The Pauper: Chapter 8: Community
Life is like a dance
Man is not an end in and of himself. He is part and parcel of something far larger. Even if he begs to differ, he will find that he is dependent upon others more than he would like to admit.
He is at the mercy of the vicissitudes of life, including the whims of both the masses and the elite—and the systems over which the elite preside.
Therefore, the pauper, especially, should strive to foster mutual cooperation. And he must take care not to do it begrudgingly. There are many that hamstring themselves in the quest for self-actualization and glorification. They are so occupied and focused on realizing their own ends, that they spurn the complexity of the network known as human society and connection.
Sure, they may succeed, but the costs of such ambition will be the enriching communities or social circles they chose to sacrifice.
Cooperation will preserve the weak and mediocre man, where the highly capable man who did not practice it could easily and swiftly perish. In thinking that success is largely or mostly—or even fully, based on merit, he is either naive or foolish.
There are many unforeseen circumstances, which in the blink of an eye could completely halt the works of a man in the pursuit of his aspirations. Whether they be plagues or illnesses, social upheaval, war, natural disaster, government oppression, the wrath and judgment of God, death, handicap, and so forth, a man can be quickly humbled.
Therefore, the importance of cooperation cannot be overstated.
It is of vital importance to the pauper.
Furthermore, relationships are largely what grant success. Men are largely irrational, employing and hiring people they either know or trust, even if such people are imbeciles, unethical or unqualified for their post.
In short, we simply go as far as people find us likeable or even useful.
Many of the good lots in life are not earned. Merit is a distorted concept prescribed by the elites to the commons. It is a tool of gatekeeping.
The elites themselves do not believe in merit, but in deal-making. Promotions are often granted not because of hard work, but because of compliance or curried favor with upper management.
Look around you, and look at the upper echelon of both the government and the business world. You would not deny that foolish and incompetent people are often the ones in power and authority.
The pauper needs his community, and his community needs him.
A community is a collective unit that is able to reproduce itself, and shares a set of rules, ideas, beliefs, or guidelines in addition to the rules that govern general society.
After saying all that, I will say this: There are those with whom cooperation is not just useless, but harmful and morally repugnant.
Prudence must help him discern, and here is how to do so: judge whether or not the cooperation fosters mutual benefit. As for those members of his community whom he cannot avoid, cooperation is not necessary in order for him to show kindness, mercy, and patience to them.
It is simply that a concerted effort with such individuals, toward mutually beneficial ends are out of the question.
It is paramount for the pauper to understand, that because of the mutual dependence between himself and his community, he should picture life like a social dance.
Though it appears like a grand contest, the secret to a rich experience is not to be the best dancer and show off, but to dance with as many partners as you can, so that you can remain in the dance as long as you can. It is like a game that seldom rewards the obsessive competitor, but rather the cooperative maneuverer. It is a game of cooperation and mutual trust.
There are exceptions to this rule, such as the world of athletics. And even in such a world, this rule still applies in meaningful ways. There are still elements of political maneuver; an undercurrent of reality that governs the code of conduct between players, coaches, and administration.
Where the pauper can find good friends or allies, he should hold on to them. Where he can see systems that are coherent and sensible in good measure, he should support them. Where he can see effective organization, he should partake if inclined to.
But he must learn not to give himself in excess to his community to the point of foolish altruism. For his health will suffer and possessions will dwindle unnecessarily, and he will have nothing to show for it but resentment. There is that altruism which is not noble, informed by the need and want to be liked by, and spoken of well by, everyone.
Life is short, especially for the pauper; he ought not waste too much time pursuing such a frivolous end.
Men are ungrateful, and foolish altruism can sometimes be as one leaving gathered crops outside to a swarm of locusts. To borrow words from the Preacher in Jerusalem, “it is vanity and vexation of spirit.”
The healthy position and middle ground is simply individuals doing good to each other in turn, on a foundation of mutual trust.
In speaking of altruism, I do not caution generosity. To the contrary! It is good to give and to give continually within good reason. For many of the rich have deceived themselves into believing that their wealth was accumulated by being miserly penny-pinchers. It is not generosity that impoverishes a man. There have been men who give much, and gain wealth, and men who withhold and remain in poverty.
Therefore, the pauper should be reasonably generous with what he has. This is a key element of cooperation, and he will not be cursed by his neighbors.
But he should do well to make sure to never be financially dependent upon them, as far as it is up to him. Though for his past generosity he might expect help in the day of his adversity, there’s a good chance he may not get it. But it is better to have been generous when you finally encounter adversity, than to not have been generous.
The principal facilitators of poverty are violence, debt and usury, oppressive taxation, and lack of land. Why plant a harvest which locusts often devour? Therefore, the pauper also needs his community because he can invoke its aid against those who commit violence against him or his household. In this understanding, he should strive to not incur the hatred of anyone as far as it is up to him.
Remember the dance of life.
Men are vengeful, and if their wrath is upon him, he may find it harder to receive protection. His community may refuse or be reluctant to come to his aid, or be slightly uncooperative with the authorities, hindering the process to grant him justice.
So, he should seek peace. If peace cannot be made, he should hold his peace, and keep watch. If the situation sharply deteriorates between him and another, which directly threatens his interests, he should highly consider a mediator. If he cannot, all good considerations are exhausted.
For the same man who was well disposed towards you, and was pleasant to your wife and children, may join the mob against you if the time arises.
Ultimately, communities are essential to our well-being. One should strive with others through the hardships of life, dance with them in the happy days, sit by them in dark ones, be given to hospitality, and seek no harm. Our neighbors can enrich us with perspective and experience, bind us to something bigger than ourselves, and remind us that we are not alone in this walk of life.
