I wish sometimes that I could turn a mirror on the world, the nation, the people, the pillars of society and dregs of humanity, and force them to look at themselves as they trulyare, not as they like to think of themselves. The poor, the wretched and the suffering would see themselvesbathed in gold and lightwhile the great ones would see themselvesempty grinning skulls atop heaps of worthless dust.
This world worships its own evil and yet convinces itself that it is good. We are convinced that we are all good and should be happy and the problem isn't real -- that it's a matterof attitude. We don't have to change our behavior, we don't have to change this world, we just have to think about it differently. If that doesn't work, there's always medication
True, it is painful to look at this world and the people in it for what they are. But maybe life isn't supposed to be about our own happiness, maybe life isn't about feeling good. Maybe we are supposed to look anyway and just take it. Why the hell is contentment considered so important? Does it accomplish anything besides lulling us into complacency?
The funny thing is, our culture would tell me that I have a disease, depression, that sadness isa sickness, that anger is wrong, and that I say these things because I am deluded. I disagree. They are distracted and deluded. And I will not swallow their pills or their explanations and excuses.
Does it follow logically that only things that feel good and make one happy can be true? That if something hurts it must be false? Of course not, yet that is how most of us function without realizing it. If you hate what this world does to us, what human beings do to each other, if you feel the injustice and pain inflicted upon others, then something must be wrong with you. How dare you not just ignore it and flick on the television or go shopping?
No one wants to hear any of this. They say that I am being negative and I should be positive. We would all feel better if we just ignore it all, or think about it differently, assume that for some reason beyond our mortal understanding, that all this suffering is actually good, or that the world is what it is for some great reason beyond our own failures and ignorance, that it may suck but that's how things are MEANT to be.
That optimism, that assumption of fundamental goodness, is a social disease and it kills.
This world is what is it for a reason. But those reasons are not related to any cosmic order mandating pain and injustice. The reasons are human greed, human arrogance, human choices. This is NOT meant to be. This is NOT the plan. This is a crime.
I understand now how societies of the past destroyed their prophets. Prophets call people to self-examine, to change, to DO something.But no one wants to. It doesn't feel good so it must be bad. And they kill the prophet and pour themselves more wine. We don't kill prophets anymore, we medicate them and "educate" them into silence. We tell them to be quiet; our favorite show is on. Butwe havethe same motivation that the ancients did: We allow ourselves to be manipulated because the lie feels better than the truth.
It's difficult for me to write such things, because I know people cling to their optimism and they assumptions; they need the anesthesia. The truth hurts them too much. I don't want them to feel pain. But sometimes, I think we all have to.
This world worships its own evil and yet convinces itself that it is good. We are convinced that we are all good and should be happy and the problem isn't real -- that it's a matterof attitude. We don't have to change our behavior, we don't have to change this world, we just have to think about it differently. If that doesn't work, there's always medication
True, it is painful to look at this world and the people in it for what they are. But maybe life isn't supposed to be about our own happiness, maybe life isn't about feeling good. Maybe we are supposed to look anyway and just take it. Why the hell is contentment considered so important? Does it accomplish anything besides lulling us into complacency?
The funny thing is, our culture would tell me that I have a disease, depression, that sadness isa sickness, that anger is wrong, and that I say these things because I am deluded. I disagree. They are distracted and deluded. And I will not swallow their pills or their explanations and excuses.
Does it follow logically that only things that feel good and make one happy can be true? That if something hurts it must be false? Of course not, yet that is how most of us function without realizing it. If you hate what this world does to us, what human beings do to each other, if you feel the injustice and pain inflicted upon others, then something must be wrong with you. How dare you not just ignore it and flick on the television or go shopping?
No one wants to hear any of this. They say that I am being negative and I should be positive. We would all feel better if we just ignore it all, or think about it differently, assume that for some reason beyond our mortal understanding, that all this suffering is actually good, or that the world is what it is for some great reason beyond our own failures and ignorance, that it may suck but that's how things are MEANT to be.
That optimism, that assumption of fundamental goodness, is a social disease and it kills.
This world is what is it for a reason. But those reasons are not related to any cosmic order mandating pain and injustice. The reasons are human greed, human arrogance, human choices. This is NOT meant to be. This is NOT the plan. This is a crime.
I understand now how societies of the past destroyed their prophets. Prophets call people to self-examine, to change, to DO something.But no one wants to. It doesn't feel good so it must be bad. And they kill the prophet and pour themselves more wine. We don't kill prophets anymore, we medicate them and "educate" them into silence. We tell them to be quiet; our favorite show is on. Butwe havethe same motivation that the ancients did: We allow ourselves to be manipulated because the lie feels better than the truth.
It's difficult for me to write such things, because I know people cling to their optimism and they assumptions; they need the anesthesia. The truth hurts them too much. I don't want them to feel pain. But sometimes, I think we all have to.
VIEW 6 of 6 COMMENTS
still it generally sucks and i do wish that i could be one of those bubbly oblivious things that heartlessly ignores the worlds injustices and has a good time most if not all the time.
major huggins and much love