I'm in a class right now that's supposed to teach people how to be successful, both in school and in life. That's all it's supposed to do: teach people success. In fact, the class is called Student Success. Today I realized that only two people in my class have the potential for such success, assuming that others don't get their act together. Only two. That leaves about 28 sets of dreams dashed like so many pieces of broken china upon the hardwood floor of life. I won't detail who those two are, since they aren't relevant to what I have to tell you.
I was speaking with my professor before leaving class today and he mentioned that he was nearly done with the subject material he wanted to cover by the end of the semester, bear in mind, the semester is less than halfway over. He said that there just isn't much to teach about success. He normally teaches economics, see; and in economics, there's more to teach than just supply and demand. There's also theory. In fact there's lots of it. It's kind of like philosophy. The core of philosophy is generally 'who(are we?), what(does it mean to be?), and why(are we here?)'. Now that's just philosophy in a nutshell. Imagine the obscene amounts of philosophical theory!
Success is much more cut and dry. To be successful, you must perform and achieve your very best. If you can't or won't do that, then success will be forever beyond your grasp. More than that though, you must constantly expand on what you can achieve. Some people claim that they tend to crack if expected to perform under the constant pressure of performing at their peak. That's fine. Every company needs cubicle meat, and those are the lazy bastards that fill that very mediocre part of the ecosystem. Since life is constant competition, you must achieve more and perform better than everyone else who wants what you want. Despite what your kindergarten teacher and therapist tells you, not everyone is a unique snowflake. You wanna be a multi-million dollar singer? You want to be a doctor? You wanna be a teacher? Tough cookies! Millions of people want just what you want and may, in fact, be better qualified to get what you want more than you are.
You want success? Well you gotta get more well rounded and versatile than the competition. You also have to realize that the other people who want what you want are being your friends because they're trying to see if you know something that they don't. If you want to play your cards close to the vest, that's fine. Understand though, that if you meet up with someone who has some grand dream in common with you, you should try and see if you can pry any loose bits of information from them, also. You have to keep an eye on those who have the same goals you do. One day you may find you and them at a job interview, and if they know your weak area, you can bet that they've got it covered. That's right, the friends you make filling out a job application aren't just being friendly because you and them have something in common...he's scoping out the competition.
Also, you must realize that if you want to succeed you must smash the competition. You're kindergarten teacher may have taught you that as long as everyone plays we all always win. Anyone who's watched the Olympics, even once knows that only one person walks away with the title "Best in the world at _____". Everyone else returns home ashamed to train for another four years. So your teacher was full of bullshit, not to put too fine a point on it. In order to succeed, you must break some hearts. This means you will need to cause some hurt to others. For some of us, this might not be a problem (it might even be fun!), but many people raised in the bondage of conventional morality won't want to hurt anyone. And while it's true that we're all unique, we're not all special.
Finally, to win at life, you must know yourself. You might be thinking, 'hey I already know who I am, fuck you!' Well knowing your identity isn't the same as knowing who you are. You need to take your list of 'likes' and 'dislikes' and 'about me' sections and ask why you like or dislike them or why or how you are who you are. This tells you a little bit about your beliefs. From there, you need to ask yourself 'why' until there is nothing left to question. You also need to ask some very serious questions about yourself as a human being. This is much tougher than it sounds, since most people answer their own internal questions in a way that will avoid causing a negative self-image. I'll tell you now, if you ask yourself who you are and you like all the answers, you lied to yourself. I asked myself some very important questions about myself about a year ago ('What do I want?, What can I have?, Can I do more?' just to name a few) and I felt ashamed of myself and almost hated who I was. Now I know that I had only taken the first step on the road of success.
If someone hasn't told you already, I'm telling you now: Life is unfair. Life is made of hard work for pain when you'd rather just sit back and have a beer. I assume if you're reading this, you're looking for a profound truth. Well here it is: There is no secret to success, only a plan of action. If you want to succeed you must do nothing less than your best. You must also make sure that today's best is tomorrow's worst (in other words, constantly evolve). You also need to make sure you can do better than everyone around you. You must have the gravel in your guts to be able to smash the dreams of those who want what you want. Finally, and most importantly, you must know yourself. Now try filling up a whole semester with that and you'll see why I'm glad I'm not my teacher.
