This weekend, I had an interesting conversation with a member of my extended family that left me thinking afterward. The topic of the conversation was the current political scene — namely, the Presidential race. I stated that I really haven’t paid much attention to it. Truth be told, I don’t really consider such things worth much of my time as they are either spectacles to pull us into passivity, or diversions for our energy into largely unproductive activities. I also said that I prefer to concentrate my efforts on those things over which I have control (such as permaculture), and in the event that I do involve myself in political issues, I look to a much more local level to get involved, because that is the area where we can have the greatest impact.
This was all inconceivable to this person. He repeatedly said that it was a sad statement on our political affairs that if someone who used to be as engaged in the political process as myself (I served for a period of time on the local committee of one of the two major parties and followed politics quite closely) could become disengaged, then that was a sign of how we were on the wrong track. He kept talking about how we needed change. I responded to him by saying that if you want to see change, don’t look for “leaders” to make it happen, look in the mirror as the leader who can help bring it about. He dismissed this point of view by saying that “most people just want to follow,” and after a short period of continued back-and-forth, the conversation eventually fizzled out.
In the time since that conversation, however, I’ve been thinking about it quite a bit. Not necessarily in the terms of national politics as defined by our news media, but rather in the sense that the way we live our lives is inherently political, and what this means in terms of that discussion. Since I’m sure that many of you have similar difficulties in speaking past one another, I hope that some of these insights may help you as well.
I think that the main reason this family member could not understand my position has nothing to do with different political stances, at least in the modern sense. Rather, the reason is rooted in the different ways in which we live our lives. I think it’s safe to say that the fact that I consider myself a permaculturalist, and that I try to follow the permaculture ethics in how I live my life is self-evident. (Whether I truly succeed or fall short in doing so is a conversation for another time.) I like to listen to music, but I dabble with playing it on the piano. I would often rather read than watch television. I try to take care of my own home renovation and maintenance instead of paying somewhat else to do it. My goal is ultimately to be more of a “producer” than a “consumer” — and when I do consume, to do so consciously.
My family member, on the other hand, lives what has become a more “typical” American upper-middle class lifestyle — what is portrayed as the “good life” in popular culture. He works at a good-paying job and spends most of the rest of his time in leisure activities. His family doesn’t keep a garden to raise any of their food, and he pays someone else to mow his grass in the summer and clear snow from his driveway in winter. At the end of most work days, he relaxes by watching television, and rarely misses a football, basketball, baseball or hockey game. When he and his family go on vacation, accommodations with a certain level of luxury are always a prerequisite. His lifestyle is almost entirely about being a “consumer” — in terms of food, entertainment, leisure, even basic home maintenance.
When I tried to explain to him why I did not concern myself too greatly with national politics, that the very way I lived my life was much more political than anything I did before, it was not possible for him to fully understand simply because he doesn’t have a frame of reference for it. Without engaging in any of the activities that I take part in — not even growing a few containers for fresh herbs or salad greens on the deck — and the attendant measure of freedom that you achieve by doing so, it is impossible to see the political nature of those activities, and the incredible impact that they can achieve.
I spend a great deal of my 3-hour daily commute listening to podcasts, usually about permaculture, energy, finance or other related topics. I do this both because I really don’t care for much of what is on the radio, and also because I would rather spend that time learning about something I can use (being productive) instead of engaging in mindless entertainment to pass the time (being a consumer). One of my favorite ones is The Survival Podcast by Jack Spirko. Now, Jack is a self-described libertarian and I don’t agree with him on everything, but he’s definitely not an ideologue and his show is simply chock-full of very practical and useful information on a variety of topics, including permaculture. One of his favorite sayings, and one I agree with completely, is, “If you’re not doing something to create personal liberty in your life every day, then you’re losing liberty in your life.”
