One thing that people often forget about the story behind Christmas is that Mary and Joseph could not have been of more humble origins. In the Christian tradition, the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, was born so impoverished that the only place available for Him to be born was in a barn. So it followed that He was born to poor teenage parents out of wedlock, lived a life of purpose and compassion, only to be betrayed then tortured to death. If there is any message to this story it is that God sent His son to live a life as wrought with pain and suffering as any human has had to endure, and it didn't break his love of humanity. As with all the greats in human history, as soon as they have died, every self-righteous power whore attempts to invoke their name to justify their own ends; and thus do we have people like GW calling himself a Christian. During the stirring rendition of Silent Night at the Christ Mass I attended this evening it came into my mind that perhaps the reason that Christianity has proven so popular is the universal appeal of redemption. Every day mankind moves closer and closer to the precipice from whence we may never return, yet we still yearn for the possibility that something greater than ourselves will save us. If we can take the story of Jesus just as it is presented to us in the Bible, it would not be inconsistent to view it as a lesson from God telling us all that even the seemingly helpless hold immeasurable potential to save us from our own wickedness. So the moral of the story is: we need to have faith in ourselves to deliver us from evil, just as Christ did some 2000 years ago.
Monday, December 24, 2007
Thanks Baby Jesus
One thing that people often forget about the story behind Christmas is that Mary and Joseph could not have been of more humble origins. In the Christian tradition, the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, was born so impoverished that the only place available for Him to be born was in a barn. So it followed that He was born to poor teenage parents out of wedlock, lived a life of purpose and compassion, only to be betrayed then tortured to death. If there is any message to this story it is that God sent His son to live a life as wrought with pain and suffering as any human has had to endure, and it didn't break his love of humanity. As with all the greats in human history, as soon as they have died, every self-righteous power whore attempts to invoke their name to justify their own ends; and thus do we have people like GW calling himself a Christian. During the stirring rendition of Silent Night at the Christ Mass I attended this evening it came into my mind that perhaps the reason that Christianity has proven so popular is the universal appeal of redemption. Every day mankind moves closer and closer to the precipice from whence we may never return, yet we still yearn for the possibility that something greater than ourselves will save us. If we can take the story of Jesus just as it is presented to us in the Bible, it would not be inconsistent to view it as a lesson from God telling us all that even the seemingly helpless hold immeasurable potential to save us from our own wickedness. So the moral of the story is: we need to have faith in ourselves to deliver us from evil, just as Christ did some 2000 years ago.
Saturday, December 22, 2007
Sunday, December 16, 2007
The mind of mankind
"We live at a time when man believes himself fabulously capable of creation, but he does not know what to create." -José Ortega y Gasset
Is there any point to this hurricane of activity that is modern man? Some would argue that there is, others that there should be, and some still that there never has been nor never will be. I myself for one am completely undecided. I've done a lot of looking into the matter, and there is just too much passion and brilliance applied to the subject to ever come up with a definitive answer. What do we see when we look back in the social evolution as described in human history? In a word- conflict. Humans seem to know of no other way to develop and progress without coming into conflict with others. It has always been will, faith and passion that have driven us like a herd of cattle to our current impasse. Here we stand with all options open to us, every possibility a path, our tomorrows limited only by our capacity for imagination. Yet we still see the primordial engine of conflict driving humanity like some sadistic shepard. The wealthiest most powerful group of people on Earth is necessarily the most aggressive. Thus is it no surprise that even a country founded on the soundest of humanist principals has now become a force that the whole world must either follow or fear. It is the nature of human development for us to crash together like atoms, only to then find some new balance. I think suicide is nothing more than finding oneself in a situation were a lack of conflict externally leads to you waging war against yourself (this would be supported by the fact that mellow Sweden has the higest suicide rate). Every time I hear someone respond to an issue (newspeak for conflict) with 'I don't care, don't know or are too busy' it feels like having my faith in humanity bitch slapped. How is it even possible to delude yourself into thinking that a neutral possession is even possible? We stand in the dust of millions, with their war cries echoing in our ears, evidence of their struggles and achievements everywhere; yet we find the nerve to be disinterested! Were it not for the masses of the Global South, that are still beyond the reach of false learning, I would think that there was no hope. It is an immense comfort to me that some people still have a relationship to the earth, still value community over commodities, and still posses passion worthy of existence. I don't begrudge the Northern Peoples for their attempt at making the world suit their own needs, such was the way things played out and we must accept that if we ever seek to move beyond it. One thing that their new mode of conflict precipitated was to change the world from a series of small regional conflicts into one gigantic battle royal for the fate of mankind. Despite the 500 years of murder, rape and theft that defined it, we seem to have finally reached a plateau of understanding where we must admit that we are all in this together. The fates of us all have now become one, no need to argue about it, already done. Our fundamental need for conflict has propelled us into an era that has removed many of the cultural distinctions that was the basis for the enmity of the past. Scramble as the petty leftover leaders from the last century might, they have unleashed forces they can't possibly control, but can destroy. It all boils down to whether or not we have learned anything from what has and is taking place amongst us homo sapiens. Can we reconcile our capacity for creation with a proclivity for conflict, or have our tools become to terrible to control?