Wednesday, February 17, 2010
Wednesday, February 3, 2010
Take the goat by the horns
An acquaintance of mine recently asked me "What has Satanism done for you?" Well I often find it hard to answer that question, largely because I find myself focusing on myself rather than my religious leanings. This evening though, an answer came to me as I was shaving; and so I share it with you, dear reader.
Satanism didn't do anything for me. Satanism is merely a religious philosophy. Like any religion, philosophy, or ideal it can't do anything by itself. It's like momentum: it can move things or people as long as there are things to be moved. To put it more succinctly, Satanism is a tool. It can't do anything for you any more than a gun can deliver unto you a dead deer or a wrench can fix your plumbing. These tools can do nothing on their own. They can only give you the means to do what you want them to. In other words, Satanism can't make you sexier or smarter or a better human being. Nor can it give you the motivation to do those things. What it can do is give you reasons to do all of those things yourself.
So then you might wonder 'How did you use Satanism to help yourself?' Well Satanism is a religion that encourages selfishness. Rather than concern yourself with others, you should wonder more about what you can make Satanism do for yourself. Asking what it does for someone else should be relatively obvious; it gave me the tools to make myself the person I am today. If you like the person I am or hate my guts, either one is fine. Do not misinterpret me though, the Church of Satan does not make someone into anything they are not already capable of being. In other words unless you're already an outstanding individual, Satanism won't make you into one. You should also never tread the Left Hand Path lightly. Embracing Satanism because your hero is or because the love of your life has will only end in your own troubles. Those are the actions of sycophantic followers, and the Church of Satan has no room for such people. If you know a Satanist though, and are intrigued by the thought of what you can make of yourself on that path...well that's a different story.
So to conclude. The simple answer to the above question is this: Satanism didn't do anything for me. It enlightened me as to why I should do things for myself. Also, if you're potentially Satanic material; you should focus less on me and more on yourself.
Satanism didn't do anything for me. Satanism is merely a religious philosophy. Like any religion, philosophy, or ideal it can't do anything by itself. It's like momentum: it can move things or people as long as there are things to be moved. To put it more succinctly, Satanism is a tool. It can't do anything for you any more than a gun can deliver unto you a dead deer or a wrench can fix your plumbing. These tools can do nothing on their own. They can only give you the means to do what you want them to. In other words, Satanism can't make you sexier or smarter or a better human being. Nor can it give you the motivation to do those things. What it can do is give you reasons to do all of those things yourself.
So then you might wonder 'How did you use Satanism to help yourself?' Well Satanism is a religion that encourages selfishness. Rather than concern yourself with others, you should wonder more about what you can make Satanism do for yourself. Asking what it does for someone else should be relatively obvious; it gave me the tools to make myself the person I am today. If you like the person I am or hate my guts, either one is fine. Do not misinterpret me though, the Church of Satan does not make someone into anything they are not already capable of being. In other words unless you're already an outstanding individual, Satanism won't make you into one. You should also never tread the Left Hand Path lightly. Embracing Satanism because your hero is or because the love of your life has will only end in your own troubles. Those are the actions of sycophantic followers, and the Church of Satan has no room for such people. If you know a Satanist though, and are intrigued by the thought of what you can make of yourself on that path...well that's a different story.
So to conclude. The simple answer to the above question is this: Satanism didn't do anything for me. It enlightened me as to why I should do things for myself. Also, if you're potentially Satanic material; you should focus less on me and more on yourself.
Tuesday, February 2, 2010
Social Slavery
A common buzzword in use today is "Political Correctness". It's a silly concept really. You can't not minimize anyone all the time. Anytime you praise yourself, you immediately minimize everyone surrounding you. If you state that you prefer any culture over another, you're being politically incorrect. There's no escaping it.
I won't excuse those who go about intentionally insulting other races, cultures, ideas, policies or behaviors. But I will excuse their right to do so. That's our right to free speech. Unfortunately, not hurting peoples' delicate sensibilities seems to trump our freedoms. Mass media is beating our constitution to a pulp. Just how sad is that?
Mass media has put people into a position where we are vilified for having opinions that differ from others. This means that while you're still entitled to your First Amendment right, you will become a social pariah for exercising it. This is because inevitably there would be someone who feels offended by your opinion. No matter what you say, your hands are tied by political correctness.
