into acts that are truly “unique”.

‘“Authenticity” of self, like authenticity of culture, becomes meaningless when there is no “thine own” to be true to. ‘ This is a very crucial insight, especially when so many culture warriors argue about “authenticity”. If you try to claim “thine own”, there will be critics who will tell you that you have no right to such a claim, which discourages further attempt to be anything other than a jagged individual. I think that this “authenticity”-based criticism also prevents fluidity, often through claims of cultural misappropriation. I’m not sure how we’ll get past this.

Odd that this atomization leads to such homogenization, conformity, sameness and mediocrity. “Gangnam Style”? Really? This is where it has all led?

“Now, everyone in the world listens to the same music, regardless of genre, again—just because it’s trending on YouTube.”

Not everyone. I don’t.

10 years later and Gangam Style now has 4.6 billion plays. Still relevant apparently!

In response to Sasha’s noticing that automization leads to homogenization… I wonder if the relationship is causal or incidental? Also is it really homogenization or is it just that there are still things we have in common even as we become more and more unique. I’m glad that despite the trends towards individuation there are still somethings that bind us together, music and creativity being primary amongst them.

Glad to see the website getting some fluffing! I love reading and rereading Meaningness.

Let’s assume totally consistent systems are possible. What are the choices that have to made on all levels in order to create and support such systems that value health of everything and everyone including nature and the planet over all else (a completely and utterly transparent totalitarian system that is governed by such logic).

Instead of totally consistent systems we have instead chosen to create systems of financial personal chaos, and corporate stability, covered up with rhetoric in order to enrich shareholders, or parasitic nation states that use capital for personal gain (and a small amount of capital at that). The logos is and was always meant to be such a consistent system.

But in human hubris and financial capitalism where you are working for invisible shareholders who are allocating capital to control the system in favor of their personal arbitrary agenda with a consistent lack of any sort of morality or any oversight and judgement of their morality over them.

Gangnam style is calling out posers of a certain place who emulate higher classes at a cost to themselves and their financial well-being and health.

Everything is fixed by an external principle which is the health and the survival of the planet and the living things on it for as long as possible. Financialism is not a good system of governance over the planet. It’s fine if all financial aspects of things are done in outer space, in space where there is no life, that the products of such systems be scrutinized for their effects on the nature, planet, and society before importing them into the earth’s atmosphere. That all social and economic externalities are internalized yielding a system with absolutely no growth, no profit, and slowly tested and marshalled changed. That systems are created to reduce only and only the financial suffering of the organisms living inside of them rather than increase it to increase the amount of debt slaves that can be mined for capital.