Recently, I saw the news introducing social leaders who are stirring up pointless conflicts. They appear to be needlessly provoking other forces and destroying the social efficiency and peace that has been built up until now.
Such leaders are in countries and communities around the world. Strangely, they often receive strong support—even the majority—among people.
That made me consider why society sometimes intentionally chooses inefficiency. Let’s talk about it.
Why social leaders act unreasonably
Sometimes, we want to understand why people act unreasonably, especially for social leaders.
Their words and actions are contradictory. They often stir up unnecessary social conflict in the name of peace and end up cutting off social connections. That hinders global trade, which achieves cost reductions through cooperation. It is easy to predict that it will accelerate inflation—rising prices. It looks like it will only harm the economy.
Stopping global cooperation seems socially inefficient. That is why we want to understand the rationality behind seemingly unreasonable actions.
In my opinion, we are now in an earlier stage of an era where people gradually start to prioritize independence over collaboration. That tells us why social disconnections are unavoidable now. Today, I will explain why, although its logic is still rough.
Two contradictory aspects of values
In my opinion, social division will widen constantly for a while. Things that are far away will become difficult to obtain. We will gradually have to make our lives with only what we have at hand locally.
Although it is the time when overall social efficiency declines, this period presents an opportunity for creative people who are prepared to become relatively abundant. Securing local connections will help us.
Society has two contradictory aspects of values, as follows:
- Collaboration: When things are going as expected, people create abundance by collaborating with other communities. This is a more superficial want from the perspective of the animal’s instincts.
- Independence: When things don’t go as planned, people prioritize their survival and try to secure more safety and surplus, even if it means cutting others out. This is a more fundamental desire from the perspective of the animal’s instincts.
The period of shifting in our fundamental values
We are now in an earlier stage of an era where things no longer go as expected. People began to doubt many things, such as authority, information, outlooks, and other people’s true intentions. Many fakes, scams, and lies are increasing, yet our lifestyle is still based on unconditional trust.
Those fakes are used not only by criminals but also by governments. They often mix the logic of cooperation with that of independence and survival. Since we are in a period of shifting in our fundamental values, social leaders might also be confused by two contradictory aspects. Now, two different values coexist in the world.
That confuses logical people. They seem inconsistent to us.
Updating our values
That overall perspective calms our discomfort with unreasonable social attitudes.
We should not expect a larger scale of collaborations for a while. The cooperative system people have built will gradually break down. The country’s leaders will also gradually sever ties with other nations.
Although it is inefficient for global cooperation, it fosters the development of differentiated local industries. Cooperation and independence are both important for social animals. It is a natural balance system in animals.
That would be why there are economic booms and recessions in the economy. A recession is a necessary period that reduces the risk of becoming too dependent on something unsafe.
Empathic and logical people are suited for such a period. It will be the time when our uniqueness shines.
Conclusion
That is why social division will widen constantly.
We are now in an earlier stage of an era where things no longer go as expected.
People gradually start to prioritize independence over collaboration.
That overall perspective calms our discomfort with unreasonable social attitudes.
Thank you for reading this article. I hope to see you in the next one.
