“In 5-billion years the Sun will expand & engulf our orbit as the charred ember that was once Earth vaporizes. Have a nice day.”― Neil Degrasse Tyson
“I think this is irresponsible preaching and very dangerous, and especially when it is slanted toward children, I think it's totally irresponsible, because I see nothing biblical that points up to our being in the last days, and I just think it's an outrageous thing to do, and a lot of people are making a living—they've been making a living for 2,000 years—preaching that we're in the last days.”― Charles M. Schulz, Charles M. Schulz: Conversations
Politics has always been a battle of ideas and values. In most cases there is a political right and left- comprising the yin and yang of human experiences and belief structures. Sure there has been some back and forth over the decades, but nothing like the existential battle that we see today in America and in many other countries around the world. Those on the right have progressively gotten more strident about the need to prevail 100%, demonizing those who disagree as positively evil.
Those on the left have struggled to understand how things got so bad- to the point where there can be no compromise and every political battle is a zero sum game. Political books like Demonic: How the Liberal Mob is Endangering America by Ann Coulter and The Democrat Party Hates America by Mark Levin are now best sellers, pointing to an atmosphere where the right thinks that anyone not in their tribe is actually evil. Some on the left have returned the favor and demonized the right. In a way, the freakout on the right is understandable, as is the reaction on the left. It all boils down to the four horsemen.
In the past several decades there has been a change in the debate, and the cherished norms of the right have come under assault in society at large. Some see these norms as outdated and wrong, but others see them as sacred, and the erosion of them as a sign of the apocalypse. This angst has produced a new buzzword- "woke" to describe all the things that are happening that they don't like. And it turns out that there are four big changes, (what I call the four horsemen), that terrify the right the most.
The four horsemen of the Apocalypse come from the Book of Revelation and are supposed to be tied to the end of the world. They represent Famine, Plague, War, and Death. (I would note here that these four things have been around a long time, and aren't necessarily tied to the end of the world.) I don't particularly subscribe to the theory that the end of the world is near, or that some people will be raptured away before the bad stuff goes down. There are a lot of interesting theories about the end of the world, but few besides Neal Degrasse Tyson's (see the above quote) provide any real evidence.
The new four horsemen challenge the status quo of the last several centuries, and to understand what some see as a real threat could help us understand why so many people are freaking out. The normal Western default in this worldview was that white, male, straight, Christians should make most of the decisions because they always have for centuries. Any deviation from that invites chaos and the unknown, which is what conservatism was put on earth to protect us from. In no particular order, here they are-the threatening horsemen of the Wokealypse.
Diversity. By diversity, I mean mainly racial diversity. For so much of history races were separated and stratified, especially in the United States. White Caucasians had a special perch atop society, and all of the movie stars, sports heroes, thought leaders and elected officials were white. That was the norm. Gradually, over the years, other races- Black, Asian, Hispanic, Native American, and others have made inroads into all areas of society. Whites are still very much in control economically thanks to political power and generational wealth, but their dominance is not what it once was. Many on the right are seeing the trends and panicking. By the middle of the 21st century the US and Canada are projected to be majority non-white in population for the first time ever. Europe will follow later in the century. Race has been the de-facto organizer of tribal allegiances for centuries, mainly because it's easily detectable through skin color and hair styles. Whites have seen the future and decided their only way to remain on top is through minority, undemocratic rule. This battle is playing out in majority white nations as an immigration narrative. Immigration from non-white nations to white ones is mostly an economic one, but it threatens the status quo, even if immigrants are denied legal status. The economics of the situation will eventually win out, if only because white birth rates are on the decline, and new people of color will be needed to take the jobs of the future. Fifty years from now things will likely look much different. There will be pockets of racial purity, but most of the world will be multi-racial and diverse, making necessary a totally new way of dealing with people. But for those currently enjoying white privilege without knowing how privileged they are- the first horseman is a wild-eyed person of color threatening to rape their wife and ransack their lovely home.
2- Gender. So much has changed in gender norms in the past few decades, that it has many traditionalists confused and concerned. The default in most of the world has been that men were in charge and women were there to serve men. Homosexuality was an aberration, and gender roles were written in stone. That all changed with the women's liberation movement of the 20th century, and men have been struggling to understand their new roles.
Men had considerable power over family dynamics for centuries, and many of them abused that power. They cheated on, physically abused, and denigrated women as sub-human, and women grudgingly accepted it. That period of history has thankfully ended for many societies (though it persists in much of Asia and Africa.) Previously all-male realms in politics, business, entertainment, sports, and religion have gradually added female energy through the decades, though men are still retaining more control.
