Psychological Egoists Unite

My previous post suggested that my motivation to write has been blocked. And it was. But after yesterday's Advanced Literary Journalism class with the ever provocative Howie Good who forces you to think outside the box, I'm inspired. Somebody give this man a lifetime achievement award or something, he's truly astounding.

Which brings me to this post. I'd like to introduce you to my kindred spirit and a man who likes to consider himself my "sensei." Sensei is a Japanese title that refers to a figure of authority who has mastered an art form or other skill: art, music, writing, martial arts, or in this case, disgust for humanity.

Meet Mark Klender. From the moment we met, we clicked; our shared understanding of how ridiculous and ignorant this world is was instantaneous. The partner of my dad's friend Lisa (who is seriously one of the nicest people I know and one of my favorites, which says a lot since I don't like that many people), Mark quickly became an integral part of Fountain pizza nights where we would all catch up when I was home from college.

Put the two of us together and you're in for an interesting night. You'll be exposed to ideas, theories and ways of thinking you could never imagine. Your eyes will be opened to the severe shortcomings of the majority of society. You'll realize the ignorance that plagues humanity and makes basic interaction increasingly frustrating. As Mark so poetically stated, "My hatred for humanity grows deeper each day." Sound drastic, radical, egotistic or pessimistic? Then this is your first clue that you're in dire need of our help. Let me elaborate, and I'll try to be brief.

The world is a pretty horrible place. Before you deem me a "Debbie Downer" or "Negative Nancy" think about it for a minute. Crime raddles even the most idealistic communities, countries always have something to fight about, the class separation is blatant and disgusting, we had George W. Bush in charge of our country for eight years and new diseases emerge faster than we can find cures. But perhaps most disturbing of all is that society is selfish and ignorant. I've tried to think of another word to use, switch it up a little, but ignorance is really the perfect term. Nobody cares about anyone but themselves and everything they do is for their own self-gain.

My challengers might argue "what about people who give to charity or devote their life to bettering the lives of others?" Well in essence, there are very few regular, average citizens who can afford to focus on the lives of others before their own. And those who donate to charity probably bask in the publicity they receive for their charitable efforts or get esteem-boosts from grateful receipients (which of course they would never admit), making them look self-less; yet I'm sure this isn't the whole story because those who look perfect are usually the most screwed up.

Chew on this a bit, straight from Sensei Mark's mouth:

"[Alyssa] and I are Psychological egoists. Yes, it is a real term. People are fundamentally self-centered. Basically, we believe that people are motivated only to act in their best interests no matter the effect on others. People are selfish even when they appear not to be, because they are only concerned with themselves. 'F' everyone else. If Alyssa and I could only get this point across, we could show people the ill effects that their real motivations are having on society and help fix the problem and make this a more fulfilling world for all. A world with fewer phonies is a world filled with greater peace and prosperity for all."

This wisdom goes along with yesterday's class discussion about what makes the best writers, what distinguishes recognized ones from epic ones. Howie Good said that you have to have a distinct point of view and moral outrage--embrace it. You need to have an unwavering opinion and realize it is your job to share it. He said attitude is what gives writing style, a particular "warp" or "curve." He cited literary master Joan Didion as encompassing all of this, pointing out that her pessimism for aspects of society is what solidified her legendary spot in non-fiction prose. Is this not what Mark so eloquently shared above?

So Mark and I are not mean, heartless people. We just realize being ourselves is the only way to go and that there will always be supporters and haters of our mindset. We hate fake people and merely have an unprecedented understanding of what the world is really like. We've discovered how to puncture the phony facade so many optimists try to mask it with to arrive at the truth. We have the moral outrage Howie encourages.

One of the main principles of journalism is to "seek truth and report it." That's all I'm trying to do. With Mark's help and my own no-holds barred attitude, I'm confident I will find a way to present the unfiltered, uncensored, raw truth. Maybe we should write a book. Genius.