As far as friends go, the pauper should see to it that the friends he intends to keep, do not compete with him in similar ambitions within the same context or environment. For a friend can quickly become an enemy if he perceives you’re impeding his success. One must remember, that Julius Caesar was not killed by mere senators, but by his best friends.
And why?
Because his ambitions robbed his elitist counterparts of their stake at political power. Even the most powerful man in the world in his time, disregarded this crucial fact, and paid with his life.
How much more a pauper?
In zero-sum circumstances where friends compete for the same resources or objectives, there will be cause for tension. Seeing that men are oftentimes dictated by benighted self-interest, it is likely that one may procure as many limited resources as possible.
Sure, after procuring, he may share with you. But the fact that he hindered your procurement, signals the intent for one to be master, which means the other is a potentially a servant. He may not curse you with his lips but with his heart, and the day of your eventual divergence becomes inevitable.
Decide whether such a sacrifice is worth it.
These words may trouble the reader. But I say it’s not wise to approach the many facets of life as the way they ought to be, but rather, as they are. For in this, one possesses the clarity to live, and has thus liberated himself; he is free from the binding delusions of theory, the bombastic and useless influence of the “intellectual,” and the grief of dogma and ideology.
Clarity provides the pauper the opportunity to see the snares laid before him, whether they be holes he can fall into, cycles which repeat his misery, walls which impede his progress, or seduction which distracts him and saps his productive energy.
It is not to say that men should be hated, held in contempt and derision, or disregarded. Whenever a man does these things, he does them to himself also, and rebukes the law of God. For all men are created in His image.
Rather, it is to say that the pauper must closely guard his steps, watch his words, and be sober about the expectations which he places on the world. If he can change things for the better, then he should seize the opportunity.
There are many in this world who grow so frustrated against their communities, that they rebuke community in general; isolating themselves against better judgment.
Some, having unrealistic expectations of life, wake up emotionally exhausted, angry, or disillusioned, threatened by the idea of someone enjoying themselves. For in their spirits they are pressed by a sense of urgency about things they desire to change, wishing for a sufficient number of men to share that sentiment. When they don’t, he finds offense.
The community is like an ecosystem that can nourish, flourish, and help fulfill us. God emphasizes this importance with the words, “it is not good for man to be alone.” This is why it is better to dance, than to sit by yourself.
That same community, however, has the potential to ruin our lives. And there is always the threat that the community which nurtures you now, may deprive or mostly abandon you later. It is why the pauper ought to always be aware, because although the community is the likely option to insulate him in his adversity, the community can become his adversity. Therefore, what is to be done? It seems for such a day he cannot prepare. A man can find that popular sentiment is suddenly against him in a most unexpected manner.
There are many ways in which jeering and hatred come. One of them is through slander, when base men rile the crowd against an individual or a group through false accusations.
Sometimes it’s standing for principles which are perceived as perverted. In that same breath, one standing true to their principles may find themselves offending or threatening certain interests within that community.
Lastly, one may hold certain views considered anathema or socially deviant by the powers that be. The pauper must understand that men are apt to submit mindlessly to the riling of authority, seeing that they are gullible to power.
Therefore, the pauper should be aware of these realities and what can bring them about. There are many misfortunes for which man cannot prepare. But the pauper, in particular, is at a premium disadvantage. Depending on how savvy he is, he can learn to regain certain hearts and minds to his cause, especially if he has unfairly incurred the community's disfavor.
For it should not be said that he can never be in good standing with his community ever again. Broken ties can once again be put back together, broken hearts can once again be mended. Vindication and reconciliation are possible. And in many instances, men are not only perpetrators in crimes of mass hysteria, but also victims of the time; hearts can be held captive, bending under peer or popular pressure to exude baser sentiments of the human condition. But those who resist this fever are among the noble. Though what may be done is done, hatred and resentment must not remain on the part of the pauper.
Pride can be humbled, and minds can be persuaded. In this, it should be said, that men are not either or; they are both. Therefore, it behooves him to keep perspective: All men have the capability to betray or break trust, and yet also, they can restore or be faithful. A brother can turn into an enemy, and an enemy can turn into a friend, or at least a well-wisher. For though men act collectively, in the end they are individuals. And what ensues amidst the thickness of the mass’s movement, may pleasantly surprise him.
Man is not irredeemable.
The pauper should be realistic about what to expect of men, which will guide the energy with which he approaches them. He will appreciate them for their capability to do both good and evil. He will draw near, but keep his guard. He will find himself making deals, yet less likely to be tricked; engaged in social and economic relations with the right level of emotion, wit, and self-exposure. These things are not learned overnight. But he should be constantly disposed to increasing understanding.
However, the pauper who falls into the pit of loathing, exasperation, and self-isolation should beware.
I admit that human connection is a risky experience. In coming to contact with people, we open ourselves up to many possible injuries. And since some of us have suffered more injuries (or greater injuries) than others, we seem to believe we have been dealt a lesser hand.
But we should keep in mind, that we have also opened ourselves up to many possible rewards. There are four things which a pauper has to begin with: his dignity, his health, his name, and his word. When he permanently isolates himself, his creativity is encumbered, his joy is far-gone, and he becomes sour; for these things find their true meaning and purpose in relation to others around him.
If he decides that there are irreconcilable differences, or injuries which he cannot or will not forgive, the best option for him is to join another community, not leave community altogether.
Find my work here on Substack. Don’t forget to follow, so that you never miss a new article when it comes out. In short, I despise the Elite, along with the cultural stagnation, academic conformity, economic chaos, and social decay that they create or facilitate. I aspire to empower and equip the common man with the perspective and mindset to wrest back ownership of his life.