Hiding The Bleach For Brainwashing: Mind Control for You and I

Political and Spiritual Psychological Manipulation of Belief

Reality Framing

or

Brainwashing Made Simple

To question or not to question; that is the question.

Who knows what they are talking about?

Right off the bat; you swing your perception the way you do for some reason.  Your thoughts have a logic(s) they are applying to observation, consciousness manifesting the feeling this bouncing ball produces. But you and I are never sure exactly who is chasing our logic’s ball, nor if they believe our team is any good.  Metaphors, for instance, find various holes to fall through, getting mixed into gloves, golf or a pool table in the process.

Now where did that ball go?

I do not know what you know.  I can assume you read, but a machine may do that for you these days.  Likely, although I cannot see you here, you do understand language.  I know information comes to you that way if you are actually reading this, but I do not know what else you know or do not know, or how you reference the things of Life.  Knowledge and ignorance, are in some basic ways, metaphysical.  I know something of you, yet do not know who you are, where you are, or when you encounter these words.  Something known, much unknown.

I cannot usually know what you do or do not know by just looking at you.  But by hearing you, your use of language and theory, all manner of pseudo knowing can ensue.  Truth, then, becomes the problematic issue; whether my theories of you, and you of I, are correct or filled with varying amounts of ignorance; of projection from me and assumptions from my history with its assumed wisdom of the ways of things.

A critical potential conflicting issue now arises; What do you and I agree on as truth or proof of it? This is classic existentialism regarding meaning and reality. Do I assume a-priori knowing from my background; my family ways and cultural ones?  Probably. I likely possess the “need” for confirmation bias to view me as good and true. It is hard to avoid operating from what seem to be operational truths.  This is not exactly proof of actual truth. These knowings of mine may actually be beliefs or theories being imposed upon reality.   If I know there is a waterfall two miles up the river, me telling you does not mean you know this as well.  You may know you trust me, and have no reason to believe I would deceive you, but in the sense of empirical knowing; you do not know there is a waterfall where I claim.

You have your image of waterfall.  You might go up the river to see what I was talking about, only to see for yourself that I actually must have meant there was water falling over one rock in the middle of the stream, “pretending” to be a waterfall in miniature in the imagination of one looking at it.  the word and the concept of it were altered, but the explanation to you was not.  How much of this kind of unknown change of idea occurs regularly in our lives, becoming part of our own narrative?

What constitutes proof of existence and proof of belief are quite differing things.  Most of the time we do not deconstruct our nature of awareness and cognition, instead, we “run” with what seems known, for it has not been proved false (as far as we know).  You and I are inclined to accept much without much evidence other than what seems operational knowing, but that confidence may be something quite other than based on factual reality.

Enter Platforms for Truth’s Explanation; Religious and Political Persuasion

We are fallible creatures by nature.  This does not mean we are not perfectly natural, nor that nature is not perfectly rational.  It only means you and I are not omniscient, we can make mistakes; draw wrong conclusions; use false proof (erroneous “truth”), such as attitude over fact;  we can chose not to admit our error, instilling a kind of error drive into our living; and on…  In the falsity I have described, that can “automatically” become inserted into my consciousness of Life, there do appear to be avenues of correction.  I can learn.  I can understand.  I can forgive.

Learning, understanding, forgiving myself of judgments that may contain kinds of error which I no longer wish to “own”; these are generic corrective mechanisms for ignorance and its consequence.  Societies tend to internalize these, making them appear as gifts of the cultures narrative.  This kind of assumption goes up and down the scale; from individual to society.  We intend to live by Truth, but Truth is open to interpretation.  This interpretations parameters varying widely and wildly, depending on the conceptual underpinnings of The Truths assumed characteristics. Truth and reality become subject of interplay with ignorance. The Appearance Reality I operate as my real world view, likely has some conglomerations of Consensus Reality embedded with what I assume is reality.  Our culture and familly virtually guarantee I think some things are real that are actually really questionable.