"Even if the whole world were to fall to pieces, the unity of the psyche would never be shattered. And the wider and more numerous the fissures on the surface, the more the unity is strengthened in the depths." -Carl Gustav Jung
Is there any point to this hurricane of activity that is modern man? Some would argue that there is, others that there should be, and some still that there never has been nor never will be. I myself for one am completely undecided. I've done a lot of looking into the matter, and there is just too much passion and brilliance applied to the subject to ever come up with a definitive answer. What do we see when we look back in the social evolution as described in human history? In a word- conflict. Humans seem to know of no other way to develop and progress without coming into conflict with others. It has always been will, faith and passion that have driven us like a herd of cattle to our current impasse. Here we stand with all options open to us, every possibility a path, our tomorrows limited only by our capacity for imagination. Yet we still see the primordial engine of conflict driving humanity like some sadistic shepard. The wealthiest most powerful group of people on Earth is necessarily the most aggressive. Thus is it no surprise that even a country founded on the soundest of humanist principals has now become a force that the whole world must either follow or fear. It is the nature of human development for us to crash together like atoms, only to then find some new balance. I think suicide is nothing more than finding oneself in a situation were a lack of conflict externally leads to you waging war against yourself (this would be supported by the fact that mellow Sweden has the higest suicide rate). Every time I hear someone respond to an issue (newspeak for conflict) with 'I don't care, don't know or are too busy' it feels like having my faith in humanity bitch slapped. How is it even possible to delude yourself into thinking that a neutral possession is even possible? We stand in the dust of millions, with their war cries echoing in our ears, evidence of their struggles and achievements everywhere; yet we find the nerve to be disinterested! Were it not for the masses of the Global South, that are still beyond the reach of false learning, I would think that there was no hope. It is an immense comfort to me that some people still have a relationship to the earth, still value community over commodities, and still posses passion worthy of existence. I don't begrudge the Northern Peoples for their attempt at making the world suit their own needs, such was the way things played out and we must accept that if we ever seek to move beyond it. One thing that their new mode of conflict precipitated was to change the world from a series of small regional conflicts into one gigantic battle royal for the fate of mankind. Despite the 500 years of murder, rape and theft that defined it, we seem to have finally reached a plateau of understanding where we must admit that we are all in this together. The fates of us all have now become one, no need to argue about it, already done. Our fundamental need for conflict has propelled us into an era that has removed many of the cultural distinctions that was the basis for the enmity of the past. Scramble as the petty leftover leaders from the last century might, they have unleashed forces they can't possibly control, but can destroy. It all boils down to whether or not we have learned anything from what has and is taking place amongst us homo sapiens. Can we reconcile our capacity for creation with a proclivity for conflict, or have our tools become to terrible to control?
"Even if the whole world were to fall to pieces, the unity of the psyche would never be shattered. And the wider and more numerous the fissures on the surface, the more the unity is strengthened in the depths." -Carl Gustav Jung
Tuesday, November 27, 2007
Frenchsmell
So once more the streets of Paris have become a war zone in the never ending battle between entrenched authority and the fierce rushing of the mob. The things these old streets must have seen, so much passion and purpose breaking on those rues like waves upon cliffs. This report claims that the primarily Muslim rioters are actually using weapons and scenes of guerrilla warfare are once more being seen in the birthplace of modern revolution. Roughly 40 years earlier a generation of students and workers closed ranks and brought the mighty establishment of the French Republic to its knees. They had some rallying cries that I think still ring true today:
In a society that has abolished all adventures, the only adventure left is to abolish society.