What's more ridiculous is the fact that political correctness has no use to the common man. Look at that first word there: political. I could see political correctness being useful or even necessary if I were (just off the top of my head) a politician. But I'm not. There's no demographic I need to target or suck up to. Hence it's useless.
So keep this in mind: Every time you say 'people of color' or 'African-American' you may be sparing the feelings of some pansy black man, but you're also being the victim of the Thought Police. So exercise your First Amendment right, you can't possibly protect everyone around you. Trying to do so shows that you are only a slave trained by society at large. If you would be free you must throw off the shackles of political correctness. If you want to be politically correct, then you should just take a vow of silence.
-Hail,
Wormwood
I won't excuse those who go about intentionally insulting other races, cultures, ideas, policies or behaviors. But I will excuse their right to do so. That's our right to free speech. Unfortunately, not hurting peoples' delicate sensibilities seems to trump our freedoms. Mass media is beating our constitution to a pulp. Just how sad is that?
Mass media has put people into a position where we are vilified for having opinions that differ from others. This means that while you're still entitled to your First Amendment right, you will become a social pariah for exercising it. This is because inevitably there would be someone who feels offended by your opinion. No matter what you say, your hands are tied by political correctness.
What's more ridiculous is the fact that political correctness has no use to the common man. Look at that first word there: political. I could see political correctness being useful or even necessary if I were (just off the top of my head) a politician. But I'm not. There's no demographic I need to target or suck up to. Hence it's useless.
So keep this in mind: Every time you say 'people of color' or 'African-American' you may be sparing the feelings of some pansy black man, but you're also being the victim of the Thought Police. So exercise your First Amendment right, you can't possibly protect everyone around you. Trying to do so shows that you are only a slave trained by society at large. If you would be free you must throw off the shackles of political correctness. If you want to be politically correct, then you should just take a vow of silence.
-Hail,
Wormwood
Monday, January 25, 2010
Misery loves company
Misery visits all of us in our own time. Lets face it, happiness and fulfillment are impossible to feel 100% of the time. Such despondency can actually be fought off though. Mainly misery can be avoided by always finding something to accomplish or learn. It could be fought off by reading a new book, or cooking a new recipe, or spending time with a pet. Those always work for me. People only feel miserable because they allow themselves to.
It is said that misery loves company. I'm of the belief that this phrase was coined by those miserable people who spent as much time around others as they could, so they could spread to others the despair that they, themselves, felt. That being said one must always make an effort to avoid those afflicted with misery. You let a miserable friend in to comfort them and by the time they leave they'll have you contemplating a suicide pact. I know, I make it sound like a disease, right? Well it is. Misery is an emotional disease. Misery is an emotional black hole which sucks in productivity, strength and joy and spits out dependency, weakness and any negative emotion you'd rather not be feeling.
And believe it or not, the miserable are not to be blamed for this. They're just carriers. Plague dogs infected at the source. There isn't only one source of this epidemic either, that's why it's so scary. It can come from the media in the form of standards of beauty that are impossible to live up to. It can come from performance at work that remains un-recognized. The reasons are varied. The cure can be even more so.
Misery is an emotional disease, as I've already established. So the only way to get rid of it is an emotional cure. I mentioned learning something new. I also mentioned spending time with a beloved pet (not necessarily a non-human one). Nearly anything that can remind you of your self-worth can blow away the blues (not the music). However, it must remain said that no one can do this for you. If you weren't aware of that self-worth before, it's going to be even more difficult finding a reason to feel good about yourself and your life. These are primarily the people who end up losing all hope and looping a rope around their neck.
So keep in mind, that misery comes to us all. But only the strong brush it off like an annoying case of the common cold. The weak will carry it with them everywhere and spread it around just to validate their own feelings of worthlessness and try to make others feel as bad (or worse than) themselves. The weak despair of even making something of themselves or solving their problems. The strong will never question the purpose of their lives. The weak will question whether there even is a purpose. Just remember, everyone's life has problems, but all problems are fixable.