-

I tend to grant much more leeway for understanding in myself, granting me many kinds of perceptual privilege.  Let say I have an organic empathy for my situation.  Others are another matter.  Someone across the culture, representing things seemingly different than I, well, I am likely to not grant them this same leeway, especially if I am under some pronounced stress.  It becomes “easy” to see others as somehow being in the way of ones own life.  They are making problems for me; and they may or may not be.  People and institutions may be “in the way” of my life, but that still does not establish who is most right in this equation.

It may describe who holds more mechanical power over by mathematical influence of mass.  Subconsciously, this mathematical?physical domination likely carries an influence over my decision making in life; I take into account who or what exercises control features over my life, and may well tend to accommodate them.  This will begin tweaking my identity to cultural norms.

It may also “encourage” me to be a champion of their cause, proclaiming it the true cause for all.  Corporation domination of culture, for instance, a kind of exploitation and partitioning of environments at all cost, will entice many to self fulfill the domination matrix, insisting life itself may depend upon unquestioned support.  Churches, as original kinds of incorporation’s, tend to seal off the exits this way.  It becomes my way, or no way.

Again.  Not establishing actual right from wrong, but instead, establishing adaptation to influence over ones will by external forces.  If I then go on to identify with this overriding will, I conform to expectation without tending to question, beginning the process of having a not truly examined life. I have then in effect; had my will adjusted, not by truth exactly, but by the forces of conformity and its compulsions.  I do not actually know why I do all that I do, only seemingly that I must.  This is a formula of self manipulation imposed by external sources.  It opens up my will, not to the principles of truthful knowing and understanding, but to forces of unknown integrity, operating from unknown cause.

–

The Four F’s: Fact, Faith, Fiction and Fraud

What I hope I have described above, is that our ignorance is powerful.  Ignorance can be denied, it then hiding behind my trust in a logic that does not require common elements of corrective knowledge; new input, new understanding of connection, other environmental influence on my notions that I have not considered, etc.  In this respect; politics and religion tends to trust I will not look into certain facts and their association; that I will not consider other ideas or theory in depth; that I will eventually hold loyalty or community connection above truth itself.  This is a major identity sacrifice; one I might not even know I made, or could make.  (FYI– I was in a Christian religious cult decades ago.)

These are identity controls.  The dials to their “on-ness” are likely in the hands of those who have a vested interest in keeping ignorance in, and understanding out.  {Note how anti-science The Church (Catholic) was, (some churches still are shaming scientific concepts) putting many a scientist to death or ostracism} This is not what most of would subscribe to as a good way to live; denying information access to our awareness.

It must be disguised by outright indoctrinated denial, or other emotionalized “information” that seems to threaten our identity; our group identities as us or we.  This is manipulation of the ability to know, and it will create intransigent problems in coping with reality, so the view of reality itself must be contorted to fit the ideas imposed upon it.

-Give me Liberty!  No That’s it!  Just Liberty!  What responsibility?  I said Liberty!

Many who consider themselves libertarians, for instance, are trusting, having faith, in a kind of abandonment to individualism as the value, they may not quite know how dependent they are on others to exist in common in a world that is inherently One.  Many a libertarian will describe a highly responsible state of self-hood; the individual responsible to act in honor and justice to other individuals.  Like many values and beliefs, they may be good and true in the abstract, but in practical reality, the amount of interrelationship and interconnection, and its responsibilities, may not be on their radar.

Liberty, an appeal to the rule of the will of the self, is often the rallying cry for many anti tax perspectives, or anti any perceived external control seemingly placed upon the self. When we see tax money going to causes we do not support, a kind of violation seems natural to behold.  Subjectively, independently, I can say; I did not sign up as a citizen for that.  But what then are the consequences of withdrawal?  { I am actually in many aspects a libertarian.}

What if all tax were voluntary?  Do we support all military based tax, with the assumption that they know things I do not, and would only ever act from righteous cause, even though I know that some of our civilian governments representatives are essentially always up for sale, or holding ideologies I find objectionable?  Would I be for a small child being given food to survive, but not someone who seems to not give a damn about me or I about they?

