During golden ages – during boom times of progress and growth – most folks serve civilisation.
Yeah, there are always criminals gnawing at the foundations of society, politicians lining their pockets from common funds and marketers peddling vices. Every society has those.
And not everyone builds up civilisation all the time. Even the honest workers, good fathers and philanthropic innovators have moments where they do something that, if everyone did it, things would collapse overnight.
But don’t fuss over details.
During times of growth and prosperity, most folks advance the common good most of the time.
During times of decline, there are far fewer of those folks around.
Yeah, yeah, every society has its soothsayers. Occasionally, they’re right. If an outside enemy doesn’t destroy a society, it falls from the inside – and it falls because people stop working on it.
A typical man in the ‘50s might have gone to their construction job, making progress on creating something useful. Then they go home, raise their kids as best as they can and keeping healthy traditions alive.
Now, a typical worker might rot in an office all day, offering nothing to anyone, before going home to an childless apartment, and arguing to himself that morality isn’t real and so every vice is justified.
The former helps civilisations rise.
The latter helps them rot.
Yeah, yeah, I’m oversimplifying here. But if you can’t get the gist of what I’m saying then too much relativistic philosophy has eroded your brain, eroding a vibrant world to a single shade of indifferent grey.
The point is this:
If you’re nurturing civilisation, then rejoice. Everyone thinks they serve the common good, but few do. Few have the sense of history to know what the pillars of a healthy society even are.
There are few nobler callings than being the enemy of the Enemy of Civilisation.
It’s not always easy. In a world of inverted morality, folks will make you think you’re crazy for doing what it true, good and right.
It’s easy to waiver in your convictions. After all, there’s a lot of romance in the idea of being a rebel, but there’s not a lot of money or stability in it.
But maybe you don’t want to do that.
Maybe you think that our civilisation is worth preserving and building upon.
Maybe you feel the fire in your blood, as if your ancestors call on you to protect what they painstakingly fought, sacrificed and bled for.
If the corruption of your ideals sicken you to your stomach, then it’s time to lift your game. The only way to fight back is to be successful and of exceptional character.
Studying the classics will get you there – the Bible, stoicism, philosophers.
A mentor will get you there better and faster.
If you’d like to talk about what that looks like, then let’s talk: