Penny Lane- Lyotard Late

“Let us wage war on totality”
Lyotard constantly reiterated in his writings, the importance of questioning authority. In a modern day paraphrase, this statement would be similar to the token rage against the machine’. He urges his readers to leave a state of passivity in order to break free of our constructed reality. The sentiment of this advice reminds me of a quote from shock jock Bill Maher: “The younger generation is supposed to rage against the machine, not for it. They're supposed to question authority, not question those who question authority.” Our entire lives we have been conditioned to obey the rules. But who defined these boundaries, and why are we subject to follow them? The answer to this question is seemingly simple. Those in power make the laws, and we follow them because the consequences are unfavorable. However, this framework fundamentally contradicts the principles America was founded upon. Freedoms that grant us the right to speak out and be heard have been strategically silenced, especially in the mainstream. Our consciousness is isolated from exposure to the tragic and gruesome reality of war and poverty. Our attention is shifted toward issues of lesser significance: which celebrity just over dosed, weight loss solutions left and right, and the perpetual threat of terrorism. We lack recognition of this distraction because are forced to look away from happenings that are unpleasant by nature. We are conditioned to follow the focuses chosen for by ruling forces. While our complacency is blatant, subversive movements have and continue to occur. This relates to Habermas’ commentary on the Avant Garde. Off-beat and counter culture trend serve to question and contradicted dominant thought. But our system is clever, and soon even these anti-establishment trends become commercialized. Being a hippie or a punk is so much more than presentation and clothing. It’s a state of being. Today’s generation often try to adopt the nostalgia of these subcultures unsuccessfully. If you don’t stand for something, you will fall for anything; and it seems that this proverb now largely denotes the mindset of the American public.