Do I bailout the supper wealthy so my (our) economy keeps going?  Do I say they would not bail me out, so then hold them to the same cause?  What if I do not drive a car, and do not wish to pay for all the socialist roads most of society drives on, will I pay for the socialist fire department coming on those roads to put out the fire and save the children at my house?  Why not?  This would take bureaucracy to a whole new level. I would trust the libertarian to help cover the cost they are increasing on the rest of us.

We actually live in a context where there are many community agreements and understandings, a social contract, that seems to have become so ignored it seems invisible, maybe not even there. That stress of apparent disconnection in awareness can be tagged onto their apparent absence, as someone else’s tax on us.  This is that “capital of ignorance” once again.  Yet it is exactly the excuse some of us look for to explain our trouble and conveniently place it squarely where it seems it belongs, on someone else.

It might be said; Give me Liberty, or give me excuses to believe in only me as relevant, or else I would wish to die.  That society is likely a restrictive force on the individual is a given.  That society must then always be wrong, is not true, but it sure can be made to seem so when made to order desire is imposed upon.  Who or what is behind our desires?  am I sure as math that it is me? Opportunism comes with many tricks to play over ones own consciousness, yet conveniently put the responsibility onto someone other.  Opportunism can be a collective sense of behavior; it can be individualized or generalized, depending upon differing “needs”.

-Where does my information about other human beings come from?  Do I really know?  How am I certain?  Where am I honest to myself?

We can have many feelings to be approached by most anyone with the money and or the influence to do so.  Issues will be paraded before us for observation likely for a reason.  The reason, however, may be assumed to be one thing while actually being another.  Religious leaders do this for their reasons, reasons we do not always know, but assume to be righteous. Even with them, trust and faith are innocents that can be used to advantage when some manipulation is desired.  Politics is no different; our feelings will be defined and used for a desired outcome, for reasons we are told, but do not actually know.

We cannot be absolutely certain that even our family and friends always have our best interest at heart, not if their own is preeminent. (I am a volunteer for a domestic violence program, where this uncertainty, or insecurity regarding love, safety, and co or no definitions of commitment, creates repercussions that can turn to physics or other identity manipulation to attempt to solve entrenched conundrums of relationship.)

This leaves us with a certain certainty; that my ignorance is capital to someone, and they are more than willing to spend it, this is the nature of opportunism; exploitation.  The question is; who bears the tax on ignorance?  Who pays the price?  I do.  We do.  They do as well.  This part is often the hardest to believe when one has been “used”, even more difficult when that usage is not consciously known.  It will show up in the world however, it will not obviously be tagged to our ignorance exactly.  It might seem to be the way things go, or that what goes around comes around.  We might know, that many of these powerful people who seem to do so well overall, have us not wishing to be like them.  We might shudder to think of it, of being like them, yet wish we had their fame or resource.  Curious.

-Faith and Belief can be Fraud-

How do you know you know that you know what you know?  There seems to be an endless amount of blame to pass around, usually away form ourselves, when things go wrong in the world.  We seem sure of knowing that, but we know not seems:  Someone else’s ideas are to blame, someone else’s behavior.  If only they, were only we.

This is one of the many seductions of ignorance; cognitive dissonance and buzz words that serves as Thought-terminating cliché’s, can help to keep us from thinking, especially from the all inclusive thought practices of critical thinking.  As it is, our will is under much pressure of both kinds of conformity, and to identity and interest hijacking.

Individuals propose schemes that need us to manipulate The Commons (the infinite aspects of Life) to assuage their stress, as do other institutions that have a vested interest in permanently not accounting to questioning in any full and inclusive way.  As long as we as individuals do not question why we do not question, some questions, and so some knowing, will not be had.  Our lives then, in unknown ways, held down by what are ultimately our own thoughts.

You are provided with a kind of truth detector for these outer interest, and ones accounting of your own thinking; do they (I) allow questions from top to bottom?  That’s it.  Are they (I) accountable to reality, and to accountable Truthfulness as an aspect of that reality, or are they (I) out to tell you what reality is and make you accept it without question?

Oh no! You’re not supposed to question, that is just doubt trying to seduce you!

Perfect block. Check mate.

If I am not allowed to ask; I am not allowed to know.

Fact or fiction, truth or falsity, these do make a difference, but if I do not know where these may be in my own thoughts, I will pay the difference in my life, no matter if you others are being true or not yourself. The bottom line ends up being drawn in our own lives. If I operate my observational “knowing” from what are conserved ideas beyond questioning, I likely may be polluting true reality with imposed assumption.

Most of us have our own issues with our own reactive conservatism, blocking empathy and compassion to others who seem too different, or who we feel have wronged God or society.  Being human and not omniscient, we may claim an abstract ideal as omniscient, such as God, then excuse all manner of behavior, for it is claimed to be in service of Perfection.  Unfortunately for this rationalization scenario; it is highly doubtful that denial, deception, or other means of avoiding questioning truly leads to a more honest or more Whole life.

The biggest fraud of all, may be the one that has one believe that we are “getting away with” something that in some manner depends on ignorance to succeed over others.  Such a victory is over oneself actually, and would be known as a loss if the victor were aware of it.  The bliss of ignorance? Or the curse? That loss will continue haunting with darkness out into their, or our lives in other ways until it is solved, released by true knowing.  That is the nature of understanding; it illuminates what was unknown.

Such are the fates of knowing and ignorance, of the will and ones identity.

We each had the key all along.  Where does its doorway lead?

Questioning.  Returning to the awe and wonder of the present moment and all else.  Realizing the power of Now; the freedom of forgiveness and understanding.  Connection itself becomes a revelation, if I was consumed with separation and alienation.

Ideas are not infallible.  Human expression is not all powerful, nor is human assumption.  Life is embodies with Love and Being, when I am willing to see it. All these things approachable always, by questioning what I think I know.

.

{Disclaimer: Any particular in this presentation may be incorrect. And that is the way it is.}

-

VIOLENCE AND SELF CONTROL

Being involved with family violence control puts me in an odd situation.

I have avoided physical fighting my whole life. Childhood became the most significant influence on this. My father had told me, and I took it as holy law, that you as a guy, do not strike women. I cannot say that my older sisters and I did not have shoving matches, but for me that would have been self defense. Our family dynamics was heavy on the mental sparing which can seem actually more devastating.

The physical violence in our house was later done, after my mothers death, by a step mother-guardian. She would not hesitate to hit, throw objects and threaten with knives. She sent my father to the hospital with a big gash across his forehead. I slept with the largest kitchen knife under my pillow as a self defense plan for a knife attack while I was asleep. She had hit me in the face while I was asleep, then locked me out in the snow in my pajamas. My father committed suicide not long after that.

Earlier I had incidences when someone seemed to be threatening my life as a freshman high school. I was literally about 100 lbs. and someone morbidly obese around 500 lbs, held me under water to near drowning during pool time in a crowded pool. He had done this more than once. It became so serious to me (swallowing-inhaling watter) that I thought I would have to take matters into my own hands. One more time, and I was going to put him in a headlock with my legs around his neck and hold him under until it meant something. I was a totally inhibited kid and did not trust authority to do anything but blame the victim. So I had to weigh in my mind, possibly causing someones death and being called and treated as a murderer.

As it turned out, he never did that again. But I was sure it would have been me to blame and I would have felt I had no options in my own self defense. No one seemed to notice him doing this during the pool commotion, so I believed no one would accept my story. It just never came through to experience. In physical confrontations during boyhood, I found I had to keep the potential for rage out of me, especially since I had no doubt that I would take down someone twice my size. It took someone quite a bit larger and older to overcome me. I was afraid of my rage and how if unleashed it would seem out of my control.

(As evidence that I am not just delusional about this strength proclamation. When it rained a lot during physical education, outdoor activities were called off and we were put into the gym, we freshmen and the sophomores, to have a thing called “bombardment”. This is where there are two sides chosen, a line across the middle of the gym, where the two sides throw rubber balls a little smaller than a soccer ball at each other. Out of about 150 students divided in two, little me was one of the last picked, last or second to last.

