The Coming of a New Era

Everything in life is cyclical. Things go in and out of style, in and out of favor. So do people, so do organizations, so do governments. Unfortunately for the latter, there's rarely a chance were they can resume where they left off.

A common mistake people make is believing that the problem beings when the dip or rise from the present track occurs. However in actuality it begins when the slope of the line changes.

Though things are not doing bad at the turning point, they are doing less well. Therefore, when one does not turn a condition around, it is partially their fault for not being perceptive enough.

Now it is easy to see that bad conditions come out of good with no clear line dividing them (in most cases). Many times, one does not realize that things have gone bad until much after they began to. Likewise, the 1960's or 1970's, or any other decade does not begin on January 1st. It begins in the actions and movements that begin well before the ball drops and continue well after the next one does. It is only that the decade, or year, or era is defined as this because it was a prevalent theme throughout it.

With all that said, I'd like to say what I want to say.

Anyone who is optimistic about a certain trend is on the forefront of it's growth and anyone who is pessimistic about a trend is on the tail-end of a previous growth. You have Abolitionists and anti-Abolitionists, Whigs and Tories, Henry VIII and the Pope, VCR's and DVD players, Conservatives and Liberals, and so forth.

If you haven't guessed, I'm going to pick on Conservatives and Liberals. Conservatives by definition are people who like things they way they are or the way they used to be (reactionaries). Liberals are people who question present norms and push the barrier into new thought; some do it drastically (revolutionaries).

Now for my opinion. There have never been in the history of the world a conservative or reactionary who was widely respected. None. No one cares about someone who wants things to remain the way they are. They just aren't important in the context of history. William the Conquerer, Charlemagne, Constantine, Julius Caesar, George Washington, Abraham Lincoln, Rosa Parks, Martin Luther King Jr., etc. All of them had one thing in common. They all changed things, defied norms. All are remembered. Few know who Constantine's predecessor was; he didn't change anything. William the Conquerer's father didn't conquer nearly as much; he isn't remembered. The KKK members who protested the civil rights movement are not remembered. They are shunned with the likes of Hitler or Stalin. Martin Luther King Jr. is praised and revered.

In the end, everything is moving towards change and historically, a majority of change has been in the forward, liberal, direction. Otherwise, we'd never have left the Stone Age, the sun would revolve around the Earth, and an invisible man that lives in the sky will forever be watching over us, watching every little thing we do, even when we jerk off. Fun thought isn't it.

Of course, there are those who would argue that I'm twisting the truth, that I'm being partisan (no shit), that I'm being unpatriotic by not conforming. Shame on you. The 1960's stand out as the epitome of rebellion against a norm. And guess what... It'll happen again. Sooner than you'd like too. And we'll win again. Just you wait and see. Our numbers are growing, our base strengthening, and there's nothing you can do about it. Everything is cyclical and the slope on your negative curve is lessening. Soon you'll see. Liberalism will rule again. And you won't even see it coming because it never left. The next fifty years are going to be fun, at least for us. Liberty, the root of liberalism, will fly free forever.

The tide is turning
As a new day dawns.
What was once yours
Will soon be gone.
It is time for the world to change
And that change is dire.
Like clockwork we come
Granting free speech, expression, and desire.
For all people of all races
Regardless of education, color, or creed,
We are uniters under a common thread,
Destroyers of your inhumanizing greed.

United we stand,
Divided you will fall.
Gone is the oppression of your rule.
A sexual liberation is upon us all.
Down cast is the Church,
It's numbers, how they've dwindled,
A new day is dawning,
It's fires have already kindled.
One of peace, love, and liberty.
Just as it was, shall it ever be.
Equality.
From sea to shining sea.

I'm not an angry person. I am not by nature vengeful, grudge-holding, or hurtful. I am however, cold and calculating, and I tend to get my way. I shrug people off when they get too close and I don't beat around the bush. If you don't like it, then too bad. It's not in my capacity to change. I am not crewel however and I don't intend to hurt anyone. I am very empathetic even if I appear apathetic. A lot of the time I take life in a third-person view, I see and experience it through others. If I knew why, I'd fix it. Likewise I pass through bouts of what would be described as clinical depression. But such is life, and it passes unacknowledged. I hide things, even from those closest to me. I don't drink to get drunk, I don't smoke anything, and I don't take unnecessary medications. If I have a headache I want to have it, discover why I have it, and cure the problem at it's source instead of treating symptoms. This is the way I am, methodical, meticulous, and calculating. The biggest secrets I keep discern why I am who and what I am. No one knows all of them, and few know any at all, even those I know best, friends or family. It's not because I don't trust some of them, it's that I do trust them, and value them too much. Am I insane? Most certainly, without a doubt. Does it matter? Not a bit. I would never kill myself. That thought never even enters my mind. It is a non-factor and nothing can change that. That codec is so buried inside my being that nothing can touch it. Nothing. No matter what happens. Nothing. Suicide is giving up. I don't give up. I am too stubborn, too methodical, calculative, and empathetic to do so. To live a long life is my greatest goal, based in a secret I've yet to speak of, but might eventually. It is my utmost desire to outlive everyone in my family. Everyone. I am not emotional. I don't like it when people cling. I don't like it when people get too close, yet that above all but all else is what I want. I am me. Just a person, any old person. Who are you?

Searching for Meaning: Heaven and Hell vs. Santa Claus

***Do not read this.***

Now that I've weeded out the easily manipulative, let's continue.

