In our culture, we say that we abhor violence, yet we are fascinated by it, Just look at our movies and TV shows. We are taught to value peace and have no qualms about blowing Nations to bits when they disagree with us. We are a curious people. Perhaps we are so fascinated with violence because we are taught that violence is completely unacceptable.
The World, in fact the entire Cosmos, is violent. Stars are fueled by thermonuclear reactions, creating unthinkable hear. Here and there, they explode. Galaxies literally eat each other. On the Earth, we witness volcanoes, earthquakes and tsunamis. Just yesterday, America was able to witness the full fury of a Category 4 hurricane. The aftermaths of all of these events are horrific. But, witnessing the event itself, the eruptions of amazing force is to witness, not necessarily beauty, but the sublime. You cannot avoid being made aware of the awesome mystery.
So, having established that our Creator uses violence in his Creation, what about on the human level? We can be a violent lot and there is no reason to deny that. What can we do about that?
First, di not deny it. That just gives the violent urge just gives it more power. Bow, that does not mean to give in to these urges. Redirect the energy. Use it to find new answers, and, if you cannot do that, go out and find a way to burn off that energy. Work out. Play a sport. If you physically cannot do so, then sublimate the energy by watching physically violent activities such as football and boxing. The arts are another way to give safe vent to our darker impulses.
War is, to state the obvious, is violent and, while I think war is a stupid activity, it is justified in cases of direct attack by another Country. On a personal level, self defense or the defense of others is just fine.
The most troubling aspect of violence are the acts of random violence. Random acts of any sort are hard for humans to deal with. We want a neatly ordered World. We;;. it is ordered, but it is not always neat.
To sum up this rambling mess of a post, violence is part of the World and part of human nature. Sp be it. All you can do us learn to control, to sublimate, violent impulses and keep, by strength of will, your violent responses to a minimum. Peace is wonderful, but it will never, be the only game in the Universe. Have a fine day and say a prayer for thise who went through yesterday's monster storm.
Showing posts with label violence. Show all posts
Showing posts with label violence. Show all posts
Thursday, October 11, 2018
Wednesday, August 8, 2018
Hate
Hate seems so small, compared to it all, so why don't you choose joy? I have Seen the World, Pearls Before Swine, from the album Balaklava
Th band cited above is one of those 60s groups that never really caught on and is now mostly forgotten. That's a shame. They made beautiful music.
I start with the above quote because U want to touch on the subject of one of our deepest emotions. Din't deny it. Everyone has something, and more importantly, someone they hate. If love exists, hate must exist. That's just the way things work.
Hate is a nasty feeling. It makes you smaller, because there is nothing constructive you can do with it. True, you can use it as a motivator, but it motivates you to tear down. not build up. Love is constructive and can build both things of great worth and beauty and relationships that will last forever,
Hate is small. It often, more often than not, grows from some small slight. Like a splinter in your finger, it irritates, then burns, then festers and erupts. There have been wars, devastating wars that have been started by small slights. Families have been ripped apart by a moment's lapse in behavior. Harsh words are exchanged, tempers boil over and the whole thing spirals out of control, all due to a momentary lapse on behavior or a word misspoken. The unpleasant irony of the whole thing is that the moment of insult is over at the very moment it is voiced. People are fighting over an echo of a bad instant.
The person doing the hating is carrying around a heavy load. It becomes all consuming and they gain nothing from it. They just waste their precious time and consciousness.
You are human and you will experience anger and, here and there, flashes of hate. Nothing you can do about that. But, you can keepthose moments brief. Think before you speak, . Turn the other cheek. Jesus said that if you disagree with your neighbor, you should try to work things out and, if you cannot do that, just stay away from them. Let the flame die down and realize this: you can ruin countless lives by giving into what is a brief and most often a small, petty thing.
If you are forced to fight, in defense of yourself and/or others, get it over quickly and do as little damage as possible, then forgive the offender immediately. This is beneficial to all concerned.
Hate really is a small thing when viewed in the light of the vast beauty of the Universe. Joy is Universal. It's your choice.