Well the first game I discovered that being in the lower 10% in size had me a bit afraid, so I hung back as many did. All it took was the guy next to you ducking and a ball out of nowhere taking you out, while leaving a big red mark somewhere. I decided to risk all and take it to the line next game.

You could see most of what was being thrown up front. I found out I could catch any-ones ball thrown at me, but no-one could hold onto mine. I was also very accurate. I won that game. The last guy standing. I was picked second of all players next game. The team first picking, picked his seeming best friend first, so I was first on the other team picked. The next game was the last. It oddly ended up being me the last standing on my team, and a very out of shape guy hiding and dodging in the corner on the other side when the period ran out. I could no longer throw fast enough to eliminate time for him to move. That is how little old me was as a skinny five feet two.)

TRUTH VS ADVICE

What I just said I cannot say to someone involved in family violence. As far as physical violence goes, I do not hit women. I have told ones who gave me any actual physical provocation that, “If you do that again, we are over!” I do not tolerate fighting, especially in the home relationships. I try to avoid physical confrontations with anyone. Now that I am a “senior citizen” I find you are not seen as a threat overall, or there is a kind of automatic respect. Most of that sense of being on guard is much diminished now. I take peace as my way and it path is most often open.

I have found that emotional abuse has prove a bit more difficult to not take part in, compared to a sense of law that one just never does such a thing. I grew up that way, making fun of someones mistake or being ridiculed. It is then a model of behavior I have had to contain and reverse. To do that requires a will and an understanding of the Golden Rule or Categorical Imperative. I need to establish the sense that not only does “what goes around comes around.”, but it is already damaging my life. Abusing others in any way is profoundly self abuse.

I need to see (learn to recognize) when I am treating another like I would not wish to be treated, and immediately review what my self respect or control problem really is. We are often given the information from another that we are on some kind of attack and they becoming defensive, or initiating their own retaliations.

Still, when expressing guidance to someone, it will often fall flat if it is preached or describes as something I am so above, and can’t understand how someone could do such a thing. That fits as a key with very few dysfunctional programs. I have to speak out of and through my own life, the love in your heart has to be in it, to be a gift expected to have a chance at being received.

PROGRESSIVE OR REACTIONARY

In some ways I have described political tactics and ways of manipulation. All manipulation is in some way an abuse of the truth. Its vibrational disturbance will not go unnoticed, except perhaps, by like minded dysfunction. The same situations and rationalizations that come to effect home life are used in the greater life of our world. Even if everyone does it, doesn’t make it right.

We will find manipulative arguments covered if various guises meant to hide their intention, and instead, be represented as your own interest. Fear and insecurity are great hiding places for manipulative interest. Optimistic vision can also be used as a trick to catch someones interest, then later prove to have been a ruse. We need to be both critically minded on the one hand, and have our heart held out open in the other. True adults can do this.

The upcoming election seems to be being based on fear and insecurity vs. hope and optimism, both of these being held as paramount in differing ways by the candidates. I am not saying that we are not justified in having these inclinations. What I am encouraging is the “true believers” and the doubtful to have their wits about them. As citizens and voters, it is up to us to determine the fact from fiction, the hidden agendas from the promises of safety and security. For power will seek to inject its corruptions into all areas of life if let be.

We each are freedom, love, and truths best and last hopes. Better to stand with understanding under their tall light, than the ignorance that festers in the shadows of misunderstanding.

Liberals are the cause of socialism?

One can usually find conservative or right wing post on political tags. I had found one and was replying to it; downloading parts of the Declaration of Independence, Bill or Rights and Constitution. I did this to select large parts that can be construed to be under the assaults of conservative interest. Interest wishing in conserving their power and authority over those documents.

The wedge issue right has done well in their very well funded long historical attempt to change the meaning and intentions of the words of those documents.

Unfortunately, I accidentally hit the space bar and for some reason all was lost. It might have been serendipitous to you to shorten this post.

I must note that Mussolini noted that Fascism is actually Corporatism, a collusion of corporate and governmental connections to “set up” society to their benefit. In effect, a kind of corporate socialism. Currently, what passes for democracy here (remember you do not have a “right” to vote) is easy pickings for dominator ideologies that impose systemic hierarchies akin to authoritarian, other than communism’s recent attempts to seduce liberals into a totalitarian control from a master class.

