Giving back

One of the greatest human inventions is civilization; more strictly, forms of government. Anarchy works really well if you're the strongest and top of the heap; unfortunately there's always someone gunning for you, so you must be ever vigilant. Look around at the animal kingdom. For almost every animal it's every animal for itself. Mating aside (and even then, sometimes) the vast majority of animals have no society at all.

The Hymenoptera (ants, bees, wasps), termites, and naked mole rats have a social structure of a very high degree; nevertheless their structure is so tight there is no freedom to leave it. The entire life of a bee, for example, is planned out. The youngest perform tasks in the hive, such as feeding larvae; storing nectar and honey; and cleaning the hive. Next they move toward the nest entrance: doing guard duties, fanning the nest, and collecting nectar from foragers. After some time doing this they start taking short flights to "learn the neighborhood". Then they forage, collecting nectar and bringing it back to the hive, hundreds of trips a day. Finally, after five short weeks of life they drop their wings, walk away from the hive, and die. All worker bees follow this pattern, and it is never broken as long as the hive remains intact.

Some species, including our closest relatives the great apes (AKA Family Hominidae, the chimps, gorillas, orangutans (and us, of course)) have looser social hierarchies. Consider the dog and its wild ancestor the wolf as a good example. There is an alpha male and an alpha female, a beta male and female (#2 in the hierarchy), and an "omega dog", the lowest-ranking animal. I call these hierarchies looser because it is possible for a lower-level member to move up the ranks. In general the alpha male rules the group, until he is overthrown or dies. This is broadly equivalent to a tyranny or monarchy in human societies.

(I know there are exceptions. Some animals, such as the hyena or elephant, are matriarchal; that is, they have an alpha female instead of an alpha male. The point I want to make is the relatively limited social structure, not which sex runs the group).

Humans, on the other hand, have invented several variations on the social structure beyond the animal-like hierarchies of monarchy, tyranny, dictatorships and so on. From simple feudalism to democracy, human society allows its members to contribute as they are able (or, at least, as their leader feels they're capable of contributing). As one of the most free countries in the world, people in the United States have a distinct advantage over simpler societies: we can take advantage of individual skills in ways the other forms of government cannot. For example, if the king of a monarchy tells you to farm you farm, even if you have the intellect of Einstein or Hume. While it is possible to break that cycle if you're skilled enough, only the very best can contribute beyond their semi-fixed role.

With this advantage comes responsibility. We set up our form of government so people with the will to do so can contribute beyond simply doing a job and doing it well. In short, we have an obligation, even a duty, to contribute our best skills to the country's benefit.

The flip side of that, of course, is the duty not to block contributions. It is difficult, if not impossible, to contribute beyond your own self-interest if your every day is a struggle to survive.

In a classic blame-the-victim strategy, conservatives will have you believe all poor people are poor because they're lazy or otherwise unwilling to work, and that's so obviously wrong it amazes me people believe it. The United States has an unemployment problem, and yet our government is still giving subsidies to companies to send jobs overseas. It's not just conservatives doing this; those laws pass the House and Senate with bipartisan support. The U.S. has fallen victim to something called "corporatism," or "what's good for the corporations is good for everyone." If you're curious about this term and what it means, both its definition and its affect on us citizens, see the book Life Inc. by Douglas Rushkoff.

Anyway, even if you are a victim of corporate downsizing, outsourcing, mergers creating vast holding corporations, or simply cannot find work because you're overqualified, there are still ways to contribute back to your fellow citizens. Here are some of the ways I contribute, none of which cost more than a bit of my time.

• Donate food to local food banks, help distribute it, or volunteer as a cook or server for civic functions.
• Join a local committee. I am on the Inland Wetlands commission within my town; our "job" is making sure wetlands are protected according to the laws and regulations of my state and town.
• Reduce, reuse, and recycle. Recycle everything your state and local government will recycle. Compost vegetable waste as well as putting cans in the recycling bin. Did you know you can recycle even those big, ugly styrofoam inserts electronic devices come packed in?
• Write your elected representatives with ideas and comments. Form letters and signed petitions are ignored; write personal emails to all of your reps. Get to know them.
• Write letters to your local newspapers.
• Vote intelligently. Try to meet the candidates; at least, take time to understand the issues.
• Volunteer at a local state park... parking attendant, nature guide, maintenance person, whatever they need.
• At work, go out of your way to spread knowledge and help across all departments. Contributing ideas whenever you have them.
• After you've read them, donate books to local school libraries and nursing homes.
• When asked on the street for handouts I try to get people help (if they look like they need it) or give them a name of a person who can get them a job. Sometimes I've offered people my lunch. I don't hand out money; that's only a stop-gap. You all know the proverb "give a man a fish...".
• If you have a computer, run the World Community Grid software and donate its downtime. WCG uses your computer's downtime to help solve world-wide problems such as cancer, dengue fever, and growing a better rice to feed people. Find WCG and download its software here: www.worldcommunitygrid.org.

It is my firm believe governments exist to provide services its people cannot provide for themselves. In conjunction with market forces many things are possible. Unfortunately, some things an unregulated market cannot manage, and I think we've lost sight of that. Two of the big ones are health care and jobs. We see the results right now: high unemployment, nearly 1/3 of our population has no health care, people going hungry within ten miles of wherever you are. We're the richest nation on earth; why do we have such problems?

I do not advocate government is the solution; what I am advocating is doing as much as you can, then the government doesn't have to step in. All of the above volunteer opportunities reduce the need for government spending and cost you essentially nothing; why not do them? Sure corporations are powerful, in my opinion too powerful; we are even more powerful, if we work together.