The Declaration of Interdependence

A manifesto against not taking manifestos too seriously.

Hello. So this is the first of the pieces that I’ve committed to publishing. In short, I’m giving myself two hours each to polish up the seemingly endless series of pieces my perfectionism has demanded remain unpublished in anticipation of a future in which I finally finish them. Well guess what? The future is here.

The (partial) list of unfinished pieces.

You’ll see today’s piece, ‘The Declaration of Interdependence’ listed on the screenshot above. It certainly wasn’t my favourite on that list (not even close), but I made a conscious choice on my launch piece to ‘eat my greens first’.

That said, having written it, I really like it. A manifesto does feel quite appropriate as an opener too. And (shock, horror) finishing it off felt pretty easy. It does tend to happen when you’ve already done most of it.

I’ve already decided the one for Wednesday (‘Billionaires’), but if you have a favourite from the above list, post it in the comments. I’ll happily take direction on what to do next. I think the point with perfectionism is, to take myself out of the loop!

Thanks for joining me on this journey. Here goes…

THE DECLARATION OF INTERDEPENDENCE

(A manifesto against not taking manifestos too seriously)

We the people, under the auspices of Yianni Agisilaou (being of sound mind and body) hereby declare the establishment of the independent (and interdependent) digital duchy of Joined Up Thinking.

We are a space founded on the principles of curiosity, honesty, and the physical and mental health benefits of a broad and integrated viewpoint.

As part of humanity, mother nature at large and the universe in totality, we thirst for varied knowledge of these things. Mostly because we are these things. And horrendously self-centred.

In the eyes of some, we think too much. Baffled, we implore these people to think further. We are reliably and consistently disappointed. In disappointment, we are humble. 

We believe that the solution is sometimes not thinking but feeling. We find happiness in large part because we allow ourselves to be sad. An emotion, negative or positive is a fundamental human possession that no child lacks. We are emotional about emotion.

We are persistent, in curiosity, observation, and learning. We don’t think that integrated knowledge accretes into wisdom, we know that integrated knowledge accretes into wisdom. We know that the people who need to know this most are those that do not.

We are aware that our ideals are in direct conflict with those of fascism and absolutism. We know that people who cling to such viewpoints do so out of fear. Questing for elusive certainty in an inherently uncertain existence. We know this because we demand thought and analysis rather than insisting on circumscribing it.

We are opinionated. A point of view, negative or positive is a fundamental human possession that no child lacks. We believe in belief.

Even in our opinions, we are not judgmental, instead seeking to understand. We do however judge hurtful and insidious actions, having flexible enough thinking to separate the sin from the sinner. We hate the game but not the player.

We do this because we believe that the answer is always more knowledge. That a broad church, of thoughts and feelings synthesised together, firstly reveal relationships in the world, and ultimately, reveal truth.

We know that the thirst for and battle over knowledge and understanding is, at its core, the universal and timeless human search for meaning. For belonging.

We believe these things flow out of the fundamental truth of interdependence. That all things are related, no man is an island, and that a certainty is just a place your heart and mind got tired.

Ultimately, we believe in love. In goodness. That there is nothing to fear in asking questions, of both others and ourselves. And nothing to fear in answering. Both drive us forward. Only in silence do we suffer.

I hereby declare this new and optimistic republic. I look forward to joining you, the reader in building a strong and engaged citizenry.

In a world that can feel like it’s falling apart, integrating our thoughts, feelings, experiences and knowledge might just be now, as it has so many times before, what gets us through.

Yianni Agisilaou - 20/06/2022