Month: February 2006

Let me start with an apology. There will most likely be typos and this won’t be my normal quality of rant. I haven’t slept in roughly 38 hours. I’m exhausted. I really needed to get some of this off my chest after a few things I watched last night, though.

America. Land of the Free. Nation of Liberty and Justice for all. Except that it isn’t. You see, there are many hypocrisies in our nation that politicians and patriots try to justify with sophistry. Here are some of the illusions of our nation as I see it. We have the right to own land. Wrong. First off, the land belongs to the universe, not us. Secondly, if we fail to pay our taxes…or rent…to the Government, they take it back. This means we do not own it. We merely rent it. Any attempt to argue otherwise is foolish. I’m not saying that taxes are bad or unnecessary…just that the above statement is a falsehood that should no longer be bandied about as though it were fact.

The First Amendment: “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances.” This touches two important areas.

Separation of church and state. While this particular phrase is not in the Constitution (it was taken from a letter written by Jefferson), it is there in the concept behind the opening of the First Amendment. If there is a separation implied, then why are so many policies and bills Christianity oriented? For that matter, why are there religious lobbies? The simple fact is that this country is a simple majority rule and Christianity is the majority. This does not mean that other religions are forbidden or that you will be in some kind of trouble for choosing another path, but there is greater scrutiny and less of a chance of favorable legislation (which by all rights shouldn’t exist according to the First Amendment) if you are not a part of the religious majority.

We have freedom of speech. What does this make the FCC? They abridge what can and can’t be said by the media. The popular argument for this is that someone has to protect our nation’s youth from foul and harmful language. I agree. Children should be somewhat shielded from the more vile things that are out there until such time as they have matured enough to be able to look at it without scarring, but the Constitution of the United States forbids the Government from doing that. I also agree with that idea. Parents, take responsibility for your children. To touch briefly on the previous topic of religion (and no, this isn’t a “I’m an abused Pagan” rant by any means), a large majority of the censorship in this country is prompted by the religious majority and lobby groups. Yes, we sure have come a long way from the Middle Ages where the Church told us what to say and to think and to do…haven’t we?

We are not a Socialistic or Communistic nation. Oh really? In that case we need to dump all Social Security, Welfare, and other such Government provided programs. The idea of everyone contributing to the good of all for a matter of equality among citizens is Socialistic or Communistic, depending on the administration of said programs. Look it up if you don’t believe me, Merriam-Webster can explain it to you. These are good programs…abused…but good programs. I do believe that any advancing society should feel a moral obligation to help those less fortunate. Notice I said ‘advancing’…if we were truly advanced, there would be no ‘less fortunate’ ones among us. See, we are a Democracy in the way we elect leaders (in theory). We are a Capitalistic society in that we have privately owned corporations that produce some great (and sometimes terrible) things. Microsoft would not exist in a purely Communist society. On the other hand, there would be no aid for the elderly in a purely Capitalistic society. There is no one right answer for all of the needs at this stage of our evolution. Let’s at least accept the fact that we’re a hybrid nation that uses ideas from several philosophies of government to achieve a greater good for all.

There are so many more of these little gems in our nation. It is a country that was originally founded on the ideals of open-mindedness and acceptance of differences. We are a country of close-minded hypocrites that shun anything that is not like us…and by us I mean the majority. Again, this isn’t a religious rant…the previous statement applies to social, economic, racial, sexual, educational, political and many other aspects of Human Kind. Okay, perhaps I should make that more general…it isn’t just an affliction of the majority. The minorities in this country have the same complex. This just exacerbates an already unstable and potentially volatile situation. We are all so distrustful of each other and so focused on our own little desires and goals that everyone outside that little piece of tunnel vision gets run over. This is not the Liberty we were promised by the Founding Fathers. This is not what they envisioned this nation becoming. How about we take a moment and look around without those rose colored glasses? A couple of minutes in the real world could have some really good effects on this nation and the world.

