What's your 2010 New Year’s Resolution? [ATS RELEVANT]

This post is geared towards the ATS community. Please read the post in full if this is not immediately apparent.

Many of us, on a per annum basis, commit ourselves to a positive lifestyle change that we wish to embrace in the ensuing year. Many of them are for the benefit of oneself, the individual, and often pertain to personal health or personal finances. Others resolutions, are perceivably tantamount to the benefit of others, the collective, and may pertain to socio-centric volunteering or charity.

Distinction 1
Anyone who’s moderately familiar with sociology will have heard of the dichotomies of Gemeinschaft vs. Gesellschaft or Organic Solidarity vs. Mechanical Solidarity. The distinction I’m conveying is the disparity between resolutions that truly serve the collective and resolutions that actually serve the individual. I’ve often argued with colleagues that the aforementioned acts of benevolence (charity/volunteering) are in more cases than not, predominantly self-serving. The self-indulgent ‘feel good’ factor often takes precedence over the true merit of the act itself. I submit that the quickest way to discern whether a resolution is for the individual or the collective is to ask oneself ‘Does this resolution feel more like a chore (individual) or a responsibility (collective)?’

Distinction 2
The resolution, even if hypothetical, must relate to any given subset of genres under which the ATS community falls under. Proponents of the NWO theories might resolute to conduct more rigorous research in an endeavor to isolate fact from fiction. Skeptical opponents of conspiracy theory might resolute to collaboratively assist the conspiracy theorist in arriving at verity rather than regressively looping ‘prove it, prove it, prove it’. I could script a web-based application to engage in such a cyclic task after all. Hmm, ‘ATS-VITAS (Validating Integrated Theoretical Auto-Skeptic) Beta’ anyone? Back on track, advocates of disclosure might resolute to more cohesively network and subsequently accrue a more prominent public voice. Christians fearful of the global presence of the anti-Christ might resolute to invest in new means of rendering their scripture in more contemporary terms for the declining numbers of their flock.

With both distinctions in mind (collective benefit & ATS relevance), what is your New Year's resolution for 2010?







[edit on 28-12-2009 by rexusdiablos]