It is said that misery loves company. I'm of the belief that this phrase was coined by those miserable people who spent as much time around others as they could, so they could spread to others the despair that they, themselves, felt. That being said one must always make an effort to avoid those afflicted with misery. You let a miserable friend in to comfort them and by the time they leave they'll have you contemplating a suicide pact. I know, I make it sound like a disease, right? Well it is. Misery is an emotional disease. Misery is an emotional black hole which sucks in productivity, strength and joy and spits out dependency, weakness and any negative emotion you'd rather not be feeling.
And believe it or not, the miserable are not to be blamed for this. They're just carriers. Plague dogs infected at the source. There isn't only one source of this epidemic either, that's why it's so scary. It can come from the media in the form of standards of beauty that are impossible to live up to. It can come from performance at work that remains un-recognized. The reasons are varied. The cure can be even more so.
Misery is an emotional disease, as I've already established. So the only way to get rid of it is an emotional cure. I mentioned learning something new. I also mentioned spending time with a beloved pet (not necessarily a non-human one). Nearly anything that can remind you of your self-worth can blow away the blues (not the music). However, it must remain said that no one can do this for you. If you weren't aware of that self-worth before, it's going to be even more difficult finding a reason to feel good about yourself and your life. These are primarily the people who end up losing all hope and looping a rope around their neck.
So keep in mind, that misery comes to us all. But only the strong brush it off like an annoying case of the common cold. The weak will carry it with them everywhere and spread it around just to validate their own feelings of worthlessness and try to make others feel as bad (or worse than) themselves. The weak despair of even making something of themselves or solving their problems. The strong will never question the purpose of their lives. The weak will question whether there even is a purpose. Just remember, everyone's life has problems, but all problems are fixable.
Tuesday, January 19, 2010
Way of the Left Hand Buddha.
I might go out on a limb and say that many people on the Left Hand Path are consumed by hate of some sort. I know I was. I used to hate theists of any sort. Didn't matter if they were poly- or mono- theistic. Whether they were pagan or Abrahamic, it didn't matter to me. I hated any one who worshiped any external spiritual force. Looking back on it, I'm not sure why. I think I just told myself that it was because I didn't like their voluntary self-slavery, or because they couldn't think of their own beliefs, but had to have their opinions dictated to them. Though it occurs to me as I write this, Atheists can't really think of their own beliefs either. So they don't bother to believe in anything. I think I might have just been filled with a shiftless hatred because maybe I thought it gave me some kind of drive.
It took me some time to realize that Satanism gave me a greater purpose: myself. People who followed a religion that worshiped some kind of god or spirit didn't have the same purpose I did. Some people are just too humble to be self-serving. So without themselves or a god to give them purpose, many people turn to theistic religion to give them greater reason to exist. I realized a little while back that this was actually more pitiable than it was infuriating. The only reason I hated them was because I was being xenophobic, and hating anyone who was not like me. Some people hate other people for various reasons. But let me ask: If you took all the energy you expend just hating others and instead focused it on the achievement of your goals or maybe showing your love to those who deserve it, how much more fulfilling do you think your life could be?
Now don't get me wrong. I'm no peace loving hippie! There are those I hate with a blinding rage. There are some who inspire such anger in me, that I literally don't know what to do with myself. But I can avoid this if I want to, though not if I need to. Even when I find myself surrounded by those I hate, I find that if I just ignore them they don't bother me. It's when they choose to trouble me and decline my request to be left in peace, that I find myself stirred into anger.
And there's another thing people often forget. There is a difference between anger and hate, everyone. Because I love quoting from the dictionary, here's the difference between the two:
Anger
Function: noun
Etymology: Middle English, affliction, anger, from Old Norse angr grief; akin to Old English enge narrow, Latin angere to strangle, Greek anchein
Date: 14th century
1 : a strong feeling of displeasure and usually of antagonism
2 : rage.
Seems pretty basic, right? Well here's anger's evil twin.
Hate
Pronunciation: \ˈhāt\
Function: noun
Usage: often attributive
Etymology: Middle English, from Old English hete; akin to Old High German haz hate, Greek kēdos care
Date: before 12th century
1 a : intense hostility and aversion usually deriving from fear, anger, or sense of injury b : extreme dislike or antipathy : loathing
2 : an object of hatred.
They seem pretty similar don't they?
Well I can say this. The definition of hate implies anger taken to it's extreme. I think it was the Greeks who coined the phrase "Everything in moderation". So taking anger to it's extreme until it becomes hatred doesn't really help anybody does it?
