Monday, December 08, 2008

Wasted Energies

The amount of money that that the recent election cost is incredible. Campaign costs for both parties this year was approximately $2 billion. Imagine this number now as hours, this is 228310 years. There are 8760 hours in a year. Why is it that we are no longer stunned by these gargantuan numbers? Why is it that it is acceptable for a corporation to make billions in profit? Why is it that the resources of life are so unevenly divided?

Even at $1000/hour (1,920,000/year), 40 hours per week, 160 hours per month 1920 per year; it would take 1041.66 years to make this amount. Now imagine how long it would take making the accepted living wage of $25/hour (48,000/year). Difficult to fathom such a number yet we brush off these exact numbers as what corporations must make. It's just business. It's just success. The business of screwing everyone.

Now think of the bank bailouts. Now think how easy the banks got their bailout and how difficult it was for the auto industry which is a large chunk of the working middle class ($60,000 / year), if their lucky. The auto industry is proposing 'concessions' by the unions (workers). There will be layoffs and reductions in wages, all in efforts to 'cut costs'. May as well say 'cut lives'.

Now let's think about this whole car industry thing; there is a lot of wasted energy there. Due to the dictates of 'free market' thought, the industry must have competition. Now, there are about 12 main manufacturers of automobiles in the world (give or take). Of these there are sub-manufacturers but we will stick with 12. Now these manufacturers have one agenda, to make automobiles that will make profits. They do not have to make the best car or the most fuel efficient, they must simply sell. So we are lured into buying through 'options' and 'features' but not really quality. They sell it like sex. But it is never as satisfying.

All these are wasted energies; we are in the midst of a 'climate crisis' yet we still expect the auto industry to make profits through the 'upgrade cycle' of marketing. Instead of 'free market' thinking, maybe we need to think 'socially'; we should accept that in order to better humanity and the Earth, not everything should make a profit. Nationalize the auto industries, merge them together, make better cars. Ones that last (not subject to planned obsolescence), cars that don't burn fossil fuels; cars that have a low impact on all living things. Think about how much is spent by auto industries every year on advertising or on research; all this wastes resources and energy.

Some people that live the same lifestyle ($60,000/year) as the auto workers say that the workers are the problem because they make too much and demand too much in the way of medical and such. "An uneducated person doing a repetitive task should not make the same as an educated person such as a nurse or a teacher". I have heard that; let it sink in. I know that as I grew up I constantly heard that an 'education' is the most important thing. That the job that I received due to my education would make my 'success'. This has been pushed constantly by family, the government and corporations alike throughout my life. "Get the education and a job is waiting for you" was the chant. This has been a deliberate wedge pushed between the people in order to facilitate in-class fighting. Divide and conquer. Wasted energies.

Now, with money=Life (check previous post), is an educated person entitled to more life than a non-educated one? Do the educated feel that the uneducated have not 'paid their dues' in life and therefore are entitled to less? Do they feel that having an education brings them 'entitlement'? Are they jealous that a person did not have to go through years of 'schooling' in order to attain the same standard of living? Are they bitter?

Same thing happens with 'welfare'. I have heard people that believe that everyone should be 'doing their part'. Their part in what? Are we benefiting anything here? Are we bettering humanity with forced labor to increase the profits of the few? Why are people so threatened by other people 'sponging off the system'? Is it because they feel cheated? Cheated of what? Are they jealous? Do they seriously believe that a world that has 100% employment at 40hours/week is making any positive difference to life Earth? What are we all working for? Who are we all working for? Do they seriously believe that with all the advancements that we have made in the last 100 years, that people must work longer and harder? That both parents have to work in order to attain 'equality'? Are we really advancing as a species? Wasted energies.

It is not that difficult to fix a lot of the issues at hand, we simply have to take action en mass. We also have to take 'money' out of the equation of life. We are all born of the same Earth, of the same resources, of the same life force; we all have equal right to life's basic necessities.

The problem lies in the divisions that have been put in place between the masses and the judgments that have been implanted in our minds. The problem is the petty infighting throughout the working classes. The problem is that without all the information, masses of people will remain ignorant to what is happening in the world and susceptible to false leadership.

How terrible would it be if the financial systems collapsed? Would this affect the rich as it does the poor? What would happen if we all didn't go to work for a month? Would they get the message? Would we be able to instill change? Sure, some would die during a change such as this but some are already dying simply because they are born without money. We have the power to stop all this right now; simply say NO MORE.

I do believe that education is important to our future but let us not confuse education with 'training'. The ability to learn comes from questions and experiments. If we are too afraid to step out of the norm in order to ask the questions, we will never learn anything. Sure, some may be masters at what they do. In reality though, how important is what they do? Do they really have to 'think' doing what they do? Are we merely existing, doing what we do? Wasted energies.