Th band cited above is one of those 60s groups that never really caught on and is now mostly forgotten. That's a shame. They made beautiful music.
I start with the above quote because U want to touch on the subject of one of our deepest emotions. Din't deny it. Everyone has something, and more importantly, someone they hate. If love exists, hate must exist. That's just the way things work.
Hate is a nasty feeling. It makes you smaller, because there is nothing constructive you can do with it. True, you can use it as a motivator, but it motivates you to tear down. not build up. Love is constructive and can build both things of great worth and beauty and relationships that will last forever,
Hate is small. It often, more often than not, grows from some small slight. Like a splinter in your finger, it irritates, then burns, then festers and erupts. There have been wars, devastating wars that have been started by small slights. Families have been ripped apart by a moment's lapse in behavior. Harsh words are exchanged, tempers boil over and the whole thing spirals out of control, all due to a momentary lapse on behavior or a word misspoken. The unpleasant irony of the whole thing is that the moment of insult is over at the very moment it is voiced. People are fighting over an echo of a bad instant.
The person doing the hating is carrying around a heavy load. It becomes all consuming and they gain nothing from it. They just waste their precious time and consciousness.
You are human and you will experience anger and, here and there, flashes of hate. Nothing you can do about that. But, you can keepthose moments brief. Think before you speak, . Turn the other cheek. Jesus said that if you disagree with your neighbor, you should try to work things out and, if you cannot do that, just stay away from them. Let the flame die down and realize this: you can ruin countless lives by giving into what is a brief and most often a small, petty thing.
If you are forced to fight, in defense of yourself and/or others, get it over quickly and do as little damage as possible, then forgive the offender immediately. This is beneficial to all concerned.
Hate really is a small thing when viewed in the light of the vast beauty of the Universe. Joy is Universal. It's your choice.
Friday, July 8, 2016
America - Dallas
I wake up this morning to headlines about snipers shooting 11 Dallas policemen at a demonstration. 5 are dead. Normally, I would wait a day or 2, think matters over, then write about it, but, today, I am just going to go with first reactions.
The odd thing is, I am not even shocked. Actually, I find myself wondering why this has not happened before. This killing, while abhorrent, has been building for a long time. I bend over backwards to give the police the benefit of the doubt when shootings occur. God knows, they have an absurdly hard job and are often required to make life and death decisions. They do not always get them right. None of us are perfect.
But, over the last year or 2, there have been a whole lot of folks killed by cops and a good number have been killed for little or no reason. Something has gone horribly wrong.
Now, there has been a response, a response other than picketing and filing law suits. It was a viscous response and while no civilized person can condone it, can anyone truly be surprised by it? I am just surprised it took this long. That is the sorry state we have sunk to.
We are a culture that worships wealth and power. Violence is always, at some level, a tool used by those wanting wealth and power. This was true when we slaughtered the Native Americans, when Lincoln let Grant send Sherman on his March to the Sea, when Carnegie hired thugs to stop Union organizers, when the National Guard shot kids at Kent State and Jackson State, and when we let the CIA run amok in Latin America, Indonesia, the Mid East and Southeast Asia.
Folks, when pushed, will sometimes push back. Not always, sometimes they will just roll over and play dead, playing possum its called. Well, if you have ever tried to pick up a possum playing dead, you know that said possum will then fight and they are very good at it. (Trust me; they have nasty little teeth and sharp little claws. Oh yeah, they carry rabies too).
I believe that we are about to enter a strange new period. A small group has no hope of winning a battle against a massive force but, they can annoy them to death. They can hit, here and there, until they destroy the will of the large force. We learned this, or should have, in Vietnam. The Soviets learned this in Afghanistan. Terrorists are using this tactic to great effect all over the World. Folks, we have a problem.
I believe that we will see acts such as last nights happen more and more as this once reasonably united society, continues to splinter. It will be ugly. Watch your back. Watch out for your family and friends and neighbors. Learn what areas to avoid and stay away. It is awful but, we are about to enter a whole new reality in what's left of this once great Country.