I won't say that your life will be better if you just let go of your hate. It's impossible to do just one thing which, on it's own, improves the quality of your life. It is entirely possible though to let go of that hate. I will tell you this, though: since I've let go of my unconditional hatred, I feel as though a huge burden has been lifted from my life. I for one have found that tranquility is much more preferable to impotent rage. Because when you hate a portion of the whole world and you're unable to do anything about it, what does that accomplish? Maybe you find it gives you focus for your goals. However, like theism, that focus is external. Eventually you find yourself a slave to that hatred, all your actions are motivated by it. Before you realize it, that hate becomes your god.
One need not pursue Zen to feel peace. Nor must you smoke pot or forsake physical possessions. But it helps if you start looking at that which you hate as being beneath your notice. Letting go of one's hate is not as easy as dropping a suitcase. But it is as easy as neglecting that which you find distasteful.
It took me some time to realize that Satanism gave me a greater purpose: myself. People who followed a religion that worshiped some kind of god or spirit didn't have the same purpose I did. Some people are just too humble to be self-serving. So without themselves or a god to give them purpose, many people turn to theistic religion to give them greater reason to exist. I realized a little while back that this was actually more pitiable than it was infuriating. The only reason I hated them was because I was being xenophobic, and hating anyone who was not like me. Some people hate other people for various reasons. But let me ask: If you took all the energy you expend just hating others and instead focused it on the achievement of your goals or maybe showing your love to those who deserve it, how much more fulfilling do you think your life could be?
Now don't get me wrong. I'm no peace loving hippie! There are those I hate with a blinding rage. There are some who inspire such anger in me, that I literally don't know what to do with myself. But I can avoid this if I want to, though not if I need to. Even when I find myself surrounded by those I hate, I find that if I just ignore them they don't bother me. It's when they choose to trouble me and decline my request to be left in peace, that I find myself stirred into anger.
And there's another thing people often forget. There is a difference between anger and hate, everyone. Because I love quoting from the dictionary, here's the difference between the two:
Anger
Function: noun
Etymology: Middle English, affliction, anger, from Old Norse angr grief; akin to Old English enge narrow, Latin angere to strangle, Greek anchein
Date: 14th century
1 : a strong feeling of displeasure and usually of antagonism
2 : rage.
Seems pretty basic, right? Well here's anger's evil twin.
Hate
Pronunciation: \ˈhāt\
Function: noun
Usage: often attributive
Etymology: Middle English, from Old English hete; akin to Old High German haz hate, Greek kēdos care
Date: before 12th century
1 a : intense hostility and aversion usually deriving from fear, anger, or sense of injury b : extreme dislike or antipathy : loathing
2 : an object of hatred.
They seem pretty similar don't they?
Well I can say this. The definition of hate implies anger taken to it's extreme. I think it was the Greeks who coined the phrase "Everything in moderation". So taking anger to it's extreme until it becomes hatred doesn't really help anybody does it?
I won't say that your life will be better if you just let go of your hate. It's impossible to do just one thing which, on it's own, improves the quality of your life. It is entirely possible though to let go of that hate. I will tell you this, though: since I've let go of my unconditional hatred, I feel as though a huge burden has been lifted from my life. I for one have found that tranquility is much more preferable to impotent rage. Because when you hate a portion of the whole world and you're unable to do anything about it, what does that accomplish? Maybe you find it gives you focus for your goals. However, like theism, that focus is external. Eventually you find yourself a slave to that hatred, all your actions are motivated by it. Before you realize it, that hate becomes your god.
One need not pursue Zen to feel peace. Nor must you smoke pot or forsake physical possessions. But it helps if you start looking at that which you hate as being beneath your notice. Letting go of one's hate is not as easy as dropping a suitcase. But it is as easy as neglecting that which you find distasteful.
Monday, January 18, 2010
One man's tragedy is irrelevant to me
I recently made a statement that went something like this: "Life is tough. The strong deal with it in their own way. The weak strive to make their difficulties the problems of the strong." The funny thing is that if the weak stopped wasting all the effort they expend trying to hoist their problems onto others, and instead used it to solve their own problems, they could be strong too. Yet they don't. We seem to live in a world where the victim is valued more than those who take care of themselves. Why is it so great to be incapable and dependent on others?
