Come Together

Come Together

   Some friends arrived the other night, and in a break with our traditional policy, some political discussions emerged.  But it turned out to be a nice blend of different views, mixed with a lot of puzzlement at trying to understand the "other" side.  One friend talked of being more or less trapped on a flight, sitting next to someone who's views were radically different than his own; but rather than tune him out with a set of ear buds or plowing into a book, he decided to listen to what he had to say.  Three hours later, it turned out that his seat-mate had quite a bit to say, and ironically, had little interest in my friend's views.  For my friend, it was an eye-opener at just how polarized some of our population has become.

   Some of my other friends were simply questioning how these changes occur, how becoming financially secure or socially comfortable seems to be sending some people into a sort of cocoon, insulating themselves and almost ready to explode with emotion should their views be questioned.  For the most part, this was puzzling because we were discussing this happening to people we've known for decades and thus noticing how drastic the change has become.  Was it the media?  Was it that we didn't really know these people as well as we thought?  Was it because we were the ones who had changed?

   It's an interesting phenomenon, this continuous gap that spans centuries, the taking of sides and the divisions, the alliances and the lines drawn, the peace and calm that somehow seems to not be able to endure.  Whatever the subject, but especially with the histories of race, religion and politics, the divides are strong...and puzzling.  What causes this, the clashes among the rich and poor and the old and the young? 

   One excerpt from a lecture on "the Science of the Most Fundamental Large-Scale Objects in the Universe" (from The Great Courses series) talked of entropy and the "second law of thermodynamics."  The concept of reversability refers to a process for which the system is always in equilibrium, there are no dissipative processes occurring (in other words, no energy is lost to the surroundings, there's no friction, viscosity, electrical resistance, and so on).  And a reversible process can occur both forward and backward with absolutely no change in the surroundings of the system...No such process exists!  It's only a theoretical concept...

   But one friend pointed out that what might be viewed as tiny steps in changing people's minds (in whatever direction) is what leads to what he termed "huge" changes.  The changing attitudes in the U.S. of gay marriage, workplace discrimination, legalization of marijuana, were all examples of decades and decades of slow, generational change.  So it was interesting to read the opening view from the editor of Fortune, this from an editor now passing his midlife years, a person mired in business and able to view changes from a rather established conservative base.  But in the piece, he mentions that this year, the millennial generation (ages 18-34) "will surpass the baby-boom generation in size."  Still, there is no doubt that this generation is different.  It is the most diverse in American history --43% nonwhite-- and more confident about the nation's future than older generations.  That's a reverse from the 1970s, when young boomers were considerably less optimistic than their elders.  Millennials also are slower to get married than earlier generations and less likely to belong to a political party...the biggest difference is not who they are, but how they live.  They are the ones most comfortable with the new human appendage --the smartphone-- that lets them stay connected to a vast network of friends and provides instant access to information, both good and bad.  They are quickest to adapt to the ways in which the mobile Internet is changing the fundamental logistics of their lives, and the first to demand that the workplace do the same...So pay attention.  The millennials aren't spoiled products of a coddled past.  They are harbingers of our connected future.

   Almost as proof of this, I read that Facebook has 1.23 billion active users each month, and over 400 billion friend connections.  I don't have a Facebook account, which probably shows that I am now firmly in the minority, part of that fading generation that almost pleadingly echoes the desperate cry from our 80-year old Senator who pledged not to run again (after 8 terms), a Senator who now feels (in his mind, at least) more powerful and is likely going to break his pledge being heard to say, "the people need me."  Uh...no.

   Going back, it's a nice thought, that this theoretical chemical reaction could exist, one where no energy is lost to the surroundings, there's no friction, where the system is always in equilibrium.  And once again, my generation will follow history and give way to the next, but in the case of my wife and I and our friends, give way not grudgingly, but give way openly and receptive and optimistic that the next majority will bring about small changes, bit by bit, changes that will later be viewed by history as "huge."  We will hopefully be willing to listen as my friend did, all in the hopes that perhaps the next seat-mate will stop and ask, "and what do you think?"  Hats off to the new generation!