The odd thing is, I am not even shocked. Actually, I find myself wondering why this has not happened before. This killing, while abhorrent, has been building for a long time. I bend over backwards to give the police the benefit of the doubt when shootings occur. God knows, they have an absurdly hard job and are often required to make life and death decisions. They do not always get them right. None of us are perfect.
But, over the last year or 2, there have been a whole lot of folks killed by cops and a good number have been killed for little or no reason. Something has gone horribly wrong.
Now, there has been a response, a response other than picketing and filing law suits. It was a viscous response and while no civilized person can condone it, can anyone truly be surprised by it? I am just surprised it took this long. That is the sorry state we have sunk to.
We are a culture that worships wealth and power. Violence is always, at some level, a tool used by those wanting wealth and power. This was true when we slaughtered the Native Americans, when Lincoln let Grant send Sherman on his March to the Sea, when Carnegie hired thugs to stop Union organizers, when the National Guard shot kids at Kent State and Jackson State, and when we let the CIA run amok in Latin America, Indonesia, the Mid East and Southeast Asia.
Folks, when pushed, will sometimes push back. Not always, sometimes they will just roll over and play dead, playing possum its called. Well, if you have ever tried to pick up a possum playing dead, you know that said possum will then fight and they are very good at it. (Trust me; they have nasty little teeth and sharp little claws. Oh yeah, they carry rabies too).
I believe that we are about to enter a strange new period. A small group has no hope of winning a battle against a massive force but, they can annoy them to death. They can hit, here and there, until they destroy the will of the large force. We learned this, or should have, in Vietnam. The Soviets learned this in Afghanistan. Terrorists are using this tactic to great effect all over the World. Folks, we have a problem.
I believe that we will see acts such as last nights happen more and more as this once reasonably united society, continues to splinter. It will be ugly. Watch your back. Watch out for your family and friends and neighbors. Learn what areas to avoid and stay away. It is awful but, we are about to enter a whole new reality in what's left of this once great Country.
Monday, January 25, 2016
America and Violence
America is a violent Nation, always has been. Our myths are shaped around Warrior Archetypes. From the Alamo to the NFL, from John Wayne to Bruce Wayne, we have attached ourselves to the rugged individual, fighting for, well, just about anything, as long as he was fighting.
The Civil War was the World's first truly modern conflict and it was unthinkably horrible. Cannons and rifles had become sufficiently sophisticated to make killing a machine-like affair. Before, war had been almost a gentlemanly affair, with strict rules of engagement, sort of like football, but we cranked it up to new heights. Bodies were broken in massive numbers and those who returned were physically and emotionally scarred. The nation's first drug crisis came after the War, as returning soldiers sought morphine to stop the pains of old wounds, both of the body and of the soul. We should not be surprised that such is now the case with many returning veterans. And for those who avoid opiates, well, there is always alcohol.
On and on goes the fighting, and what has been our justification in places like Korea, Viet Nam and the mid-East? We are sacrificing lives to protect the interests of huge multinational corporations, the same ones who yanked jobs out of the US and sent them to countries where folks are still willing to, or are coerced into, working for slave wages. But we love the wars and we love the warriors and sing the praises of those who dutifully go off to defend the Empire of Corporate America.
You cannot constantly put energy into violence, senseless violence, without consequences, and we are seeing the chickens come home to roost. America is beset by acts of mindless violence. Not terrorism, not crime related violence. As shameful as those acts are, at least there is a sort of demented logic behind them. I am far more concerned with sheer, stupid, wanton violence. Kids walking into schools and blasting away, drivers deliberately slamming there cars into crowds on sidewalks, frustrated workers going postal, these are amazingly stupid acts with no comprehensible reasoning behind them. Just a day ago, I saw a short news story about a poor man who stopped to help a car broken down in the blizzard. Someone drove by and shot him. There is no why behind such an act.