There are far too many examples and points that could be brought up in this writing. Think about the ones above and the ones that you can come up with. What are the wasted energies that you see?

Where have all the thinkers gone? Perhaps they have been 'educated' into extinction.

Sunday, November 09, 2008

Things I read Today

I have been asked by my wonderful better half to provide links to how my mind is the way it is. Maybe if everyone read what I did, they would understand better.

So check out Things I Read Today for my list, I will try to update it daily.

Competition = Life

If all people are competitors; competition is just business; business is equal to livelihood; then competition must equal livelihood which equals life. Life or death, the most basic of animal instincts. When cornered, an animals will do anything to live.

This is the ultimate form of control. The system that has prevailed for centuries has done everything to reduce humans to their lowest common denominator: "look out for number 1". (Divide and conquer) In doing so, everything becomes a competition which has been reinforced through the teaching in schools, the daily work ethic and mainstream media, as a good and valuable asset to the way things work. Don't question it, just accept it.

Competition is good, it drives forward innovation (define innovation, it should not mean the next great cup-holder) and provides incentive. Incentive for what though? It seems to me it is solely to make money. Therefore I would digress if I did not conclude that

LIFE = MONEY

When something as horrific as the above statement is generally accepted through propaganda, media and schooling, it essentially becomes an unspeakable truth. To speak it brings denouncement as "over-simplifying" things and backed up with statements such as: "One cannot live without money", "we all have to work", "you have to do your share", "you gotta eat" and “there are no free rides”. All of these and others, have been spoken over and over and over during conversations with ignorant, educated and uneducated persons throughout the years. An education level does not matter in seeing the truth, nor in spouting programmed responses therefore one can be highly educated but ignorant. I even tried to explain that responses are the same, word for word, across the board; programmed to which came such memorable response as "well then, it must be true if everyone else says it".
My favorite though is still “And in your Utopian world, who's going to dive in the shit?” - these I just don't bother with anymore as they will defend 'their' system to the death.

This separation of the self from the collective frame of mind, society and nature itself has led to where we are today and what we have become. This blind acceptance of our circumstances and that "capitalism must prevail" is a collective mind that is being controlled be another collective mind. The wishes of the few are carried out by the many. The few by the way control the MONEY therefore they control the LIFE.

Through fear and intimidation the few enact laws and protections for the "property" that they have amassed and all at the bequest of the many. "this could happen to you" "he seemed like such a nice man, bit of a loner" "lock your doors" "put valuables in the trunk"; all designed to protect 'you'. NOT!! It is designed to protect property. And while amassing property we all go crazy. One can insure property against theft. Let that sink in. I want to pay someone MONEY every month just in case someone else wants to steal it. Or better yet I want to insure (MONEY) my property against the likelihood that the company that manufactured it screwed up and it breaks prematurely.

Now let that sink in and let's take a ride to the early 1900's in a Ford. Now Henry liked the idea of making money by having people buy his stuff so much, that he came up with the concept of "planned obsolescence"
. How to have your shit break so that the customer will have to buy a new one. With this also comes the parts shortages due to change and factory upgrades, yadda yadda. There is a cycle though for buying of goods and that has been shorted over the years, especially with gadgets – the “i-universe”.

Now if we do some calculations, let's say that the average person pulls in $40000 a year (yeah right). That person has 3 weeks off (again) and works 40 hours a week Monday to Friday (oh boy). That works out to about $21 per hour. That means that $21 = 1 hour of your life. If life expectancy is 72 and one applies that to every hour of life a human life = $13,245,120. Last I heard in an old GM memo it was $200,000. Hmmmmm.

That means that $1500 MacBook that you just purchased is worth roughly 71.5 hours or 3 days of your life. If someone steals your MacBook, how much time should they spend in jail?
There is said to be 20 million people doing time in the U.S. And increasing at 1000 per week. How many did crimes against property? And will they ever change their ways? I read news articles on people that get released after serving 25-30 years in jail. Are they rehabilitated? Probably, will they survive in this new world? Maybe not, but the public at large loves to demonize them and hold their past forever over them. Good luck.

Where does this mean streak of competitiveness come from? Why must people always try to make themselves look better than others? Is it that they have no control over their own lives therefore need to control something else, even as indirectly as holding a grudge? Is it that the fear of life and possessions that has increased over the years is causing rational thought to be consumed?

Why within all the advancements that we have made in our own humanity and our environment (and I don't mean nature so get off the green thing for this) can we not reach for commonality and humanity rather than the self? Have the few really devolved the many to the point where they are mere animals surviving and desperately trying to protect what little they have accumulated in order to feel fulfilled as a life force?