Ceux qui font les révolutions à moitié ne font que se creuser un tombeau.
In a society that has abolished all adventures, the only adventure left is to abolish society.
Ceux qui font les révolutions à moitié ne font que se creuser un tombeau.
Friday, November 23, 2007
So here we sit in the belly of the beast watching the legions of jackals feast. Casual cruelty and apathetic abuse are the ethos of our epoch. The liberals endorse and the conservatives conquer, all the while our souls weep for the atrocities of our minds. The modern age made us think we were a sage, when in fact we are nothing but pretentious killers. This curse of the herd cannot be overcome by the word. Mighty as logos be, it alone will not set us free. We have become alienated from the earth, from eachother, and from ourselves. If we wish to find time to prevent humanity from falling into the abyss, then it is time to raise the fist. Not in opposition to others, but solidarity with all our sisters and brothers. If we are divided, they are delighted. If we are one, then their time is done.
Wednesday, November 21, 2007
No Shit
Turns out one of the names on that last list, Ian Smith, died today. As much as he was an intransigent imperialist dedicated to keeping white minority rule in Rhodesia (modern day Zimbabwe), he was also one tough man. He served as a fighter pilot in WWII- getting half his face paralyzed crashing on takeoff and being shot down over occupied Europe and making it all the way back to Allied lines. For 15 years (1965-1980) Smith and the Rhodesian Front defied UN sanctions, fought an intense counterinsurgency known as the Bush War. Eventually Smith was pressured into allowing fair elections, which his former nemesis Robert Mugabe won. For the 27 years after he negotiated the end to white minority rule, Smith never left or sold his farm in Zimbabwe. He also never shied away from criticizing Mugabe's regime, perhaps being the only person in the country to be allowed to publicly do so. In 2000, while abroad, Smith called Mugabe "mentally deranged". The latter vowed that if Smith every returned he would be arrested and prosecuted for genocide. Ian Smith returned as planed, was greeted politely at the airport and then drove home without incident. Well, anyway, dude is now dead and another dictator rules the land; at least he is the same race as the people he brutalizes- that makes it better right?
Saturday, November 10, 2007
Pakistan
Recently a fellow historian did a study to see what the average shelf life was for US backed dictators. Turns out the average is about 10 years until they are deposed, go renegade, or just get so violent and out of control we take them out. Well, looks like the 6th most populous nation on earth is now in the midst of an all out battle for control of the state. On one side the massive, nuclear armed, Pakistani Military, led by General Pervez Musharraf. The other is composed of radical elements that span many ethnicities and regions, but can safely be called Islamist in nature- these forces include Harkat-ul-Mujahideen, Hizbul Mujahideen, and the Taliban. Then there are the various tribes that are essentially hostile to the central government, such as the Balochis, Pashtuns and others. Then there is the political/civilian side, led by such people as former PM Benzair Bhutto and the former Supreme Court Justice Iftikhar Chaudhry, the former supported by the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) and the latter by almost the entire legal community in conjunction with various middle to upper class citizens. One way or another, it looks like our Dick Tater is going to be ousted or have to kill a lot of people. Here is a list of some of our former friends-Thursday, November 01, 2007
Nietzsche
"Some are born posthumously.""The very word "Christianity" is a misunderstanding — in truth, there was only one Christian, and he died on the cross."
"Against boredom even gods struggle in vain."
"Ah, women. They make the highs higher and the lows more frequent."
"Insanity in individuals is something rare - but in groups, parties, nations and epochs, it is the rule."
"The visionary lies to himself, the liar only to others."
"The individual has always had to struggle to keep from being overwhelmed by the tribe. If you try it, you will be lonely often, and sometimes frightened. But no price is too high to pay for the privilege of owning yourself."
"To forget one's purpose is the commonest form of stupidity."
"Morality is herd instinct in the individual."
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