***Also do not read this if you are religious.***

Now that I have weeded out the easily offended, let's continue...

Or perhaps not if you're already angry and still reading, but I digress.


It occurred to me yesterday that belief in Heaven or Hell parallels the childhood notion of Santa Claus. Think about it. Children believe that there is a fat man in a red and white suit living at the North Pole. He has also apparently enslaved an army of little people, green suits and shoes with bells on them, a sign of their servitude. Under the direction of Santa, an old man who lets little children sit on his lap and photograph it for a fee, directs the creation of toys for all the good little boys and girls of the world, that he will on Christmas Day deliver to every child in the world (all three billion of them) while they sleep that night. Well, maybe not all of them, just the Christians and those who go along for the ride.

Of course, as we grow up, we realize that this is utterly impossible, despite the efforts of every Christmas movie in existence, some good, most not, that Santa Claus is not real. His sole non-religious purpose is to reward children for being good. Of course, you'll get presents anyways and any year where you don't get what you want, you suffer from some suedo-guilt trip wondering what you did to disappoint Santa in the past year. Regardless, the point is that we grow out of it.

However when it comes to the idea of Heaven and Hell, we continue to believe it for our whole lives. I know why too. It's a way to feel a part of something, to feel like no one is alone, in essence this is the whole reason for God, to feel loved. One cannot see Heaven or Hell while alive, and those who supposedly do get there, don't come back. So, my question is: How do we know what either is supposedly like? Or if either even exists?

Lots of children will argue with you as to whether or not Santa exists. They are so sure that he does, because it gives them a warm, accepted feeling. The same goes for Heaven and Hell. It just makes sense to create such places for dual reasons: One, it instructs people to be good. (Which is a nice thing, I suppose, though a litte arcane. Do we still have to brandish a whip to get people to be good?) And, two, people are social creatures by design and need to feel like they have a purpose, that their existence makes some sort of difference in the grand design. (Why there would be a grand design when the universe tends towards simplicity is beyond me.)

Personally, I'd rather die thinking that there was nothing after it and then be pleasantly surprised. Once someone is dead, their only shred left of existence is the impact crater that they left on the living. I would find it a final insult to my memory if my final beliefs (that there was something beyond life) did not actually come true. In this way, all that is left of me will be tarnished by what I was in life as it was concluded postmortem.

If there is an afterlife, then I'd still exist on some level and not care about the impact crater that I left behind, as I will still exist on a more tangible level. In this way, if my imprint was tarnished by a falsehood, I will still have my spirit, so my imprint will not be my final, only the end of a chapter of my existence.

The way I see it, Heaven and Hell are just like Santa Claus. They are falsehoods set before you in your childhood, in the case of Santa your literal childhood and in the case of Heaven and Hell your metaphorical childhood (your naivete of the afterlife). And, if I am to live beyond the celestial plane, then I'd rather it come as a surprise, than to have my final imprint tarnished forever with a lie spearheaded by the Church in an effort to maintain a control over the minds and hearts of man, to remain in power (they are a government after all). Maybe I am wrong. Maybe there is a Heaven and Hell. I'll wait to find out. And, when I do, I'd rather be surprised than indifferent. But until that day, I will assert that I do not need others support and I do not need to feel included. I am not petty.

Necessities for a Stable 21st Century Society

Let's face it, there are a couple of areas in our lives today, individually and the human race as a whole, that need some work.

First, minimum wage: This coincides with workers rights and in the long run will benefit businesses. After all, a worker who cannot afford to buy the product he/she makes, is wasteful in a business sense. If all people are able to buy what they are paid to make, then business will become much more stable and poverty will drop. Poverty, likewise, will be combated with a minimum wage, as well as human trafficking, and illegal immigration to name a few.

Create a clear and concise world-participative document that details the inalienable rights of all of mankind and the punishments for people (including world leaders) who discard these rules.

relegate cigarette smoking to designated non-public places preferably with good ventilation. Best case senario: restrict smoking to outdoors and only on property which one owns and not within twenty feet of a child. Smoking in confined places especially with other people present should present fines and counseling. The more inconvenient it becomes the easier it will be to get them to quit.

Make drunk driving a "one-strike and you're out" crime. Make it VERY clear what the punishment will be if one drinks and drives, even if no one is hurt. Don't sell alcohol at sporting events, or at any gathering where one has to drive afterwards.

Create a mass public transportation system akin to highways, but consisting of high-effiancy subway lines. Keep everything underground and tear up old highways. Use this new open land for farming or in less desirable terrain, for housing. For anything that is not usable, plant trees and be done with it.

Eliminate our dependency on fossil fuels through a combination of nuclear, wind, solar, hydroelectric, geothermal, hydrogen, and biomass power. As such, pass sanctions against businesses who refuse to follow in suit.

Make a rape sentence a life sentence. Make a molestation sentence a life sentence. Make it CLEAR what will happen to people who sexually assault other people.

Federally subsidize all public schools and healthcare, allowing local installations (states, cities, etc.) have the final word on where money is spent. This money comes from tax dollars. Create incentives for states and local authorities when they save money.

Limit the amount of money an executive can be paid to 25-35 times that of the lowest paid worker. All other money goes to the profit margin and benefits stock holders.

Create a uniform set of laws for like crimes, so that no matter what state one is in, they are punished equally.

Remove ethnic divisions from census and other public forms.

From each according to their ability, to each according to their need. No exceptions. People must be a profitable member of society as best as they can be. In return they should be able to expect an education, healthcare, and elderly care.