What are the answers? I wish I had them. There are those that say that if you don't know how to fix it, then shut up. To them I have no time for. In order to find solutions, problems must first be identified. And in order to find the correct solution, the root problem needs to be identified. The competition does not end at the one, for there are many in groups that have the same agenda yet compete against each other.

Do we all come together and live in a 'communal' community (with visions of fear with reminders of Koresh or just nuts)? Do we prepare a covert revolution (with visions of activists and terrorists)? Or do we simply accept and carry on? Which label shall we be able to live with? How do we mobilize? What do we need? How do we escape the insanity?

Wednesday, June 04, 2008

The Greatest System on Earth

Fear of the isms: communism, socialism etc. has led to the perception that the capitalist way is the only way to be without slipping into some sort of preconceived abyss of eternal sociological damnation. This has led to complacency and a general acceptance of the status quo; the norm as it is presented to us. There are no questions asked, there are no protests there are no thinkers that can see beyond, to a place and time where things may even work for all of humanity. We are told that greed is human nature, we are given examples of a few people or groups in history that have exemplified this and told that it encompasses all of humanity. “Greed will not allow us to provide for all of humanity.” "Are we to trade chickens?" “Who is going to do the shit work?” “How can one make money?” These are some of the reasons that people tell me that a different system will not work or that they simply refuse to see otherwise.

"Competition is healthy" we have been told since we were kids. Let's think about it; when do we not compete? Our homes are a competition to buy the best one, to have it appear nicer than the one we grew up in or that of your neighbors. Our drive to work is a competition to get there the fastest, to not get stuck in traffic in a vehicle that shows that we can afford it . Our jobs are a competition to get a promotion before the others, to make more money than others. Our dinner parties are a competition to try to impress our group of friends. The video games we play are a competition against ourselves, the game itself or others. The sports we play are a competition against individuals and countries. Shopping for that sought after item is a competition to get it first while supplies last. War is a competition for resources and land. When does it end? Why are we obsessed with competing? My dad is stronger than yours, my mom is prettier, my car is better; why why why? This is a constant game that divides us as human beings and forces us to simply think of 'self'. How is this healthy?

There is also a trend to compare everything in life to something that is worst off. Country X is better than country Y, work conditions in country X are better than in Y, health care, living standards, etc. When one constantly compares like this, there is a tendency to accept rather than strive to better the situation. Both systems could be lacking but because one seems better, or is sold as better, then it is accepted. This in itself is another thing that is stalling the evolution of our species. Brought upon by the constant chatter of sales and marketing, we are constantly thinking that a product is new and improved, that it is better than its alternative. A consumer mindset that will drag us all down with it. When did our minds get so weak? How did this happen? Repetitive suggestion. When one is told a lie often enough, it becomes a truth. In constant competition, humanity is fighting a losing battle against itself while the rulers laugh all the way to the bank. The ultimate slight-of-hand and deception.

Marketing by fear, by sex or by intimidation; this is another way our lives get turned into the lemmings that we have become. Preying on our basic needs and desires, we crave the sex, we accept the fear as healthy and we hope that someone is out there to protect us. There is no Superman, no one is protecting us, the corporate masters are just using us to their ends. They live off of our fears; "what will people think if I have acne?" must buy skin cream. They know that sex sells; buy the car with the hot babe on the hood. They love to intimidate us; only 3oz bottles when traveling on an airplane or else. "These rules are for your safety" they like to say. I don't know about you, but for me a safe life is a controlled one. "You have a choice" they sputter. There are no real choices - to fly or not to fly is not a choice, it is an ultimatum.

We are the first to judge or criticize another way of life but when it comes to looking inwards, we are blind. We refuse to accept ourselves as being flawed, we make excuses and we start to compare. Our way of life is simply better. When confronted with the problems that are facing us, we can only say things as "What are the solutions?" without even accepting that there are problems; we are mentally blocked. If there are no definite solutions, then there cannot be any problems. This is not a way to think. The basis of finding solutions is to first identify the problems. The person that can see the problems may not be the same as the one that finds solutions but it is a step forward.

Every day we are told what to think, what is acceptable, what is the norm. We are constantly reminded what happens to those that do not fall into the norm. Prison, mental institutions, addictions, activists, terrorists, etc. There are no more freedom fighters; they are all now terrorists. We are constantly reminded to fear straying out too far. Don't read this, don't download that; guilty by association. We are protected; laws are passed for our safety and we go about believing everything is just fine or at least that they are as fine as is possible.

