I’ve been thinking about the state of the world a lot these days. It is hard not to and I suspect this condition is world wide among the thinking classes. Although this class is increasingly shrinking in terms of objective thinking, we do not live entirely in the Republic of Idiocracy just yet; moving there certainly but as yet un-arrived.
People are thinking all of the time. They think without knowing they are thinking. Thinking and the distraction of thought in respect of attention and focus, never mind actual concentration, is epidemic and some who have tuned their attitude of listening, can actually hear the chatter moving on the wind. The one mind containing all of the little minds which contain all of the thoughts that may well contain thoughts of their own is a soundboard upon which, like sympathetic strings, the chatter counterpoints against the spiraling OM.
You may not live in a city but you’ve been there once or twice. Nearly everyone has had an apartment or a house or a hotel room during a period where the street was being torn up for one reason or another. You can recall, as I write these words, the sounds of the jackhammers and digging machines and all the varieties of machines that might engage in this sort of work. This is what it is like to live in this world at this time. The streets of the world are being torn up inside the mind, without the mind’s conscious awareness of it in most cases.
The impact of cell-phone conversations, radio and television waves and all of the rest wafting on the ethers are making their mark and generating urgency and uncertainty on the mind; not on the one mind, on all the little minds that do not know how to defense against it. The hammer and tongs of industry bang out their ever increasing crescendos; onward... onward comrades... into the future!
Noise can be intimidating. Sound is a weapon being developed and refined at this moment in military laboratories. Sound can kill, quickly or more slowly and it certainly creates a variety of pathologies on the mental, emotional and physical planes.
We’ve all walked through these building sites. For some it is a daily affair because it never seems to end and they experience ‘accommodation’ after awhile. They don’t even hear it any more. This is the case with information as well. This is the case with the slow loss of human liberty. This is the case with everything that you hear and see all the time. Eventually it becomes part of the background even when the foreground is disappearing; even as you can hear cell doors slamming and people screaming it still appears to be part of the machinery that has been going on long enough for everyone to get comfy about it because they have become accommodated to it.
The thing about the world getting crazy is that it does it by degrees. Because of this it always seems normal, as if it had always been happening or as if this were the way things should be because of the way things have been in leading up to it. Absurdity is piled upon absurdity and it all seems natural because it’s all a part of the mix. It’s kinky! It’s fun! It’s entertainment! It’s hot! It’s hot alright.
We’ve all seen paintings depicting Hell. Those of us who read have come across descriptions. Whether there is an actual Hell somewhere, there can be no doubt that it does appear on Earth. We can also be certain that it lives in the minds of some who suffer its torments without the need for anything external to visit it upon them.
Something is always on the way and something is always leaving. We don’t always remember what is gone because of what has replaced it. When there’s a lot of noise it is harder to pay attention. There’s a big difference between being in a crowded nightclub and being in the Oregon rain forest. But no matter where you go there is noise. Even silence is filled with noise. True silence is a rare experience and does not come about by accident.
Whenever I get to this point in one of these things I can hear people saying, “What’s his point?” Not infrequently I ask myself the same question. Well, it’s not hard to weave in any direction from here. I could go anywhere from here. I could insert sound files or video. I could make this whole affair a commentary on the works of Beethoven if I so desire. Just so, the mind can go in any direction at any time and keep right on going. It is only conditioning, habit and fear (justified or otherwise) that might circumscribe it.
Life is struggle, ergo- life is war. Life is war on most every level whether it is in the elements, the plant and animal kingdom or the human plane. Peace is impossible except over an interim in the external world because the components of that world are at war with each other for survival and also because it feeds on itself. Peace is possible only on a personal level or occasionally within a limited like-minded community and the latter would be rare despite the best intentions of the participants.
A nation founded on the principles of personal liberty will inevitably migrate toward tyranny. Sooner or later it will appear necessary to instill tyranny to protect liberty. This is where we are today and it will move to ever greater degrees of repression unless there is revolution. Revolution is also a constant. One can see it in the solar system as its defining characteristic. One sees it in the seasons.
Pressure, noises and images can create panic. Panic has various levels. If it isn’t dispersed it will finalize in wild-eyed screaming insanity. One might not be able to breathe. They will almost certainly hurt themselves and others depending on the circumstances. It is possible to walk through the pounding machinery without fear or injury if the attention to the basic soundboard of the OM is greater- in the personal sense- than to the sympathetic chatter.
We choose the times in which we live and we have some say in the roles we play. The denser the karma and the greater the debt the less freedom we have to change; therefore, “father forgive them for they know not what they do.”
There is neither rhyme nor reason to the madness of those in the seat of temporal control. The justification is one of naked self-interest and psychopathic indifference to the consequences. They are mad. The reality that- what is loosely called evil- will destroy itself is based on this fact. It is what is meant in the quote that “those whom the Gods would destroy they first drive mad.” The terrible side effect of the madness of the few is that millions are swept up in the game. Millions rise up on one side or another to counteract an opposite number about something that doesn’t even exist. It was manufactured to that end. This is the thing about madness; there is no sane reason in it.
For any man or woman to imagine that they might alter the course of planetary madness is also madness. Those engaged within it have some valued thing or condition that keeps them in play. There is always something, someone that they fear to lose. The show must go on. And the show will go on. It is a symphony with softer and harder moments. The changing from one to the other is inevitable. The most important thing is how much poise we possess. Is our destiny reliant upon the conditions outside of us or... is it firmly in the hands of that upon which we focus our attention?
