THE BURNT TOAST DOCTRINE
1 min readAug 24, 2018
ON INDIVIDUALISM vs. COLLECTIVISM
COLLECTIVISM
BAD when it’s compelled, leads to groupthink & targets individuals.
GOOD when it’s opt-in & creates leverage versus monolithic entities.
Powerful incumbents will always extol individualism because it allows them to maintain lopsided bargaining power. In modern America, this is achieved through think tanks, partisan media outlets, and tools who pass for prophets because sycophants inflate their egos — or they once read Marx or Rand.
INDIVIDUALISM
BAD when it leads to isolation, weakens family/community obligations & mythologized beyond its scope.
GOOD for creativity, making life choices & driving excellence.
Our lack of nuance to both creates unnecessary, destructive polarization.
Written this while burning toast…