A natural disaster recently befell a certain country. There was an incredibly high death toll, and people are still suffering difficulties from it. For all intents and purposes this is a third world country. Half the country is illiterate. Nothing of irreplaceable value comes from this place. So this natural disaster (in this case, an earthquake) takes place and suddenly the world takes notice.
An especially interesting fact is that now that this country has been struck with hard ship, we suddenly take pity on them and send them money for things they had little to none of. Suddenly clean water and medical care is available here. Much of it from the United States. Funny how they were a poor and broke down slum of a nation for over a century, and no one cared. The death toll in this country has always been pretty high due to poor health care (about 30,000 people per year are afflicted with Malaria). I find it strange how the leaders of said nation have either done nothing to develop a stable economy for their country or have tried and failed to do so. Now the leaders of this country will go down in history as the one(s) who got their "proud nation through this time of trials". The people who survived the quake are being praised as strong and courageous. So they're praised for not dying from something they didn't know was going to happen? Yeah well I flew a kite in a hurricane! What does that say about me! How great am I for knowing what I was getting into?
It must also be said that this country is not a developing nation. They are not developing. No progress has been made by this country to improve it's existence (efforts, maybe, but no progress). In fact, the quality of life for this place may have even gotten worse over the years. The really sad thing is that 80% of the people in this country who are college educated, emigrate to the United States. So the people who could improve it actually choose not to. So that means that this nation is left weakened by the people currently populating or who used to populate it.
So, we've established that this certain nation is weak, and that nature has pummeled the hell out of it. What do they do now? Well they never quite had the facilities to help themselves even before the earthquake, so it stands to reason they don't have the resources necessary to clean up the damage now. Thankfully we have the media to pass the buck onto the U.S. government. No, really! That's just fine that we're now expected to take care of places that were never even stable in the first place. That's kind of like paying to fix up a dilapidated old house, and then doing nothing with it. That right there is an investment with zero chance of return. But yet it's our responsibility to look after places where "tragedy" strikes. Odd.
Some might say that the whole incident is tragic because so many people died. That's a damn joke. People are killed in large numbers every day, and no one says jack. There are three reasons for this.
1.) When people get thrown in mass graves in S. America or Africa (a daily occurrence, I assure you), there isn't always a reporter to catch it on video, and people only know about current events via the media. But just because you didn't hear about it doesn't mean it didn't happen.
2.) Another reason people are sitting up and taking notice is because natural disasters of this magnitude don't happen every day. Every once in a while though, you get a massive tsunami, hurricane, or earthquake and everyone's interested. People like to hear about things that don't happen often....I'm not sure why.
3.) This disaster happened practically right in our back yard. The Caribbean (where this disaster took place) is technically a part of N. America. Since N. America is part of the continent that we (American citizens) live in we feel that it's relevant to our lives, and so should feel bad or otherwise have an opinion.
I'll tell you folks: I've never been to this country. I've never wanted to. I don't know anyone from there, or who ever has been there. I've been aware of this place and it's horrendous poverty since I was in the fourth grade. I didn't care about it then, and haven't since. I don't care what anyone says; if they were a strong nation with strong people, they'd be able to recover from this problem on their own. As it is, I don't see how the earthquake that hit them is the United States' problem, or the tax-payers' for that matter.
A natural disaster recently befell a certain country. There was an incredibly high death toll, and people are still suffering difficulties from it. For all intents and purposes this is a third world country. Half the country is illiterate. Nothing of irreplaceable value comes from this place. So this natural disaster (in this case, an earthquake) takes place and suddenly the world takes notice.
An especially interesting fact is that now that this country has been struck with hard ship, we suddenly take pity on them and send them money for things they had little to none of. Suddenly clean water and medical care is available here. Much of it from the United States. Funny how they were a poor and broke down slum of a nation for over a century, and no one cared. The death toll in this country has always been pretty high due to poor health care (about 30,000 people per year are afflicted with Malaria). I find it strange how the leaders of said nation have either done nothing to develop a stable economy for their country or have tried and failed to do so. Now the leaders of this country will go down in history as the one(s) who got their "proud nation through this time of trials". The people who survived the quake are being praised as strong and courageous. So they're praised for not dying from something they didn't know was going to happen? Yeah well I flew a kite in a hurricane! What does that say about me! How great am I for knowing what I was getting into?