Men today are expected to share power with women, and that offends the last vestiges of male privilege. Men are increasingly turning to the right to get affirmation of their dominance. Women, on the other hand, are not willing to go back to traditional gender roles, and there's been a standoff. Marriage rates are declining as this conflict expands and both men and women find it harder to meet in the middle.
Eventually, men will have to give up their dreams of returning to the days of male dominance. Hopefully they will learn to treat women with respect while demanding respect for themselves. There will continue to be pockets of toxic masculinity waiting for their woman to get their beer for them. And to those people the second horseman is a beautiful lesbian who has no need for them.
3- Religion. Organized religion has been the glue that held many communities together. And it is in steep decline. The most devout practitioners, especially Christians, have been freaking out and feeling under assault. Why this decline has been happening isn't known, but it most likely is tied to the other changes that society has endured.
For centuries, conservatives have used fear of God as a weapon to keep everyone in line. As attitudes in race and gender have evolved, most churches have doubled down on their fear and guilt gospels, with mixed results. Some church members have become even more devoted, seeing the church as a bulwark against sinful masses. But many more have been alienated by the increasingly political and hateful tribalism that Christianity especially has espoused for the last several decades. Many see organized religion as not speaking to the concerns that they have for the world around them.
Only about 60% of Americans consider themselves Christian in 2024, a huge drop from what was once an overwhelmingly Christian nation. And many of that 60% do not belong to a church or attend one regularly, making their faith one of convenience. The largest growing denomination is "unaffiliated," which is an interesting group that includes Atheist's, Agnostics, and those who believe in some sort of spiritual dimensions, but not the ones portrayed by older, established religions.
There are many good things that religions can provide- community, hope, how to live a good life, but today's mega churches leave much to be desired. Way in the future it will be interesting to see what kind of faith in the divine will emerge in humans. But for now we have the third horseman- a literal devil coming to drag them to hell.
4- Climate Change. Conservatives have always bristled against environmentalists, Regulations have been seen as anti-business and burdensome, and the battles have generally been smaller- pipelines, endangered species, toxic chemicals and the like. But with climate change, the right has seen an existential danger to an entire way of life.
The stakes of the climate debate are bigger than any other environmental challenge in history. Carbon emissions from the fossil fuels that make our economy and its businesses wealthy and powerful are driving a gradual warming of the climate of the entire planet. The choices are grim- either totally transform our economy away from fossil fuels or watch as heat waves and strengthening storms gradually wipe out millions (and possibly billions) of people. The transition from fossil fuels to more sustainable fuels promises to be extraordinarily expensive and will likely overturn many of the institutions that depended on coal, oil and gas.
Of the four horsemen, this could be seen as one of the scariest. It appears to those who fear it as a Nobel Prize scientist who threaten to take away their hamburgers, plastic straws, and gas guzzlers. The overwhelming scientific consensus about the causes of climate change means that most conservatives are forced to confront it- if only in private, while downplaying it in public. No one knows for sure the severity or the timetable of what climate change will bring, or where it could hit the hardest. Conservatives hate uncertainty, and that may be why a lot of them are latching onto biblical end-of-the-world prophesies. If the future is unsustainable, then surely God will step in fix it somehow.
What does this all mean? For one thing, fear is understandable when threats are out there. But it also generates irrational feelings and a sense of urgency to either fight or flee. The right today has fled into their information bubbles, and turned the fight into an existential one. But they are fighting the wrong things. Those of us who don't fear the horsemen must reach out to those who do and try to calm their fears, proving that changes can often have an upside.
There are many ways to look at the events of the last 100 years, but what's done is done and what we need now is to look ahead to the next 100 years. The apocalyptic language from both right and left about the future has robbed many young people of hope that things will get better. Things can get a lot better, but they may have to get worse first. The 19th century mindset got battered in the 20th century, but it won't go away easily in the 21st century. New generations are going to have to figure out how to live harmoniously with each other and with the environment, while somehow finding a spiritual purpose for it all. There is simply no way to return to the past, nor should there be.
I suspect that many who fear these four horsemen feel like they are doing the right thing by opposing them. They are defending their past, their culture, and their ways of living. But in doing so they are jeopardizing their lives and those of so many others. As the years drift on, the old paradigms of the 20th century must change and evolve. People can use fear and money to try and stop it, but that's a fool's errand. There's something at work here that's bigger than any of us. Hopefully humanity will use this century to learn whatever lessons that still need to be learned, and then invite the horsemen to dismount and join the party.
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