People have debated this for centuries. People have died in the arguments and because of the arguments. Are we okay or is everything always uncertain? That is for every one of us to 'inquire after' and decide for ourselves. The world presents the evidence every day. These are the most important questions everyone must answer; are the principles I live by real? What is real? What is most valuable? According to what am I sheltered or lost? Is the whole of it a living thing or is it a chemistry experiment? How sure are you of anything? The world is not the tragedy. The tragedy is that so few are asking themselves these questions and that accounts for the world.
'When Darkness Falls' is track no. 5 of 11 on Visible's 2001 album 'God in Country'
Lyrics (pops up)
8 comments:
"Are we okay or is everything always uncertain?"
I'd say... Yes!
I often wonder how much the membership of the thinking club is really shrinking, or if the thinkers are just being increasingly denied an audience for their thoughts (outside of a blog or two). Look what happened to the BYU physics professor who talked about 9/11!
Historically, when some new turd brain wants to rule the world (or at least a piece of it), it's often if not always the case that the "intellectuals" and thinkers are killed off or exiled. It's easier to create a new abomination when there are no pesky groups or individuals hanging around pointing out what should otherwise be obvious.
Nowadays, in many places this can be accomplished with less bloodshed by simply locking alternative voices out of what passes for the conversation, and thanks to the vast majority of contemporary media being electronic, this is as easy as flipping a switch.
Just ask the opposition groups in Burma about how their country's turd brain du jour cut off their internet and cell phone access... Oh wait, we can't! In one article it was mentioned in passing that stores in Burma quickly sold out of shortwave radios, which is precisely why I advocate that everyone should get one before unrest or Big Trouble erupts.
Anyhow, I see the current status-quo as a whitewater river that is rising fast. It's a force beyond the ability of any one person to stop, or divert, or fight against, but it can be run successfully with a little knowledge and a knack for surfing.
When I first saw big, turbulent water it appeared to be total chaos; disaster over here from waves that would never let me go, disaster over there from rocks I could get stuffed under, and no clear route that appeared navigable, much less safe! Over time, I could discern orderly patterns in the chaos, and learning to "read" these patterns showed me that there are indeed routes I could take that might bring me safely through.
One important revelation was that it's just as important to learn what to ignore as it is to learn what to focus on. Not every terminal hydraulic or undercut rock was a threat to me, it turned out, only the ones I was headed toward. The further ahead I learned to read the water, the easier it was to circumvent the hazards, and ignoring the irrelevant obstacles helps develop the focus needed to look further ahead.
Most of us are like novice river runners, overwhelmed by the chaos, the "noise," that seems to be everywhere, at first. Learning how to realistically assess our actual situation, seeing where we really are, allows us to determine which noise we can ignore and which we must confront. This is why so much effort is spent on mucking up our focus and disorienting us from knowing our true position; how can we choose the right route if our heads are spinning from all the noise?
I should add that even water we have read carefully is still dangerous, and "safe" routes sometimes take us very, very close to extreme danger, but the biggest lesson that whitewater taught me was this: Do not stare at the rock you don't want to hit; focus instead on the route around it!
The trick, of course, is finding that route. To that end, it is wise to both travel in a group (hopefully someone is experienced!) and "scout" the rapid first, and this requires stopping, looking carefully, and thinking. Internally, this means silencing our chaotic, noisy minds and carefully contemplating what we see in front of us before we jump in and commit to a choice. And be sure to ignore the land-lubbers yelling at us from shore about were to go; they might just like to watch carnage, or at best they mean well but can't see what we can from our perspective, and remember that YOU are the one who's going to be running the rapid in front of you, not them!
-The Village Idiot
man, it is such a pleasure to come here. That last sentence is searing.
Bruce
The tragedy is that so few are asking themselves these questions and that accounts for the world.
This is why I love the honesty that spews from a childs mouth as well as their inquisitive nature. They have not been "programmed" yet. I have to admit that not too long ago I was walking down the hall to the "spoon feed me the answer, I can't bear to think" classroom. Luckily while still in my formative teenage years I met a "thinking" person that was kind enough to question me instead of brushing me off. Thank you for your posts, insights, and humility.
-Sentient
Strike:
http://tinyurl.com/2gyc8a
ASSIMILATED PRESS
www.assimilatedpress.blogspot.com
"All Non-Christians Ordered To Register With Authorities"
Washington, D.C. - pResident George W. Bush today signed an executive order instructing all non-Christian residents of the United States to report for registration at their closest Wal-Mart. There they will be given the option of accepting Jesus which will entitle them to a free order of French fries in the cafeteria followed by immediate release from custody. If they refuse to accept Jesus, they will then be forced to undergo a lengthy registration process which will include an indefinite stay at a regional Halliburton Luxury Resort & Spa.
Posted By: S.A. Homes
Ben, if you see Roy please give him my greets and my love. I wish I could see him but it's not possible for me to come to the U.S. at this time. Have a great trip!
Les - I'll certainly give Roy a shout for you and I do anticipate getting to see him. We're leaving on Saturday but I'll definitely still be checking in here.
Ben
I suppose the question I keep asking myself usually is: "If this is how things are, and this is who I am, why am I still here?"
Good to read your words Les. It gives me a good feeling.
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