CREATING AN EXISTENTIALIST CRISIS

All wars are the result of gross incompetence and ignorance.

If an alien species were able to look in and observe what is taking place on our planet today and compare it to what they have witnessed in the past, they must be scratching their heads in disbelief at the antics displayed by the U.S, Israel and Russia.  The unapologetic display of violence and war and the indiscriminate destruction of civilian properties and lives and using military might to demoralize and destabilize a nation.  For some unfathomable reason nations such as mine—Canada—are going along with the phony rationale provided by the aggressors.  Without delving into past history to any great extent—forty six years ago regime change in Iran was welcomed by its people because the then Shah of Iran—known at the time as the peacock throne because of his lavish spending—was not only corrupt, his was a regime of intimidation enforced by a security force known for its brutality (and now they want to replace the current leadership with the son!).  And as far as Iran having nuclear power that could potentially lead to nuclear arms development, well, that monkey left the cage a long time ago and it is not up to us to decide who is a rogue nation and who is not, who can have nuclear weapons and who cannot.

Justice perverted is justice denied.

Disrespect the sovereignty of nations and reap the consequences.

I would like to point out the obvious and that the current batch of aggressors could be labelled as having gone rogue.  Invading other nations, indiscriminate bombing, regime change, kidnapping, crimes against humanity, incarceration of civilians, deportations, renditions, flouting international laws, sanctions and the sorry list of misdeeds is ongoing.  If these nations cannot respect the sovereignty of other nations, then nobody is safe and that includes Canada.  According to these bad actors any excuse will do because nobody is going to stop them.  Not yet.

When Nazi Germany started its expansionist drive it gave Hitler the impression that the world feared his power and were unable and unwilling to stop him.  Hitler ignored the simple reality that none of the ‘sane’ leaders wanted another world war.  Trump, Putin and Netanyahu are not taking a calculated risk by taking advantage based on what they feel is their superior position and strength, they are advancing on the delusional beliefs that they can get away with it.  Ignorant, narcissistic fools, who, rather than paying attention to past history lessons, are actually convinced that wars are winnable.

Creating a crisis

Why did I pick this particular heading?  A nation can experience an existentialist crisis brought on by natural disasters, climate change, epidemics, all of them factors beyond anyone’s control.  Our species is struggling globally because of our numbers, needs and demands.  A massive amount of government debt and annual budget deficits are crippling programs and services.  Combine this with religious strife, refugees and mass illegal migrations, job cuts and loss of income and you create a level of unrest within the masses that will soon turn into a highly combustible powder keg.  Throw into this mix a batch of elected and self-appointed psychopathic leaders with massive egos and any lack of restraint, and hello, we’ve got a world once more on the brink of war.

How quickly things can change!

America after World War I and II became a global leader and powerhouse, a lender of money (not borrowing), and the worlds’ biggest supplier of consumer goods.  Within less than half a century they have turned that superior edge on its heads and are now the dubious holder of over thirty trillion dollars of debt.  Their military presence around the globe with a million people in uniform permanently stationed abroad, combined with massive military investments to provide them with the latest and most impressive lethal weapons, has brought them on the precipice of insolvency.

Basically America is bankrupt and attempting to restore the empire through threats, tariffs and invasions will only hasten the demise.  America’s wounds are self-inflicted and putting profits before people is the main reason why they find themselves in this precarious position.  Pure greed encouraged the wealthiest Americans to abandon their manufacturing base in exchange for the pyrotechnics of financial stock speculation.  The number of questionable financial vehicles in use resemble a Las Vegas gambling den.  It has made a select few people incredibly rich at the expense of the average worker who has seen jobs evaporate and incomes stagnate.

A borrowed affluence.