When I grew up, yes, we saw violence on TV, but it was a comparatively sanitized violence, not a lot of blood, and always, the actions made some kind of sense. A robber shot a cop, horrible, but, at least it made some sense in the flow of the story. Now, movies are often non-stop violence without even much of a story to get in the way of the next explosion or shooting. Video games are worse in that the player gets to participate in the slaughter, and yet, I see young kids merrily blasting away, creating virtual mayhem. Boxing, once known as the 'sweet science' has been replaced by anything goes Ultimate Fighting matches. Why not just revert to pit fighting? Throw 2 guys in a pit, and the one who survives wins. Why not bring back bear-baiting or the gladiatorial games? If we just want blood and violence, look to the Romans; they were the masters. Maybe the days portrayed in the movie The Hunger Games are close at hand.
I am not a pacifist, not by any means, but neither do I worship the violence this Nation seems to be obsessed with. Violence is sometimes called for, but it should always be a last resort. You cannot constantly put out that violent attitude without getting some kind of feedback. Carl Jung said that we can easily get caught by Archetypes, primordial images from the human collective consciousness, and I would heartily recommend that we free ourselves from the Warrior Archetype. Jesus put it more simply, "as you sow, so shall you reap."
The Civil War was the World's first truly modern conflict and it was unthinkably horrible. Cannons and rifles had become sufficiently sophisticated to make killing a machine-like affair. Before, war had been almost a gentlemanly affair, with strict rules of engagement, sort of like football, but we cranked it up to new heights. Bodies were broken in massive numbers and those who returned were physically and emotionally scarred. The nation's first drug crisis came after the War, as returning soldiers sought morphine to stop the pains of old wounds, both of the body and of the soul. We should not be surprised that such is now the case with many returning veterans. And for those who avoid opiates, well, there is always alcohol.
On and on goes the fighting, and what has been our justification in places like Korea, Viet Nam and the mid-East? We are sacrificing lives to protect the interests of huge multinational corporations, the same ones who yanked jobs out of the US and sent them to countries where folks are still willing to, or are coerced into, working for slave wages. But we love the wars and we love the warriors and sing the praises of those who dutifully go off to defend the Empire of Corporate America.
You cannot constantly put energy into violence, senseless violence, without consequences, and we are seeing the chickens come home to roost. America is beset by acts of mindless violence. Not terrorism, not crime related violence. As shameful as those acts are, at least there is a sort of demented logic behind them. I am far more concerned with sheer, stupid, wanton violence. Kids walking into schools and blasting away, drivers deliberately slamming there cars into crowds on sidewalks, frustrated workers going postal, these are amazingly stupid acts with no comprehensible reasoning behind them. Just a day ago, I saw a short news story about a poor man who stopped to help a car broken down in the blizzard. Someone drove by and shot him. There is no why behind such an act.
When I grew up, yes, we saw violence on TV, but it was a comparatively sanitized violence, not a lot of blood, and always, the actions made some kind of sense. A robber shot a cop, horrible, but, at least it made some sense in the flow of the story. Now, movies are often non-stop violence without even much of a story to get in the way of the next explosion or shooting. Video games are worse in that the player gets to participate in the slaughter, and yet, I see young kids merrily blasting away, creating virtual mayhem. Boxing, once known as the 'sweet science' has been replaced by anything goes Ultimate Fighting matches. Why not just revert to pit fighting? Throw 2 guys in a pit, and the one who survives wins. Why not bring back bear-baiting or the gladiatorial games? If we just want blood and violence, look to the Romans; they were the masters. Maybe the days portrayed in the movie The Hunger Games are close at hand.
I am not a pacifist, not by any means, but neither do I worship the violence this Nation seems to be obsessed with. Violence is sometimes called for, but it should always be a last resort. You cannot constantly put out that violent attitude without getting some kind of feedback. Carl Jung said that we can easily get caught by Archetypes, primordial images from the human collective consciousness, and I would heartily recommend that we free ourselves from the Warrior Archetype. Jesus put it more simply, "as you sow, so shall you reap."
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