It must also be said that this country is not a developing nation. They are not developing. No progress has been made by this country to improve it's existence (efforts, maybe, but no progress). In fact, the quality of life for this place may have even gotten worse over the years. The really sad thing is that 80% of the people in this country who are college educated, emigrate to the United States. So the people who could improve it actually choose not to. So that means that this nation is left weakened by the people currently populating or who used to populate it.
So, we've established that this certain nation is weak, and that nature has pummeled the hell out of it. What do they do now? Well they never quite had the facilities to help themselves even before the earthquake, so it stands to reason they don't have the resources necessary to clean up the damage now. Thankfully we have the media to pass the buck onto the U.S. government. No, really! That's just fine that we're now expected to take care of places that were never even stable in the first place. That's kind of like paying to fix up a dilapidated old house, and then doing nothing with it. That right there is an investment with zero chance of return. But yet it's our responsibility to look after places where "tragedy" strikes. Odd.
Some might say that the whole incident is tragic because so many people died. That's a damn joke. People are killed in large numbers every day, and no one says jack. There are three reasons for this.
1.) When people get thrown in mass graves in S. America or Africa (a daily occurrence, I assure you), there isn't always a reporter to catch it on video, and people only know about current events via the media. But just because you didn't hear about it doesn't mean it didn't happen.
2.) Another reason people are sitting up and taking notice is because natural disasters of this magnitude don't happen every day. Every once in a while though, you get a massive tsunami, hurricane, or earthquake and everyone's interested. People like to hear about things that don't happen often....I'm not sure why.
3.) This disaster happened practically right in our back yard. The Caribbean (where this disaster took place) is technically a part of N. America. Since N. America is part of the continent that we (American citizens) live in we feel that it's relevant to our lives, and so should feel bad or otherwise have an opinion.
I'll tell you folks: I've never been to this country. I've never wanted to. I don't know anyone from there, or who ever has been there. I've been aware of this place and it's horrendous poverty since I was in the fourth grade. I didn't care about it then, and haven't since. I don't care what anyone says; if they were a strong nation with strong people, they'd be able to recover from this problem on their own. As it is, I don't see how the earthquake that hit them is the United States' problem, or the tax-payers' for that matter.
Lords of Creation
Here's a thought. Humans are a part of the Animal Kingdom. More specifically, we belong in the following categories:
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Subphylum: Vertebrata
Class: Mammalia
Subclass: Theria
Infraclass: Eutheria
Order: Primates
Suborder: Anthropoidea
Superfamily: Hominoidea
Family: Hominidae
Genus: Homo
Species: sapiens.
So there you have it. Humans are animals. Not only that, we are a part of only one (out of 5) kingdom. Yet we carry ourselves with some inflated sense of self-importance. Why is that? Is it because of our intelligence? Well that's simply evolutionary. Creatures evolve different survival mechanisms. That's why there's so few creatures that hunt elephants. Because they travel in groups, and are so big and heavy, it's hard to catch them off guard and kill them in conventional ways for lions, hyenas, crocodiles, etc. Evolution gave them just what they needed to thrive, and serve their part in the ecosystem.
Now why is it, that when we humans refer to the world at large we like to separate ourselves from animals. Everyone does this. Everyone. We all see the world in terms of 'people' and 'animals'. Some people say it's due to our intelligence. That seems kind of backward as we seem just intelligent enough to know what behaviors will do damage to our species (both individuals and the collective) and ecosystem. Yet we seem just stupid enough to engage in these behaviors anyway. Murder and war are two of my favorite examples, since they are unique to primates (and the former to humans only). Some people will scoff at this and say that animals kill other animals all the time. This is true; lions kill hyenas, both of them kill water buffalo, and hippos will kill anything that invades it's personal space (make no mistake, hippos will fuck your shit up). All this inter-species fighting though, is for food, survival, or the establishment of feeding territory. Even then, the most killing that takes place between different species is when a carnivore is hunting, since a successful hunt, by definition, must end with the death of the prey in question.