America has kept up the pretense of wealth by keeping government budgets, services and programs afloat on a sea of red ink.  Ancient Rome suffered a gradual decline because of relatively sparsely populated areas and a slow level of global progress and the lack of an active and organized resistance.  Communist Russia collapsed in record time because of their expansionist drive, government overreach and ideological stupidity.  We are now living in an era of interconnectedness where all the parts have to work in synchronicity to deliver the goods and services people need to survive.  Because of our huge numbers and demands it is absolutely crucial that trade and commerce work seamlessly together.  The days are gone that a single nation can afford to go rogue and pretend that they can rule the world and do as they please.

War has never been a solution.

The reluctance of the rest of the world to stand up against Putin, Trump and Netanyahu has nothing to do with fear, but with the acknowledgement that a global conflict will turn billions of people into losers.  These three crackpots are advancing based on their egos and a total lack of empathy and responsibility.  Putin is trying to regain control of a Russia that is kept afloat on a level of criminal corruption that defies description.  Trump is pushed along by a delusional coterie of rightwing populists desperate to protect and restore what America used to be and creating crisis after crisis to confuse and distract the American public.  None of these incompetents have a clue as to what they’re doing.

Netanyahu is dealing with a totally different conundrum, but it is one Israel has cultivated for decades without letup by ignoring the plight of non-Israeli citizens within their borders and failing to reach out to them with compromise and democratic power sharing.  Instead they have steadily driven a wedge between themselves, the Palestinians and other Arab nations.  Might doesn’t make right.  Under Netanyahu the rhetoric and attacks have only escalated and they have pushed themselves and their adversaries to a point of no return.  They have turned an unwillingness to compromise and negotiate into an existentialist crisis of their own making.

Pathetic excuses!

All aggressors are using their misguided and temporary military supremacy to advance their political and economic strategies at the expense of neighbors, friends, allies and sovereign nations turned into foes because its suits their objectives.  When Hitler started his expansion of Nazi Germany he relied on the same delusional tactics currently deployed by the U.S., Russia and Israel.  And as far as the rest of the world is concerned, we’re not wringing our hands in despair and we’re not impressed by their strength or level of bullying, but none of us are willing to give up on peace and dialogue, because war is the last resort when it boils down to ineptitude and abject human failure.  In a world faced with some staggering economic, environmental and resource issues we simply can’t afford to waste or destroy anything.

The European Union is a prime example of a cooperative relationship that emerged after several disastrous wars and centuries of conflicts.  A growing number of European nations decided it was time to integrate economies and to work together and put an end to trade conflicts, borders and military saber rattling.  Canada, the U.S. and Mexico have successfully integrated their economies for decades, only to see it ripped apart under Trump and his baseless accusations of the world taking advantage of the U.S. and underscoring his displeasure with a barrage of insults and personal attacks.

Create an existentialist crisis if you run out of excuses.

What has emerged in the U.S. is a picture of denial, of decades of overspending and an obsession with being the world’s biggest superpower.  It has been a costly and counterproductive experience.  Trying to divide and control the world through spheres of influence is part of a post-colonial residue that continues to linger through the chambers of former colonizers.  Occupation, regime change and meddling in the affairs of sovereign nations and especially with gun diplomacy, has never worked, nor have tariffs, sanctions, blockades and punitive duties.  People like Trump, Putin and Netanyahu are great a starting a brawl and then they step back and leave it to the masses to get their hands dirty and clean up after them.

 Iran is a typical example of post-colonial interference and has been the recipient of a number of unfortunate attempted regime changes by Western powers.  They could have been an ally and a much valued trading partner.  But Western powers have always wanted it all—the oil and control.  We can no longer afford to elect and select crackpots to lead nations.  The entire notion that you can fix your problems by taking what belongs to others has no place in today’s world.  We need to grow up and act like responsible adults.

Whose next?

