The era of cutting losses, the survival tactic of solidarity [Morning Light]

Handheld life, the survival tactic of our era <source c637bf3d-94b>

Clipping hands has become a survival tactic in this age. Imagery that warns us about the type of person we shouldn't meet fills our screens, and books teaching us how to cut ties in relationships have become bestsellers. Professor Hee-jun Kim, a sociologist, recently presented 'The Age of Clipping' which interprets this trend as a product of societal structure rather than individual psychology.

In a society where everything is ranked, even human relationships are investments. We yearn for loneliness while choosing to isolate ourselves, and the further we distance ourselves, the deeper the darkness of isolation becomes. Even the market clips itself too. It cuts off bus routes with no profit, withdraws hospitals and banks from low-population areas, and eliminates those who don't pay off.

The clipping of individuals and the market share similarities, both acting as a way to remove negative entries. However, there are things that cannot be clipped away. Aging bodies, sick bodies, and neighborhoods left behind do not vanish simply by being removed from financial records. They remain a burden for someone, usually the weakest among us.

Clipping does not solve problems, it simply pushes them onto weaker shoulders. Caretaking is the most representative example. In an aging society, care has become the daily struggle for every family. Parents entrusting their elderly relatives to care facilities have no idea what each day brings. Advertising and government evaluations cannot assuage our fears, and the lack of trust in caregiving services makes it impossible for both caregivers and care recipients to verify the quality of care.

However, trust does not come from surveillance but from relationships. Good caregiving is just another name for good neighbors. Social care institutions backed by long-term experience, familiar operators, and accessible locations are the most enduring and reliable guarantees in a world where trust is hard to come by. They are the descendants of those who previously collected grains during famine and were marginalized in early industrial finance, now serving as the inheritors of a grassroots coalition.

The economy built on winners taking all eliminates everyone else to zero. Universities ranked first, jobs ranked first, and market shares ranked first will disappear without glory. A socio-economic system that doesn't use such ranking tables expands the choices of life and work. Where markets have clipped themselves, public sector gaps remain.

In these areas, they have long been creating alternatives to caregiving, employment, sustenance, and housing. Cooperative societies, social enterprises, village enterprises, and self-reliant enterprises. All of these can be grouped under the term 'social cooperative economy'. This basic law, which unites these various names into one, gives them a common legal status and sets the principles and direction for policies.

The basic law reached the final parliamentary stage after being signed by 142 lawmakers from both parties in the 19th Parliament in 2014, but stalled due to procedural issues. It has also faced repeated rejections in the 20th and 21st Parliaments. This basic law, which finally emerged in the last legislative session, aims to fill the void left by the state and market with a solid economic system.

However, its progress has been hindered not by doubts about its effectiveness, but by ideological biases and political disputes. This law does not just provide a name and place for a tangible economy that has filled the gaps left by the state and market; it is a legitimate and necessary step in recognizing its existence. Even without a law, the scene has been quietly functioning.

The minimal responsibility the government must fulfill in this handheld life era is the enactment of this basic law. After 13 years of waiting, the scene stands at the last threshold, seeking a response from the legislative body. The legislative body must now prove that there is another way to live together through solidarity.