But contrary to popular belief, intra-species killings rarely take place. It's true, animals fight all the time. Sometimes this is for dominance, sometimes for mating privileges, and for a whole slew of other reasons. But this rarely ends in the death of said animals. They only fight until it can be clearly determined who the stronger one is, then the weaker creature often submits. Most creatures understand that needlessly killing does nothing to further the species, and so rarely engage in such. Humans, however either generally don't understand this or don't care.
Now I am all in favor of Darwinism, but not to the extant that I would kill someone just because he is weaker than I am. I seem just smart enough to know that if anybody is contributing something to my society and I exterminate him/her then I rob my tribe (see: family, friends, city, etc) of whatever my victim was providing. Furthermore; I understand that if I do harm to my tribe, then in the long run I do harm to myself.
So how is it that the whole of the Animal Kingdom seems smart enough to thrive in every respect except where humanity enters as a variable? We're the smartest terrestrial creatures in the Animal Kingdom today. We have the ability to understand and create abstract concepts like mathematics, art, agriculture, and philosophy. We even have the mental faculties to make our environment adapt to our presence, a trait which seems unique to humanity. So why is it, if we're so evolved, that we destroy everything we touch?
It's all a frightening concept to consider. There seems to be no solution that doesn't appear bleak and horrific. If I'm mistaken, though, please tell me how.
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Subphylum: Vertebrata
Class: Mammalia
Subclass: Theria
Infraclass: Eutheria
Order: Primates
Suborder: Anthropoidea
Superfamily: Hominoidea
Family: Hominidae
Genus: Homo
Species: sapiens.
So there you have it. Humans are animals. Not only that, we are a part of only one (out of 5) kingdom. Yet we carry ourselves with some inflated sense of self-importance. Why is that? Is it because of our intelligence? Well that's simply evolutionary. Creatures evolve different survival mechanisms. That's why there's so few creatures that hunt elephants. Because they travel in groups, and are so big and heavy, it's hard to catch them off guard and kill them in conventional ways for lions, hyenas, crocodiles, etc. Evolution gave them just what they needed to thrive, and serve their part in the ecosystem.
Now why is it, that when we humans refer to the world at large we like to separate ourselves from animals. Everyone does this. Everyone. We all see the world in terms of 'people' and 'animals'. Some people say it's due to our intelligence. That seems kind of backward as we seem just intelligent enough to know what behaviors will do damage to our species (both individuals and the collective) and ecosystem. Yet we seem just stupid enough to engage in these behaviors anyway. Murder and war are two of my favorite examples, since they are unique to primates (and the former to humans only). Some people will scoff at this and say that animals kill other animals all the time. This is true; lions kill hyenas, both of them kill water buffalo, and hippos will kill anything that invades it's personal space (make no mistake, hippos will fuck your shit up). All this inter-species fighting though, is for food, survival, or the establishment of feeding territory. Even then, the most killing that takes place between different species is when a carnivore is hunting, since a successful hunt, by definition, must end with the death of the prey in question.
But contrary to popular belief, intra-species killings rarely take place. It's true, animals fight all the time. Sometimes this is for dominance, sometimes for mating privileges, and for a whole slew of other reasons. But this rarely ends in the death of said animals. They only fight until it can be clearly determined who the stronger one is, then the weaker creature often submits. Most creatures understand that needlessly killing does nothing to further the species, and so rarely engage in such. Humans, however either generally don't understand this or don't care.
Now I am all in favor of Darwinism, but not to the extant that I would kill someone just because he is weaker than I am. I seem just smart enough to know that if anybody is contributing something to my society and I exterminate him/her then I rob my tribe (see: family, friends, city, etc) of whatever my victim was providing. Furthermore; I understand that if I do harm to my tribe, then in the long run I do harm to myself.
So how is it that the whole of the Animal Kingdom seems smart enough to thrive in every respect except where humanity enters as a variable? We're the smartest terrestrial creatures in the Animal Kingdom today. We have the ability to understand and create abstract concepts like mathematics, art, agriculture, and philosophy. We even have the mental faculties to make our environment adapt to our presence, a trait which seems unique to humanity. So why is it, if we're so evolved, that we destroy everything we touch?
It's all a frightening concept to consider. There seems to be no solution that doesn't appear bleak and horrific. If I'm mistaken, though, please tell me how.
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