Wanted: More Humans, Fewer Widgetarians

Modern revolutionary thought depends on industrialization. Marx was rather occupied with who controlled the means of production, but he didn't think along the lines of homeschooling; no, it's much more likely he'd jump for joy over one of these massive California school districts.

So we've got industrialized schools, industrialized churches, and then we've got industry. It seems to me nobody ever revolts and seizes control of the local cobbler, but if you've got a shoe factory around, someone out there thinks they ought to take it 'for the proles' or 'for the children' depending on what propaganda plays in your town. Meanwhile the shoes tend to wear out much faster...

Folks seem to get enamored with the efficiency of the industrial model, so it pops up in odd places. The evangelical impulse, when not properly kept in check, can lead dangerous things, not just really bad music. Life lived in common ought to be human, not widgetarian.

I like the term widgetarian because it reminds me of vegetarian, and thus intimates some of the problems we've got. Widgetized food is a massive problem, and still too few realize how necessary it is to get back to real food and real food production in order to heal. Too many people are trying to build the shining city on the hill with no thought at all of the hinterlands necessary to supply it.