Conflict

I thought of this aphorism the other day:

If you're not experiencing conflict in your life, you're probably hiding from it.
If you're experiencing constant conflict, you're probably causing it.

I often meet people on either end of this dichotomy -- many people seem blissfully unaware of the world's problems, and they try not to get involved with anything controversial. They may consider themselves optimists, focusing on "good vibes only". If the conversation turns toward any aspect of the mess we're living through, they may become visibly uncomfortable and decide never to talk to you again.

On the other end of the spectrum are those who seem to be irritated about everything and unable to find common ground with anybody. I meet these folks in town who have decades-long grudges against other local families, or they're constantly battling local officials while believing that the world is out to get them. If you're not able to talk to somebody without flying off the handle about some minor issue (or about Trump, or Biden, etc.), then you might be cultivating the energy of an angry spirit.

I can see the temptation – there's a lot of energy in anger, and people may not know how to be as energized in other ways. Besides, there's plenty of justification for righteous anger. The System commits atrocities everyday – usually with our tacit assent and/or direct financial support. If we are not, in some sense, "fighting the good fight", then we're complicit.

Anger can motivate us to make necessary changes, but it can also consume us and turn us into the tyrants we thought we were fighting.

I think the "good vibes" optimists are afraid of the energy of anger. Perhaps they had some traumatic history being victimized by someone who was consumed by anger, and now they seek to avoid conflict at all costs. But in my observation, such avoidance leads to a delusional struggle to insulate themselves from reality.

In the near future, the radical optimists will have a hard time holding it together (if it's not already becoming difficult). It's just a shame that these opposite folks seem to exist in separate worlds: the fighting spirits could use some uplifting positivity sometimes, while the optimists could use some courage to fight for a cause beyond themselves.