The interference in the affairs of sovereign nations has to stop because if we don’t then we can’t complain if that same fate is laid down at our own doorstep.  You know the saying, “What’s good for the goose is good for the gander.”  Canada could well become the next target for a takeover if Trump and company proclaim to the world that we should always have been one nation.  In other words, making it sound as if he is doing us a favor.  Did Hitler care about how pathetic his excuses sounded when he absorbed Austria and Sudetenland into the German Reich?  They even had a wonderful term for it: Anschluss, as in a coming together of nations because of a common ancestry, language and culture.  We have become experts a talking a crooked line straight!

Feel free to comment or share.

If you ignore relevance, the truth no longer matters and facts are whatever you want them to be.  I don’t write to be right, but to inform and to be relevant.

EOG DRIVEN

 

EGO DRIVEN

When big egos abandon reason we need to fear the unreason they’re about to unleash.

There are examples galore in the natural world of a pecking order, as in who gets to lead and who follows, who gets to eat first and the most, and who eats last; keeping claws or feet crossed, hoping that something will be left.  Anyone who follows my blogs or reads my books knows that I’m a lion fan.  They are just such majestic beasts.  The lion is often referred to as the king of the animal world; strong, fearless and a born predator.  Those who are the biggest, strongest and most determined get to lead and they will do anything to stay on top; killing rivals and if a challenger succeeds in taking over another troop and defeats its leader, he may even kill its offspring and insert his own sperm in the females to assert his dominance.  He.  There are few dominant females in the animal world, in the bigger species that is.  Bees are not exactly a threat to male dominance.  It is however on full display in the human species and when it comes to dominance it is pretty well restricted to males as aggressive, dominant females are a rare exception.  Indira, Margaret and Golda, hats off to you girls, but you’re not in the same league as the worst male offenders when it comes to starting wars and sowing the seeds of destruction.

Ego and momentum.

I am once more going out on a limb and state that the egos in our most aggressive males follow the same pattern as energy and momentum as described in my novel, Energy & Origin.  (It is available on KDP Amazon.ca) (Energy & Origin by W.M.A. Bes) (This is a novel that anyone reading my blog should purchase as it explains not only our origin, but where we are headed and why).  The way energy behaves and dissipates depends by and large on circumstance.  In nature it is affected by dozens of factors ranging from wind, sun, temperature, tides, gravity, natural events and many more.  In humans a far more direct and impactful factor impacts on how well or how poorly we act and behave.  Ego plays a huge role, especially in bad actors and it only takes a few of them to bring the house down.  Referring once more to my novel and its main premise: energy created life and life is energy.  A superior intake and use of energy predicates how well a species will do.  And now we come to the crux of this article and where I am headed with this.

I am not aware if in the animal world ego plays a big role, because I suspect evolutionary development is far more instinctive and predicated on necessary evolutionary traits and habits than the ego present in the human species, which is far more suspect for its duplicity and many fraudulent uses.  Why would human egos follow the unpredictable patterns of energy and momentum to a much greater extent than that of species in the natural world?  How does it show?  Where does it show?  And why is the impact of huge human egos much more extreme?

I am of course going to concentrate on the egos of the worst human offenders amongst us.  My ego doesn’t really account for much and if there is an impact (if there ever was), I don’t think anybody has ever noticed or paid attention to it.

Going back to the lion pride.  The big brute leading the troop gets all the attention and his pick of the ladies and the rest are followers left with specific tasks and orders, basically relegated to do the heavy lifting, rearing and providing.  There are distinct correlations between the natural world and how humans act and behave.  Further proof that the apple (ape) doesn’t fall far from the tree and that our descent hails from natural selection and not divine interference.

You only need to follow history and without fail all its pages are filled with the anecdotal tales of the puffed up male egos that have raged across the continents sowing the seeds of death and destruction.  Nearly all of the recorded incidents follow the logical path of energy and momentum, a lot of negative energy bundling with such intensity that is ends in a huge eruption of violence until it gradually dissipates.  Rare are the stories of leaders stepping back from the brink of disaster and deciding to make peace, rather than war.  If it did happen it was usually because they either ran out of money or bad weather cancelled their invasion plans. 

