# Between the Intolerable and the Barely Adequate By:: [[Ross Jackson]] 2025-01-07 For many, work exists between the intolerable and the barely adequate. When intolerable, one attempts to find a way to improve the situation. When barely adequate, one typically endures it. This dynamic is a central strength of the status quo. Those in power can push to the breaking point. When people start to grumble and push back, those in power can release some tension, and most will revert to normal. Those in power aim to elevate the barely adequate as close to the intolerable as possible. It would be one unit above the unacceptable line if graduation were possible. The ironic tragedy is that things do get better. As the situation improves, the motivation for change dissipates. It doesn’t make sense to continue to struggle if things are better. Except it does make sense. The “getting better” is only temporary. The status quo will revert soon enough. Humans face the same struggles because there is seldom sufficient motivation to change the system. People are generally satisfied with marginal, temporary improvements. Barely adequate is significantly better than intolerable, but barely adequate is not thriving. Depression rates are on the rise, and suicide rates are at all-time highs. These figures suggest what one might expect from a society operating between the intolerable and the barely adequate. There is little doubt that the current system is broken. There is, however, almost no confidence that it can be improved. Such a situation leads to despair. Most attempts at revolutionary change focus on galvanizing support at the bottom. As indicated, this support tends to fragment once things become barely adequate. If it is to occur productively, the revolution will need to come from the top. Those who benefit most from the system realize that living in a society where the masses have hope is better than being rulers over a society of fear, misery, and despair. #### Related Items [[Status Quo]] [[Betterment]] [[Change]] [[Psychology]] [[Systems Thinking]] [[Revolution]]