These days everyone seems to believe that they are entitled to anything they think they need or want as their birthright. The distinction between need vs want has no meaning as everything has become an entitlement with no limit. People feel entitled to a big house, a big car, good income, every new technology, patronising fancy restaurants, new fashion as and when they are unveiled, annual summer holidays in a beach and winter holidays in ski resorts and so on. Of course, there is nothing wrong with such ambitions but it becomes a problem when ambitions turn into entitlement.
Cost to nature
The problem is that people remain oblivious of the difference between aspirations /ambition and entitlement. People remain selectively unaware that every entitlement has a cost against mother nature in the form of energy consumption, which releases greenhouse gases (GHGs). June and July this year were reported as the hottest months ever. As the Secretary General puts it, we are moving from global warming to global boiling. On 18 July WeatherZone reported the heat index, which measures air temperature and humidity, clocked the outdoors as ‘feeling like’ a whooping 66.7ºc in an Iranian airport. Human body cells start to die once the body is exposed to 46ºc. When the body is exposed to 50ºc irreversible damages occur in the cells which become life threatening. This is the path we are heading for.
Cost to our society
There are prerequisites for any entitlements based on merits but this concept of meritocracy is ignored when most people think of entitlement. This excludes certain entitlements that come with citizenship rights. The generation Y, believe that it is the responsibility of the state and other institutions to meet their entitlements, interpreted as rights. Incidentally this idea of entitlement appears to gain strength with the universal promotion of human rights pushed with political motives, especially since the 1990s. Did the governments or the international proponents of human rights fail to define what is human rights in its proper context? Or the consequences of entitlements we are facing are simply unintended biproducts?
Our society’s anathema
The idea that you can be what you want to be and you can work your way through to achieve what you want has become anathema in our society. It is one of the ideas propagated by the Western capitalist ideology starting in the late 20th century. This idea is instilled in people as they pass through life lessons in schools, universities, and in management courses for CEOs and mid-level managers. Indeed, such ideas and aspirations are essential to encourage and boost one’s morale but these are not entitlements. There are perquisites such as individual capacities based on merit and affordability which determines what one is worth. People have to work hard to achieve this. These perquisites are totally undermined in people’s quest for entitlement, at times interpreted as human rights. It is further diluted by the universal idea of equality - everyone is equal. Yes, it is on paper.
The idea of rights has also flattened our society. There is no more hierarchy in our society, at the place of work and even in families. With this idea of equality no one is obliged to listen to anyone. The traditional system of seeking ideas and suggestions from seniors is gradually vanishing as everyone knows what is best. Do we? Really?
Lifestyles as entitlement
People have become slaves to technology. Self-indulgence has become the norm promoted by consumption-based capitalism and the modern media. People and the governments seem to wrongly take the idea of linear economic growth as a guaranteed phenomenon. There are few influential lone wolf-like voices trying to warn people of the looming disasters we face because of our consumption-craved lifestyle almost like entitlement. But their voices are sidelined and subdued by those advocating for more extraction, more consumption, and wasteful lifestyles. It just means more profit for certain industries at the cost of everyone else. It has been known for a long time but no one has the guts to act to prevent or at least tame it. There is a clear lack of global leadership in communicating to people that our ever consumption-craved lifestyle is not our entitlement. People must be made to realise that our lifestyle is taking us to the path of extinction while enriching a few.
No one likes to think negative
It is depressing and may look alarmist to keep talking about issues like this but what is the alternative to reach the global masses with warning that we are probably in the last lap of our survival because of our own behaviour. To add insult to injury, there are among us, few influential pseudo philanthropists who make everyone believe that technology will solve all our problems. Technology is important but it is not a panacea for our survival. There are others who believe that democracy and human rights has given enough power to the people who should be able to solve all global problems individually and collectively. Total farce!
These aspirations are no more than chasing monsoon clouds. It is as though we have reached a point of no return with our individualism and entitlements. Everyone has high expectations but is least interested in meritocracy, which should be the base for entitlement.
Is there a way out?
The millennials and generations Y & Z with little interest or knowledge of history grew up with an environment surrounded by modern technology and the social ambiance full of ideals of individual rights, freedom and democracy with stern belief in entitlement. The biggest casualty of entitlement is the weakening of our social organisation. We no longer live in a hierarchical social organisation but in a flat social structure where everyone is equal hence expects everyone to believe and expects the same ‘entitlement’. People must be made to recognize that entitlement is not a birthright but is based on meritocracy for which one has to work hard. We are competing for finite resources and limited opportunities worldwide. People’s opportunities are further squeezed by AI technology. This is the reality.
Biologically we are equal with the same anatomy and physiology but our social backgrounds, opportunities, resources and access are not equal no matter what the rights activists tell you. Psychoanalysts believe that the idea of entitlement is highly inflated and are promoted by the politicians for their own agenda without any mechanism to achieve it. Sociologists believe that entitlements in our society can be achieved only through equal opportunity for education, access to political power and wealth. How can this be explained to the millennials and generations Y & Z who are glued to Facebook, Instagram and X?
Entitlement, as we are witnessing, is nothing less than a narcissistic personality trait. How to communicate to people, especially to the millennials and generations Y & Z that not being able to achieve expected entitlements could result in unhappiness, disappointments and depression. There will always be unmet expectations. Get ready for the reality of life. . .
Ramesh, I am a bit confused.. you attempt to make a distinction between rights, aspirations and entitlements which is a dilemma. For instance, a child born with visual impairment (blind) has an equal right to survival, development, protection, education and is entitled to appropriate education and care.
ReplyDeleteIn my opinion, its unbridled desire and wanting more and the best of everything that is leading to the disillusionment that you refer to.. remember, the first step in Buddha's eight fold path is Give up Desire.
Sree, yes, indeed, the issue is that the rights and aspirations are being interpreted as entitlements (that too without any obligations). There are certain entitlements that comes as rights of a citizen in every country. Of course, there are groups of disadvantaged people and disabled (sorry I am not into this nonsense expression of visually challenged, mentally challenges, etc.) people whose needs must be met by the authorities based on constitutional responsibility. I am not referring to these. I am specifically referring to the general behaviour of people who want everything in life as their entitlement – no question of criteria, or merit.
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