Politicians start wars with words and the masses end up fighting them with bullets.

Canadian author, Margaret Macmillan, wrote a marvelous novel titled—Paris, 1919.  It is about the peace conference that took place in Paris in the aftermath of World War I.  She alluded several times in her novel that all attempts at diplomacy failed to prevent war and how it utterly failed to prevent the next one.  Once human egos are ruffled like the proverbial feathers it only intensifies the rhetoric that flows from their mouths.  In other words, none step back.  Diplomatic efforts fall on deaf ears and the belligerents don’t know how to step back without losing face.  Admitting defeat is not in the ego cards.  Big egos don’t tolerate failure.   A loss of dominance.  Of power and control.  Egos get in the way of prudence and taking responsibility for words and actions.  Once egos lose control of a situation all hell will break lose and gives credence to the saying: Hell is empty because all the devils are here.

Yes, the devils are alive and well and living amongst us.

Israel’s retaliation after Hamas infiltrated and killed hundreds of innocent civilians and held hundreds more hostage is an indication of a nation reacting with an intensity that borders on the insane.  Gaza nearly bombed into oblivion with incessant bombing raids and Hamas unable to respond in kind because they simply lack the ability.  The negative energy unleashed will have consequences for decades to come.  Putin’s relentless attacks on Ukraine is another example of an ego gone rogue and spinning out of control.  Although many more factors come into play, it is Putin’s supersized ego that is running the show.  In all of modern recent history I can’t think of two individuals who have done more damage in the past few years than Putin and Trump.  There is no rhyme or reason as to their actions and levels of aggression.  Both have oversized egos that lack a moral compass and any kind of empathy.  Casualties mean nothing to those two.  Power has become an obsession for them.  What they have set in motion has to run its course.  Negative energy bundling in intensity and when it finally explodes we can only fear the worst.

World War I was basically started by Kaiser Wilhelm of Germany.  Eldest grandchild of Queen Victoria and cousin to the King of England and the Tsar of Russia.  For a Prussian born child destined to take over the crown from his father and born with a limp left arm due to complications at childbirth it helped create an unstable individual.  From the onset he was basically saddled with an inferiority complex that haunted him his entire life.  He could never be the soldier he wanted to be and live up to the image of his warrior ancestors.  Instead he responded by abusing his absolute, autocratic power and bullied everyone around him.  The army loved him because he loved to strut around in uniforms bedecked with medals.  He was obsessed with military might as it made up for his physical shortcomings.  While he was Kaiser the army build up its arsenal to astounding levels and history once more tells us that you don’t make huge investments in your military unless you’re getting ready to use that power.  Willing to attack.  Willing to declare war. 

Look at the trillions of dollars the US has spent and is spending on the most impressive and destructive military hardware ever designed and deployed.  When it comes to the military and intent certain axioms come into play.

1-    You either use it or lose it!

2-    You don’t escalate investments into the military and military readiness without going to war and using all that impressive hardware.  (Trial runs with isolated actions such as in Iran, Yemen and Venezuela serve to verify lethality and effectiveness).

3-    How do you justify such a huge expense of public tax dollars if it has little or no other purpose than to serve as a deterrent?

4-    You can’t justify a huge expenditure in military spending unless you’re preparing for war.

5-    The momentum put into motion by big egos hell-bent on provoking conflict will eventually affect everything and everybody as getting ready for war includes massaging the egos of the masses in convincing them of imminent threats to their safety and security.  (Unless I get Greenland and Canada we can’t protect ourselves from a northern invasion by Russia and China)  (Hello, if I wanted to invade either nation I would go straight to their harbors and I would invade Canada by going into Halifax or Vancouver and not through the frozen North).

Big egos thrive on confrontation.