I know we were told we have the right to pursue happiness and all that, but, the dirty work a nation requires to be built, and let wealth display its more godly privilege over the whole, requires some endemic or intrinsic disparities to perpetually exist. The elite privilege that wealth bestows on one becomes mute if there is not a “pyramid” of human and other resources to prop them up. This fact can be so close to personal identities that it is invisible, like the nose on ones face. There but out of sight, and probably not to be drawn attention to.

THE NATURE OF THE NOOSE

A kind of conspiracy then, exist to keep life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness in a perpetually truncated state for those who have less for one reason or another. People go hungry, not just in the world but in America, while someone is buying a solid gold pencil sharpener for someone. A great divide must be both kept in place and seemingly out of sight or reach. Great expense is given to maintain this status quo of privilege.

Steal the money, inherit the land and sell it off, hook or crook or hard work, money makes all with enough of it, equals in their quasi socialist state, the full fruits of society, just for them, often handed to them having nothing to do with merit or hard won sweat of the brow.

Many aspects of our culture are now in contradiction with our founding documents; the right to bear arms for civilians has been rendered a good wedge for the right but a test of stupidity in many respects. Some of that intent was to prevent both external and internal tyranny. Well most “arms” were of limited sorts then.

Do you really think you have the right to your own nuclear weapon? If the government, controlled by who knows who, decides your cherished guns are to be taken, science has now given them many options, you do not have, to get them from you. No need to pry them from ones cold dead fingers. Gas, micro delivery of certain substances, electromagnetic, microwave and other energy weapons (or drugs) will have you gushing to give your guns away, and those of your friends, when the government is so armed. You however will not be. End of one of the second amendments primary intentions. This is just one point.

THE POST OF LIBERALS SOCIALIST TYRANNY

I am responding to a post that mentioned liberals misread the founding documents (actually he said just the Bill of Rights) to enable their socialist agenda to bring tyranny. Where has this person been these last 7 years? Suspension of habeas corpus, political retaliation for truth telling, various scandals that point their way right to the top, that post that said liberals do not respect the Bill of Rights seems to have eyes shut held under the think tanks murky obsessions. I believe it must be in one of those right wing “conservative” bubbles, that only allows one way interpretation in. A conservative “think tank” is (no, not an oxymoron) a bubble making machine, drawing attention away from full human realities.

What is missing from the; all I got Is all mine no matter how I deserve it philosophy? Well not solipsism! The world, life itself, is made up of infinite connections, including our relationships. The now brain washed “individualist” is often walled into an identity that amputates its full human presence and experience from the Whole of Life. And now their are mechanisms in place meant to keep us there.

THE COST OF FREEDOM FROM WHAT?

If you are responsible for poisoning the environment, you don’t want society to hold you accountable? What kind of free nation is that? In the abstract (free for all chaos) it would seem true that the big bad government is taking money out of your pocket, anger and paranoia ensuing. But what you are doing if cutting the tax on you is passing it (the problems) on to future generations where it might well be an exponentially more difficult endeavor to correct? But I get your self righteousness over being forced against your will. But it is your problem that your will is blinded by the “right”.

If I do not contribute to fixing the infrastructures built by much (Oh boy bad word!) collective effort, who will? The foreign nations we are selling them off to? I hope they are trustworthy.

TYRANNY OF THE RIGHT

The so called conservative party just tried, and still can succeed at its permanent majority. What of tyranny then? “K Street” project was to punish businesses that contributed to Democrats! Have you watched the news, have you seen the character of many of these manipulators and hypocrites? Must not have, since a cults myopic perspective still seems to dominate your socialism in liberalism view.

I am saddened by how betrayed so many conservatives have felt about the last alleged group of them in office; laughing at the Bill of Rights, ignoring the Constitution, racking up record bills, endlessly fear mongering, unilaterally breaking treaties (our word!), using the not so free press to push deception as common sense conservatism. Liberals can feel their pain! They have seen their own betrayals by the powers that be and their stranglehold over the definition of “We the People”, and the collective common good implied in that definition of a nation.

