I’m repeating the same arguments
I’ve been publishing a post every day for two weeks now. I don’t have enough time to spend hours mulling over what to write about (I write these notes at night when my baby is asleep), so I try to write about whatever comes to mind while feeding my baby at home, talking with friends at a coffee shop, or pushing a stroller through a nearby park.
I don’t carry around a notebook to record all my observations, but I try to put on my writer’s glasses and remember whatever leaves an impression on me. Usually, I get intrigued when I encounter something or someone I find weird or problematic. I get disgusted when I see people smoking and spitting on the street without caring about others. “How can I get them to stop being such assholes?” is the question that lingers in my mind.
Writing and publishing every day is a great opportunity to learn what I’m interested in, but at the same time, it’s a chance to realize that I’ve been repeating the same arguments over and over. My posts are filled with ideas about anti-consumerism, anti-authoritarianism, and anti-idealization. Someone who knows me personally might find them repetitive and boring. I try to avoid making definitive statements and acknowledge my shortcomings, but I rarely consider the possibility that living competitively and accumulating fame and wealth might be a path to happiness for some people. After all, I’m the guy who says things like, “Public schools are a lot like prisons.”
If I want to continue writing meaningful posts, both for myself and my readers, I must stop presenting the same arguments in different ways. I can still learn to make familiar arguments more interesting, but I don’t want to be stuck with the same ideas, refusing to see the world from different perspectives. I want writing to help me discover what I don't know. I want it to push me into uncomfortable territory.