We need to pay attention when big egos are actively undermining global rules of engagement, using threats and punitive actions to advance their agendas; declarations of intent to territorial acquisitions and aggressively pursuing energy and resources from nations under their sphere of influence.  And when they use bullying tactics to get what they want it quickly leads to an abandoning of any attempt at normalcy, of common sense, reason and adhering to the rule of law.  All pretense of meaningful negotiations are abandoned.  They are counting on any opposition to crumble.  Crank up the threats, allude to occupation and invasion.  Find convenient scapegoats, within a nation and outside.  Raise the levels of fear and paranoia to such an extent that the masses will fall in line and comply.  They will sign up by the tens of thousands and die by the tens of thousands, by the million.  And in this day and age it will be billions!

Once big egos start to push the war button they are literally backing themselves into a corner of no return.  Can you imagine either Putin or Trump apologizing for their erratic actions and inappropriate behaviors?  They are totally delusional when it comes to their power and how far they’re willing to go to exercise it.

Whether at Davos or G7 meetings, it is obvious that none of the sane world leaders have a clue how to deal with Trump and Putin.  Both of these men defy the norm, of what they’re used to dealing with.  Diplomacy, respectful meetings, recognizing the sovereignty of nations and that you don’t break agreements and memberships in global organizations and treaties whenever you feel like it.  Thumb your nose at international law.  Insult neighbors and allies.  Strut around like an imperial Roman emperor.  In order for global affairs to run smoothly you need solid anchors, leaders that are willing to recognize the challenges and limitations and that one needs to negotiate in an atmosphere of mutual respect.

Power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely.

After World War II, the then US Secretary of State, George C. Marshall, recognized that the mistakes made after World War I could not be repeated.  At the Paris Peace Conference of 1919 hefty penalties were levied on Germany.  The reparation payments were huge and crippled Germany’s efforts to rebuild its economy and as French general Ferdinand Foche prophetically announced towards the end of the conference, “This is not peace.  It’s an armistice for 20 years.”  And how correct he was.  Within two decades the world was once more engulfed in war.

Big egos on either side of the fence are capable of making serious errors in judgement.  The urge to retaliate is strong.  Big egos put into motion the same laws of physics that impact on energy and momentum.  Crank up the intensity and the energy release will be profound.  In physics some elements work very well together and others cause explosive results when combined.  Our world can be a place of wonder and prosperity, of peace and harmony.  However, there is not enough room in this article to describe all the sources of negative energy emanating from the thousands of activities our species is involved in on a daily basis.  It is never just one thing.  It is a gradual bundling of a lot of factors spinning out of control.  Big, nasty egos ride to the fore when the masses become restless and it is so easy to take advantage of an ugly mood souring the mood of nations.  Once the wrong people are in charge it becomes increasingly difficult to undo what has been set in motion.

Empires in trouble rarely go away quietly.  Success can go to your head!  Most empires have an awesome an impressive initial start and they usually implode at the apex of their power and even big egos discover to their chagrin that even their massive egos will not sustain the inevitable.

Leading the pack of negatives are debt, deficits and unsustainable budgets, loss of income and prices spiraling out of control, job losses and economic pressures and stagnation.  Those are the biggies.  Throw into this mix cultural and social issues and the fuse that leads to the powder keg is begging to be lit.

Energy, whether positive or negative, is never constant and predictable, neither is it one-dimensional or one-directional.  This is reflected in the erratic behavior of energy and momentum and it also explains the see-saw nature of civilizations and their rise and fall.  It never follows predictable patterns.  There are common denominators, but that’s all.  Both the US and Russia are struggling at this point in time because they have reached their apex and they are impacted by circumstances over which they have little or no control.

It is obvious that both nations are going for the full monte and are headed for a massive global confrontation that will drag the rest of the world down with them.  Big egos will prevent a peaceful dissolution from taking place and when it comes to last minute miracles and happy endings, I’m not a big believer nor a fan.  Why do we go along with these charades?  We’re not only creatures created by energy and dependent on energy, we’re incessantly driven along by energy and momentum and this force is unstoppable and it has no conscious or a soul.  As far as falling for big egos and their big lies; we’re only human and people believe what they want to believe.  Beginning with their own lies.