I say the world because we are pretty much the only ‘World Power’ left out there. Whether we like it or not, we are both imitated and ridiculed for our every action and inaction. What happens within these borders causes waves and ripples throughout the ocean of Humanity. Let’s try to be careful in how we rock the boat, shall we? America was never designated the World Police Force. America was never elected Nation of the One True Government. America was never appointed Mommy and Daddy of Planet Earth. Let’s stop acting like we were. We should not ignore the needs of the rest of the world, but how about spending a little more time fixing the wounds inside our own country first?

A long drive is amazingly conducive to deep thoughts. I found my self considering all of the recent developments in my life…say…over the last 8 months. There’s been a lot of ups and downs during this period and more than a little confusion since words and actions of others have often been in contradiction of each other. Over the past couple of months I’ve been slowly working on getting back into focus on my path. This past month it’s been even more of a priority. There have already been some pretty impressive results in this increased focus. I’m overall much happier than I have been in a while. That isn’t to say I wasn’t happy during some of the times during the past 8 months…but overall I wasn’t happy because I couldn’t have what I wanted. I’ve moved past that, I’ve woken from a very long sleep. I’m not sure the world is ready for that.

See, among my many beliefs is also this: I have traveled this plane before…several times, in fact. I have been amassing a subconscious knowledge that manifests itself in frequent intuitions and moments of epiphany. My soap box rant from a little while back is an example. I really can’t say what the result of my awakening will be. I don’t even know if it will have any effect on anyone other than myself. What I do know, however, is that it has become time for me to stand and speak. To share my thoughts and ideals. To offer the open minds of this world other options. I am not Ishmael, the depth of that wisdom is still beyond my grasp. That is probably for the best, though.

The human race is still far too young to appreciate the brilliance of that wisdom’s simplicity. We are too distracted by inconsequential little things such as politics, religion, and social status. We are drowning in our own delusions of nationality and patriotism. It is as though Mother Culture has played a lullaby for our minds that holds a subliminal message to follow her whims. We are nothing more than biological automaton droids serving our mistress. What has happened to the free thinkers? What has happened to the great philosophers of times past that questioned the truly important things about existence here? When will someone else stand and ask these questions that I am asking?

Only time will be able to answer that question and he is patient. I fear, though, that his patience may allow Mother Culture to kill us all. She breeds in us the hatred and fear for our fellow man. She teaches us that we are special…we are unique…we are better than the others. She convinces us that we are the best of the best and that this world is ours for the taking. She entices us to cast off the natural order of things and bend the very existence of the universe to our will. It matters not that the universe is not meant to be controlled such trivial things as man. She has taught us we are right and the universe is wrong. Therefore, we will rush headlong into a battle that cannot be won. A battle with Nature herself.

I speak not of just trees and grass and rolling countryside. Think in a more universal sense. I speak of this plane of existence. The very nature of the universe in which we live cries out against what Mother Culture has taught us. Who are we to think we can bend the creation of all that is here to our will? For that matter, who told us that our will works as one? Who convinced the ones in power on this planet that mankind could have a single will? One would think that the current state of affairs on this planet would be evidence enough to suggest that one or two people have differing ideas on what should happen and how things should be done.

It is both sad and amusing to see the petit ‘leaders of nations’ preaching that their nations are what is right for the world…especially since they all offer different views on what is right. I find it disappointing that none of the major players have stepped up decided that Mother Culture is wrong and that this planet has but one race that should learn to live together. By that, I don’t mean the lip service that you hear is specially and scientifically crafted speeches that have the sole purpose of generating popular support. Those are nothing more than glorified fortune cookies…only more palaverous.

Even more disconcerting is the number of people that wholly believe what these silly twits are spewing forth. Since when was talk more important than actions? Since when could a little medley of random buzz phrases be enough for people to believe that someone is a good leader that has everyone’s best interest in mind? I have yet to hear a political speech that wasn’t just fluff. I have yet to hear a politician stand up and say ‘Here is the goal and this is exactly what we need to do to achieve it’. Instead it’s ‘Here is the goal. We won’t stop till we get it’. That’s nice. How exactly are you planning to do it. Pitching words like ‘loyalty’ and ‘patriotism’ don’t explain how we are going to get there. Am I the only one that notices this?

Okay…enough rant. I’m tired and want to watch SG-1 before I go to bed. Maybe tomorrow I’ll make you laugh. Today was the day of thought.

