The new word is fluxophobic, meaning fearful of change. It describes those who want the world to stay as it is now, and who think every change is to be opposed and avoided. This is for people who think every habitat should be preserved as it is now, or perhaps even restored to what it was when they were younger, with any changes reversed.
Every species must be preserved as it exists now, with no space left for new species to evolve and replace existing ones. High Streets must remain crowded with small shops specializing in different things. Places where bats nest must be kept as is, rather than encouraging the bats to nest elsewhere.
New building is opposed because it involves change. The demolition of transformation of old buildings is similarly opposed for the same reason. Agriculture must be carried out in traditional ways, and innovations are to be deplored, especially those that involve “interfering with nature.”
Are fluxophobes conservative? They are conservative with a small “c,” denoting the character trait that wants things to stay the same. But they are not in the Conservative political tradition that accepts change, but wants it to be spontaneous, rather than imposed from some preconceived plan of what some people think society ought to be like. Conservatism (with a capital “C”) wants change to come from below, rather than being imposed from above.
The real world is characterized by change. It changes from moment to moment as well as from year to year. We step and do not step into the same river, said Heraclitus, for new waters flow ever about us. The world is in flux, not in stasis, no matter how much those fearful of change deplore this.
Most people welcome economic growth because it increases the prosperity that will enable us to do more of the things we want to do. Yet economic growth necessarily involves change. It comes about as new products and processes increase productivity. It necessarily involves displacement, as some established companies are elbowed aside by newcomers. It involves employment churn as some job are lost and new ones take their place.
The fluxophobe is distressed by the changes that economic growth entails. Indeed, some of them oppose it, urging us to seek instead a more settled world in which people are content with their lot. Adam Smith did not agree with them. He spoke of “the uniform, constant, and uninterrupted effort of every man to better his condition,” believing aspiration to be part of what it is to be human. It seems to be human nature to seek a better life, and change is essential to that.
Fluxophobia is less common among young people than it is in the elderly. The young are generally more flexible and more adaptable to change, and they welcome the opportunities it brings with it. Many of the elderly are more set in their ways, and unsettled by the loss of tranquility that changes involve.
The Agricultural and Industrial Revolutions unleashed the idea of improvement into the world, and set in motion a period of rapid change that still continues. They set humanity on an uphill course in which change brought betterment, both in living standards and in life’s opportunities. Fluxophobia has its hold on some people, but ultimately it means stagnation rather than improvement.