Isn’t it sad though that it only takes a few, nasty big egos to set the world on fire!

Feel free to comment of share.

 

 

     

THIS LITTLE PIGGY

 

THIS LITTLE PIGGY

 

This article was inspired by the little ditty that we play with our children’s toes when they’re babies.  They giggle in anticipation.

This little piggy went to market

This little piggy stayed home

This little piggy had roast beef

This little piggy had none

And this little piggy cried, “Wee, wee, wee!” all the way home.

 

Pigs of all sorts are a favorite subject in many stories.  Most of them funny stories.  But we’re all too familiar with pigs feeding at the public trough.

 

As a writer, a student of philosophy, history and the humanities, in all of my seventy odd years, I have never come across an American president like Trump, who, rather than placing his business affairs in a blind trust, as is customary, has instead opted to incorporate the entire nation into his business emporium.  Openly and blatantly he is accepting gifts and has put into motion schemes to enrich himself and his family.  He has made it abundantly clear that he can and will treat the United States of America as his personal piggy bank, ready to take from as he pleases and to do with as he sees fit.  In doing so he is treating the nation like a doormat and with total disrespect.  Acting as if he is above the law.  That he is the law.  And he can make and break rules willy-nilly, ignoring court challenges and decisions.  He is learning quickly from his fellow felon and wanted war criminal, Putin, who takes a cut from every major business transaction in Russia.

America has had its fair share of shady politicians and influential people flouting the law and convention, but Trump eats the cake when it comes to the Oval Office.  Because of Trump and his cronies democracy in the United States is skating on thin ice, despite the fact that most Americans take great pride in democracy and its values.  Honest and hard-working Americans are being taken to the cleaners by a greedy bunch of self-serving politicians and conglomerates surviving on the largesse of the taxpayer and fat government contracts.

“America first has turned into Trump’s pocketbook first and we’ll keep the destitute in the poor house because they’re used to it anyway.  And as far as the average worker is concerned, they’re helpless to stop the assault on their wallets.”  “All I want is your vote.”

Trump’s political shenanigans at home and abroad are well on their way to transform America from a global player into an America that will find itself standing alone as the world will find ways to work around it.  America isolated.  America with no allies or friends.  Subtract the American population from the global tally and you’re left with 8 billion customers who’re not American.  Under Trump’s leadership it will isolate itself from former friends and allies, shunned and distrusted by the world markets and political leaders.  America the pariah, rather than making America great again.

Foreign investments and interest will dry up when a bunch of unreliable, unpredictable weathervanes are running the show, too busy stuffing their pockets with ill-gotten gains while its citizens and the rest of the world look on.  Desperate people will do desperate things and the ultimate stick wielded by unstable leaders will be to unleash World War III when it becomes apparent that all their schemes fall flat around their silly asses.

Nothing good hails from avarice pursued with greed and vengeance.

Ancient Rome was done in by their imperial ambitions, over-extended and the cost of occupation and meddling in the affairs of other nations outstripping the income.  All empires end up in the dustbin of history.  Russia was done in by overextending its influence and costly military expenditures, and America, with over a million people in uniform overseas, is following suit.

America’s huge bureaucracy (the one extending its influence across the globe, with security and military presence) and the business conglomerates dependent on fat government contracts, are the main reason as to why America as a nation is struggling at the present time.  None of them are positive contributors to the economy.  All are detractors and a huge cost factor.  Nations are better served to keep the size of their governments to a sustainable minimum and to shy away from large military investments and foreign escapades.  Instead all should concentrate on fair trade relations based on trade agreements negotiated in good faith.

Trump and his cronies are running amok like the proverbial bull in a china shop.

In a world with over 8 billion people clamoring for a piece of the pie you either create a system that is fair and equitable or reap the consequences of conflict and outright rebellion.  We would do well to remember that war is a costly and destructive activity whereas peace is a lifelong commitment.

