I Am You and You Are Me

2023-03-05 · essays

There's something strange brewing in the air, it's as if the world had collectively experienced a bad trip and we are now in the process of trying our best to pretend it never happened. Presently, we stare into an uneasy future of ecological chaos, rising xenophobia, and economic uncertainty.

The precariousness of our reality was briefly revealed and despite this we nonetheless hope that we can just go back to business as usual, but the cat's out of the bag, what was seen cannot be unseen, a collective humility has settled on the many who with great conviction once operated as isolated creatures and atomized beings.

For better or worse, we now know that our lives are intimately entangled with the sloppy stupid and strangely beautiful presence of others. I just recently discovered I look and do so similar to my father who I barely remember anything about.

Of course not all of us have conceded, those against vaccination for example, loudly protest against it on the basis of vaccines being an attack on their personal freedom of choice. They argue that it is a violent intrusion against their bodies bodies that they have outright ownership over, however, as Zizek cynically responds as if our body is ever really just ours vaccinated or not we are already controlled and manipulated in ways we are unaware of. Despite Zizek 's language, it should be noted that this assertion extends beyond conspiratorial assumptions. He is simply pointing towards a truth shared by neuroscientists, Buddhist monks, and shroom-loving hippies.

Everything is connected. The existence of a distinct entity, the isolated self, is an illusion and on a certain level of analysis to claim ownership over your identity is absurd. I sometimes fear my own name due to this, saying, this person does not seem like the "I" in my mind.

I am you and you are me and we are everything.