In order for real change to occur there needs to be an addressing of such fears. Living in a society that does not accept anything unless it is proven and which is automatically suspicious of the human element leads it not to accept change. We, as a whole, are trained to be dis-believers, we need facts, figures, diagrams, accounting; proof. If there is the slightest doubt that something will not work, or something is not as it seems, then we discard it, we don't accept it, we simply don't believe. If there is one person that 'ruined' it for the rest of us, we accept that it is no longer viable or that a new law is to be passed. There cannot be a system that is better suited to humanity except capitalism, as there will never be proof of otherwise. Communism has failed, socialism has fallen flat therefore there are no other options. Like the linear thinking sheep that they are, the masses simply accept this and even defend it to the end; not knowing any better and simply refusing to think outside the box.

Tuesday, March 18, 2008

A Better Way Forward

I sit and wonder at how long I can do this; how long can I hold my tongue? How long can I nod and smile?

The other day I kept my mouth shut as the way people were talking, I thought that they had turned into bigots and racists in front of me. "We are not racist". "Canada is a very tolerant country".

I listened as the conversation turned to Sikhs and their turbans. They were talking about the fact that the Sikhs refuse to wear hardhats. "They can go without a hardhat, but my health system shouldn't pay for them if something happens" one said. I tried to say that they had a right to religious beliefs, to which one replied "then they can go back to their own country". What country would that be? Is it one that we have invaded?

Sure Canada is a great country, as long as one conforms to it's "rules of life". Adhere to the educational system, accept all the rules (for your safety). Do not go off the path that has been chosen for all and you will have a fairly decent life (for now). Just don't think for yourself, that is what the government is here to do, to take that burden away so that you can go through life, enjoying it as you blindly nod and smile your way through it.

I listen to people that consider themselves "educated" and "intelligent" when in fact they are "trained" and simply regurgitate the spewing of a system that has them under control. These are the same individuals that make the majority of the population, and believe that this is the way that everyone should think and live. Encouraged by a system that protects them and makes them feel "safe", they go through life believing their false intelligence and trying to change everyone into thinking like them. If you do happen to think outside their scope, look out, it is a personal attack and anger sets in.

Trying to conform to a financial system that eats you up and spits you out, people have forgotten how to be human; how to be nice to one another and just accept people for who they are. How to accept whole cultures and ways of life without judging them as inferior because they do not adhere to our way of life. They have not been educated in the same houses as we, so therefore are also denied the dignity of recognition for their hard work in foreign universities. Pay your dues and yee shall be rewarded.

I had always heard throughout life that if I did not get my papers(education) that life would be difficult for me. This is something that is taught in schools, is reinforced at home and throughout the media. "Get an education or forever be a loser" is the cry from all directions; "get an education and be a success". A 'success', what does that mean? To get more money than you need to live your life is considered a success. To have more children then the planet needs is considered a success. To climb your way to the top on the backs of others is considered a success. Make your mark, be a star, is a success; fame, fortune and notoriety are all forms of success.

Stand out from the crowd and you shall be rewarded; think outside the box. Stand out how? Does blowing away 10 people in a fast food restaurant count as a success? That would make one notorious and stand out from the crowd? Does fighting a corrupt system and looking for a better way constitute a success? One is usually ostracized and shunned for thinking outside the norm and going against "the powers that be". Then what is it? Think outside the little box but keep yourself caged in the encampment? Have an idea, but only if it helps the current system?

If it wasn't for the weather, sports, celebrities and material gain, what would people have to talk about? People have dinner parties, get-togethers and gatherings so that they can be with like-minded people; usually they turn out to be no-minded people. Sitting around drinking and talking about nothing of value, forever trying to impress the others with their knowledge of nothing. This car is better than that, that sports star makes too much money, this celebrity is so hot .... make it stop. How about the world as we know it, turning on each other for monetary gain? What about the destruction of our planet so that profits can soar? What about the inequalities facing humanity? And what about the fact that in this age of technological advancements, we have to work harder just to survive, just to 'own' something?

With all the wasted energies and competition in the world, it is a wonder that we ever got this far. Imagine if we stopped trying to find a 'gadget' to sell and make millions but instead actually tried to solve some of the problems facing our species. Imagine if we strive for real advancement instead of striving to be a part of the elite club of 'the rich'. We are short sighted and cannot see beyond ours or our family's immediate future. Generations have come and gone, let there be generations to follow. Let go of individual gain and look towards a future for all. Release yourselves from the shackles of 'someone else's game'; be free, moral and justified in life. Life is supposed to be a wondrous journey for our energies to transcend from one realm to the next, instead it has become a shit-fight. Stop idolizing stupidity and reach for true understanding and intelligence, this is the way forward.