A Big Question

One of the big themes I hope to address thoughout the life of this blog is the question of what makes a good, meaningful and, yes, moral life. I don't mean "moral" in the way it's been used of late by far-right politicians and their base. As someone who promotes equality and social justice, I think of morality as a life lived based on those prinicples. But how does one determine if their lifestyle is, in fact, consistent with such values?

Can someone live a simple, middle-class, suburban life without betraying those values? Does the size of your home or the kind of car you drive tilt you in one direction or the other? Does doing volunteer work help make you a better person? What if you work for a good cause, making less money than you might in the corporate world? What if you work in a highly for-profit industry but donate money to charity? How much stuff do you have to buy to make you a superficial consumer, just another cog in the machine?

For most of us, there are many people who live in worse circumstances than ourselves -- people who are struggling just to get by, or who are more oppressed than us. What do we owe these people? The old saying goes that "if you're not part of the solution, you're part of the problem" -- while this statement has truth to it, it is also way too black and white. How far does one have to go to be part of the solution? Surely we could all do more. None of us are perfect.

It seems that each person must decide for themself if they are satisfied with their role in the world. But one person's good, moral life is another person's sell-out. One person may be happy just enjoying their family and doing good by them. Someone else may see this as selfish and insulated. If I enjoy mindless pleasures from time to time does that make me shallow and pathetic? Or is my life mostly neutral in the grand scheme of things? As long as I'm not raiding the life savings of old folks or practicing discrimination, am I excused from doing anything really dramatic to make a difference? Not everyone can be Rosa Parks, right? And so few of us have the power or capital of a Bill Gates, so how much harm can we really do in our everyday lives?

No easy answers here, but a good area to explore for those of us seeking balance and purpose in our lives.