Personal liberty, freedom, autonomy — whatever you want to call it — does not exist in a static or passive state. It is something that we can only create and extend in our own lives through conscious and consistent action. Otherwise, it will be eroded by those institutions that benefit from keeping us dependent upon them — primarily large corporate interests and the state. If you are a producer, then you can reduce your dependence upon those large institutions and increase your autonomy. If you are a consumer, then you are ultimately dependent upon those institutions to provide you with… well, everything.
Taking action to become more of a “producer” than a “consumer” in this sense is about much more than just making money. I happen to work a professional job and receive a good salary for it, as does my wife. We also live well below our means, use our surplus income to save and pay down debt, and also invest our capital into things that will help to further our autonomy. Growing vegetables and fruit trees, adding insulation to our house, implementing passive heating and cooling measures — all of these are capital investments that help us to reduce our dependence on large institutions by providing for our own needs, close to home. This is an intensely political act, because by creating personal and community freedom, we are stemming the tide of centralization.
I want to be clear that none of what I am describing above is easy. It takes self-discipline to not be swept up into “keeping up with the Joneses” when that’s what everyone else is doing and save your surplus income instead. It takes a lot of hard work in a limited amount of spare time to turn a lawn into a homestead with productive garden beds and a permaculture food forest, or to undertake home improvement projects that save energy. Most people probably choose leisure over this work because the work is hard. But let me be clear on this point: when you choose the complacency of being a consumer, you are furthering the erosion of your own autonomy and freedom. You are unconsciously creating a dynamic of dependency upon those very institutions that are eroding your freedom. And in creating that dependency, the end result becomes servitude.
No matter how much money you make, if you do not make the decision to be a producer and take direct control over an increasing portion of your own needs (food, shelter, energy, etc.), you are fostering your own servitude. This is the reason why so many people who make large incomes nevertheless tolerate long periods of time away from their families to work in jobs they really don’t like. Quitting is not an option because they are dependent upon that job to provide them with the money to buy from others all of their needs. Then, the frustration of spending so much time away from their families and engaged in tasks they don’t find meaningful leads them to seek leisurely diversion, the cost of which only embeds their dependency even further.
If you try to point this out to someone who has not yet taken a step toward personal autonomy, and instead remains complacent about their situation, such as the family member I mentioned earlier, it’s nigh impossible to get very far. This is why, as permaculturalists, we cannot concern ourselves greatly with trying to convince others of the need to do what we’re doing. Rather, we continue with our work unabated, confident that others will be ready for our message when they are ready to listen, and that the example of our work and how it provides a better life in so many ways will be all the marketing we need.
But this example alone cannot explain how permaculture continues to grow by leaps and bounds, nor why it presents such a forceful antidote to the forces of centralization and control. I have to go back to my affinity with The Survival Podcast to help to explain this point.
Permaculture is so important and effective because it takes all of the ways that those institutions seek to divide us and keep us dependent upon them, and it renders them null and void. For those on the right, permaculture appeals to their desire for personal responsibility, increased personal freedom, and reduction in government interference. For those on the left, permaculture appeals to their desire for protection of the environment, freedom from corporate influence and emphasis on community relationships. Once people from all perspectives see the way that permaculture brings them together, the wedge issues promoted by mass media and our political class no longer matter. What matters is the ability of people to practice permaculture, and to spread its principles and ethics. Anything that is seen as a threat to that cause is sure to unite those previous opponents under a common cause and interest.
I come to permaculture from a more left-wing perspective. Yet, I find the right-libertarian perspective of the The Survival Podcast to be much more valuable than I do any of the writers on the New York Times Editorial Page. Why? Because permaculture has taught me that I have much more in common with Jack Spirko and the numerous right-leaning members of his audience (most of whom practice permaculture to one degree or another) than I do with political liberals who want to place my focus on issues over which I have little to no control. The source of real political power and meaningful change in our living arrangements marches with the permaculturalists. It is permaculture that will help us to break free from the cycle of complacency, dependency and servitude that the modern industrial society has become.
Look in the mirror, my friends, for the leader you have been waiting to arrive. As the theme music from TSP says, “The revolution is you.”