There is nothing new about our predicament and state of affairs. Liberals are not to blame nor are conservatives. It is what I call the dark side of ignorance that is served by confusion, apathy, and its heart stopping ideal that understanding can never succeed at human liberation. To that proposition to stop forgiveness, cripple understanding, enable sophistry and ad hominem emotional stimulation to wedge the population into reaction. Darkness is indeed a power to be reckoned with.

Yet strangely, when hearts open, ignorance and confusion can vanish in the Light.

EXPERIMENTAL CANDIDATES AND TRUST

The media is really quite a circus. While they compete for our attention under the big top of “news”, they seem eager to grab our shirt and yell at us that they are first or best at something.

What shilling for their employer this is. It might be a part of what encourages the wild speculation over how the last second has quite possibly change who the president will be, all about the race. This to to be expected in an allegedly fair competition, but nothing is much fair anymore about elections, and so freedom.

Being an unknown now seems a good advantage, you cannot be pinned down to your history, and history itself, depending upon who you listen to, seems to change. That the public is kept from any objective reality check, is to most every candidates advantage, they can invent a narrative. Which lobbying interest are really behind your favorite? Are you sure? Is someone more of a Christian because they seem to say they are? Is that what now decides the life and death issues, a fairly untestable faith? How did that go last time?

I can not underestimate symbolism, but it will be used as a double edged sword. Is one candidate the first black or woman, and is that the deciding factor in pulling a lever? I hope not, but I do believe these barriers are long overdue in being behind us.

Each candidate fear mongers in some respect, they have to plant a hope in you and that can be done in positive and negative ways. Even claiming to keep you safe with flags flying may look baby blanket warming, but it implies the others are not interested in your or their own families safety, that or are terribly mistaken in their ways and means of doing so.

We need this debate on security, but we need to broaden the definition of what security is. If you think security is might making right you will surely be wrong in the end. If you kill them all, what will you have become in the process? Opposite of everyone else who uses the same notion from their perspective? What about the other parts of survival contingent on security, like health care as just one of many examples?

Interesting how helping certain others outside your family is now called the “Nanny State”. While if you inherit, win a lottery, or by hook or crook become wealthy (Hey even farm workers work hard!), you can look down of the poor or in your eyes lowly of status and claim Darwinian or even character self righteousness.

Humans are humans, and if one thing they do not let go of is what someone did or is alleged to have done to them and their own. Survival is in every-ones interest. Every time someone is urged to be eliminated because they are out to get us, we can be lured into that historical loop that never ends, or seek to understand why others hate us or we them and see what reasons exist that make these differences real to each party.

Most religious teachers who created religions had or were “illuminated ones” who preached compassion, empathy, even nutty things like love your enemy, BECAUSE they could see how history could be freed by understanding. Then as time went by these same religious institutions often splinter or become more interested in their turf than in their original teachings. Words and beliefs can be turned around and upside down by the spirit one is possessed by in presenting the new and improves tenets. This is also true of individuals and nations.

The USA was assumed by many of us to have an illumination sort of approach to the world. We were listened to because we stood up for individual and national freedom with our bodies, such as in the world wars. We fought against the darkness of ignorance itself, guise in separation ideologies of superiority and contempt for those who are different, requiring domination.

Before WW Two was even over, the ever paranoid in us were competing over the “brains” to be salvaged from Germany. We must face this trouble about competition when it is tied to secrecy and the institutionalized inability to know what someone else is up to. We push the world ever closer to elimination by annihilation, or somehow, by actions, prove we are trust worthy.

We prove we are trustworthy and we make that top to bottom, through and through. That is faith alive and well and it will be humankind’s last chance. It is the last chance for any healthy relationship! Only truth sets us free. Not my opinion of truth, but my faith in standing with understanding even when the evidence says you are a fool to do so. Now that is courage alive, the kind someone called Jesus Christ lived for. You do not need to be a Christian, an agnostic, a humanist, an atheist, or some form of pantheist to see the power is standing up for unconditional love.

Benafia