Random

I don't often have the energy to convey philosophical thoughts, but this thought felt very important.

I found the blog Licentious Living after doing a google search on a novel I'm reading (I'm reading The Namesake, if you care). I "randomly" clicked on a post in the archives and found this gem:

Random, in its scientised avatar is embedded in the theory of entropy ... Entropy is a thermodynamic property that is a measure of the energy not available for useful work in a thermodynamic process, such as in energy conversion devices, engines, or machines. During this work entropy accumulates in the system, but has to be removed by dissipation in the form of waste heat. Which is to say that every work produces a certain entity which is utterly useless and is potent in rendering the whole system orderless. Which is to say that every random act has the potential to undermine the not-so-random. And every second spent on getting the random, said or done, is in a way, contributing to the entropy of the bio-system.

You can read the full post here.

In other words, the more I push off work and consume myself with "random" google searches, the more I build up entropy--a useless, restless energy that perhaps needs to be channeled into a more efficient system. But, there is revolutionary energy in the random because it undermines the the structure as it stands. At the societal level, the perfect example of this is a flash mob:



Flash mobs are silly, fun and often done without a clear political motivation. But they also wake people up and make them think. They provoke people to take in their surroundings and reconsider their relationship with their environment, much like Shepard Fairey's experiments with phenomenology.

The political implications of this are quite radical. What if there were enough randomness--enough entropy--to render the entire system of capitalism, structural and institutional power completely useless?! How awesome would that be? It's probably attempted every year by anarchists and obviously has never worked. But it could be so amazing.

So maybe my inefficiency--my entropy--isn't a problem in itself. I'd like to think of it instead as rebellion--as a reminder that not everything "productive" that's required of me is going to feed the needy and stop exploitation. If my lack of productivity holds me back from conquering the external world of inequality and awfulness, my entropy gives rise to a creative, boundless world within. Random is an inner world that everyone needs to change the external world.