There are subjects that we don’t dare to broach because they make us feel too guilty. We prefer not to talk about them and let a complicit silence settle in, until at some point it becomes unbearable. And it is becoming increasingly unbearable for me to accept living, as a citizen of a country and as a human being, as a stowaway in so many ways. Unbearable.
Let’s make a quick list:
Humans are all stowaways taking advantage of the work of nature, in its mineral, vegetable, and animal dimensions, which we do not pay for, which we do not restore, which we destroy. More generally, the standard of living of the most powerful predators is extorted from their fellow creatures, animals or humans. And that of all humans is partly stolen from nature.
The world’s richest extort scarce resources, especially energy, for themselves instead of making them available to those who need them most.
Rich countries, especially the Americans, Chinese, and Europeans, are also stowaways taking advantage of the slavery of children, women, men, and the labor of poorly paid, exploited people in most of the rest of the world. This is how we can buy products in Europe and elsewhere at ridiculously low prices, without worrying about the fate of those whose labor is being stolen. These rich countries are also stowaways of pollution and carbon emissions, which they hide elsewhere, just as they send their waste and used objects and machines back there.
The United States, moreover, now wants to impose itself as a stowaway, extorting labor and wealth from other human beings and from nature by plundering it even more than in the past.
France is also a clandestine country within the eurozone, and some French people work less than others in the EU and benefit from the work of other European workers, who protect our currency and allow us to live on their credit.
Some people, particularly in France, are exempt from taxes or pay very little, and benefit from services they do not finance. This is especially true at the top of the social ladder; a few citizens, very rare, also take themselves off the labor force for a time to take advantage of social benefits that, in my opinion, should be reserved for and increased for those who have no choice but to rely on such assistance: they should not be a convenient solution for those who only want to work part-time.
Some people, particularly in France, are freeloaders who take advantage of the poorly paid work of teachers, healthcare workers, and other essential employees, as well as the free services provided by associations and caregivers, whom they do not pay, or at least not at their true value. Of course, contrary to what the far right claims, this does not apply to illegal immigrants, most of whom are only here because they have nowhere else to go and dream of working legally.
Finally, and perhaps most seriously, we are all stowaways on the work of future generations of plants, animals, and humans.
However, a distinction must be made between parasites and stowaways: a parasite is a living being that lives partly off its host; this is normal; being a parasite is a classic activity of living beings; it is even a condition of life. This is the case for most plants and animals. We are all parasites, harboring parasites. But nature is such that a parasite can only be tolerated in the long term if it also provides a service to the host or to a third party. A parasite becomes a stowaway if it takes advantage of others without giving anything in return.
If we accepted the principle that every human being should be able to be a parasite, but never a stowaway, we would have to change many things. In particular, we would have to pay much more, directly or indirectly, to all those whose services we benefit from.
This would mean, first of all, paying much more to nature by protecting and restoring organic matter and biodiversity. It would also mean protecting and paying decent wages to those who manufacture the low-cost products that flood our markets, and taxing those who exploit them; and also paying countries, directly or indirectly, that emit greenhouse gases on our behalf, by requiring them to use this money to reduce their emissions. We should also reserve social assistance for those who need it, and pay caregivers decently for their work, not just with the gratitude they deserve. Finally, we should do everything we can to avoid living off future generations, which means only going into debt to create the infrastructure that those who come after us will need.
But we would still have to accept these multiple responsibilities. With clarity. And show great leniency towards those who have been unfairly treated by life. We are a long way from that.