Alienation and Modernity
Lind’s latest essay looks at rogue actors through the lens of isolation and alienation. These traits characterize modern society more than ever before in human history, which leads to significant problems when combined with modern technology.
Of course, there are many other alternatives for a lonely, alienated person to turn to, but let’s give Lind the benefit of the doubt and assume he’s not trying to characterize the entire system. Rather, even if 99.9999% of people don’t turn to gangs and anti-state groups for meaning, in a world population in excess of 6,000,000,000, that means there would still be more than 6,000 lone wolves. Empower those lone wolves with modern tech, and you’ve got problems.That progression has now gone so far that never before in human history have so many people lived isolated lives. I sometimes visualize a conversation between a Modern man and a Medieval man, where the proud Modern says, “You poor man! It must have been terrible living without air conditioning, automobiles, washing machines and hot showers.” The Medieval man replies, “You poor man! It must have been terrible living so alone.”
Isolation and the alienation, anomie and rage that proceed from it fuel both lone gunmen and a broad sense of detachment from the state. Why give loyalty to the state if the society if governs offers nothing but alienation? In turn, alternatives to the state, such as gangs, offer alternatives to isolation as well.
So goes the narrative sketch, at least.
I explored many of these theme a few years ago in a meditation on Fight Club and Marc Sageman’s work on al Qaeda. I’m also reading Fred Ikle’s Annihilation from Within, which is also bringing up these themes.