Many people would be loath to admit to having the thoughts and feelings I plan to discuss. I suppose that I cannot really blame them. The world today is a mass of confusion running on clumsy feet moving in too many directions at once. I do not claim the ability to change the world myself. I am but one person. The world is populated, though, by a plethora of one persons.

The more that are willing to step away from the norm to do what is needed, to do what should be done, the sooner that what we strive for will become the norm. It is not anything remarkably difficult or even troublesome. Perhaps more than a few will even come to enjoy it. All I can do is mention these thoughts and live them myself in the hope that more will come to do the same.

There are so many things to be said, picking one over the others to start is not an easy task. I suppose kindness should start the list as it would probably be the one most overlooked. Simple kindness is not a hard thing to show. Small things like holding a door for someone can have a very large impact on somebody’s day. Personally I think my day is a little better when someone is willing to take that small step to make life that much easier on me. It restores faith in the human race.

Let’s deviate from kindness for a moment to examine that phrase human race.  This planet is populated by one race of people. Though we are all of one race we have many differences. They range from physical appearance to ideals. Why is it that there is so much animosity among this race? Would it seem a bit ridiculous to kill a neighbor just because he or she liked the color blue? I think that seems more than a bit drastic. Is it really that different to want to go to war with another country just because they have a form of government different from ours? This planet is certainly large enough for all of us to have room to live. All that is needed is enough tolerance to let others live the way they feel is right for them. There are basic truths in existence. Our lives here are not eternal. This is not speaking religiously, purely physically. No matter how much one conforms to the norm there will always be some things that differ. No matter how different one feels, there will always be others that feel the same. There are feelings, ideals, emotions, beliefs, and faiths that ultimately bind every last one of us together into the Human Race.

Let me say that again, we are all ultimately bound to one another in the Human Race.

This planet is made of one people. We should act like it. One of the largest problems is that we place too much stock in our own creations. I speak of countries, borders, governments, and nationalities. We have advanced so much from the earliest of mankind that we have returned to ignorance. We truly believe that one country is better than another when in reality there is no country. The countries are simply imaginary constructs we have brought into existence so that we can be unique. Americans have taken it so far as to divide the country into states to further show uniqueness. What should be realized is that we live on a planet. This planet is our country. When a war is fought we kill our own kind. It all seems so senseless if given a good look through the eyes of reality instead of the glasses of our imaginations.

To get back to the point of this writing, there are a few simple things that we as a race should do. First off is to be kind to one another. This includes common courtesies like please and thank you as well as helping those in need. I am not saying that we should all spend our lives doing nothing but building shelters for the homeless and sending food overseas to needy people. I am saying that when the opportunity presents itself to help another person, take it. Kindness alone is not enough. Politics would be a prime example of the way honesty has been devalued. I challenge each and every person in the Human Race to lie no more than once a month. It would be foolish to think that dishonesty could be completely wiped out. I have no such delusions. If, however, we could each manage to tell no more than one lie in a month, how much better would the world become? Trust would not be a problem. People could be more open with one another and many disputes would never even take place. There is no reason for us to accept dishonesty as a fact of life.

Who decided that the Human Race must be closed-minded? People in that state cannot listen to reason unless it is something they already agree with. If we could get every person to truly open their minds for just one day, the world may change drastically. Imagine a world where there is no fear of war because hatred is practically nonexistent, a world where nobody is looked down upon because they are from this country or that region. I can only hope that at least part of this will occur in my lifetime. Perhaps one day somebody truly influential will realize that the things mentioned here are true and that the price to pay to make the world a better place is so very small. I know that I am not that person. I have not the ability to change peoples thinking. I am simply trying to start the Human Race to question the current state of the planet and the way we live in it.

The entire reason that things are not changed is because people feel that because they are but one person, they cannot make a difference. If every person that felt that way all tried at the same time to change the world, life would be much different. All we have to do is work as a team. We are one race. We must work together. The sooner we realize this, the sooner our children will actually have that better world we constantly wish for but never truly strive to achieve. I challenge every member of the Human Race to take off the glasses of the imaginary world for one day and live that day in the real world by the virtues that we pretend do not exist.

Jarek Shadowwalker
Member of the Human Race