Draw up a psychological profile of Trump and the underlings he has surrounded himself with and you can only shudder.  His insecurity comes shining through in his insane desire to have his name plastered on as many buildings and institutions as possible, even attempting to rename buildings graced with the names of true American heroes and contributors.  Naming a building in someone’s honor usually takes place after death, not while still alive, and not by the person himself.  His narcissistic, egotistical nature comes shining through in this obsession of his to be somebody (I borrowed that one from Brando).  Don’t be surprised that when Trump is taken down from his perch that his name will be removed from all those buildings as a first order of business.

This is my take on this little piggy.

 

One little piggy ignored the other four.

It owned a golf course and loved the yell, “Fore!”

Charged the others tariffs on top of their fees.

Rubbing his piggy feet he’d yell in glee,

“I’m the pig you need to fear and adore

Because all I want is more and more.”

 

The moral of this ditty: The fattened pig is the first to be slaughtered.”

 

A DAUNTING UNIVERSE

 

A DAUNTING UNIVERSE

 

Nighttime.  Look up at the heavens and try to imagine how vast it is, not just our galaxy, but the immense vastness that stretches beyond it.  Even astronomers have a difficult time grasping dimension and we’re talking billions of lightyears, not human years.  It is highly doubtful that human beings will ever travel beyond Mars.  Physically it is near impossible with conventional spacecraft.  There is no space infrastructure; no rocket repair shops, no refueling stations, no supply stores.  Nothing.  Even if alien craft have ever come near to Earth they would either have been probes or if anything left alive inside, hopelessly lost in the same ludicrous quest that occupies the minds of space fanatics; are there planets out there with lifeforms similar to ours and can we get there?  It is a dilemma faced by all intelligent life that has evolved along the same lines as ours.  We’re screwing up big time, so why wouldn’t they.  Why go in search of alternatives if life on your planet is just hunky-dory?  The universe that surrounds us is hostile, cold and volatile.  We don’t even know how big it really is, whether it is still expanding or whether it is kept in check by parallel universes.

Billions and billions of years of celestial fireworks and we’re but a spark within its infinity.

In my novel Energy & Origin I explain how everything in and around us never stops or stands still.  We can’t stop or slow down any of the universal processes that relentlessly move everything along.  You can’t stop your breathing, your brain from processing or preventing blood from flowing through your veins.  Within the greater scheme of things—time is meaningless in the cosmos that we’re part of—our presence means very little.  We’re not in control and never will be.

The universe doesn’t feel.  It has no compassion.  No emotion.  It simply is.  It only responds to its own laws of physics, with energy and momentum the stirring sticks in a constantly evolving toxic mix that on occasion will spawn something unique like a planet capable of sustaining life as we have come to experience it.  Even the brightest astrophysicists can barely scratch the surface of the mysteries of the cosmos.

Where do we fit in?  Humanity’s quest for answers will never cease.

In typical human fashion we have tried to define our role within the cosmos, as in looking for an explanation.  The questions range from, how did we get here and why?  Why are we the only species to have evolved with a superior intelligence?  Opinions and potential answers are all over the place.  A fluke of evolution—a mistake if you like—or created by design?  We like to put things in a box, with a bow and a label.  An insane need for answers.  One of my psychology professors had a wonderful take on not knowing; ‘it is so refreshing to admit not knowing, not having an answer.  There are mysteries in life that will always remain a mystery.  Learn to live with it.’  Our obsession with life and explaining origin has spilled over in all religions.  It is a lot easier to imagine in religion than in science.  Science has to answer to proof beyond a shadow of a doubt, hence religions’ aversion to all things scientific.  In our quest for explanations we have embraced some pretty strange ones, some bordering on the bizarre and macabre.  We can’t seem to accept life for what it is.  Homo sapiens emerged from a species that over time evolved into what we are today.  But we follow the same laws as everything else in nature.  Life is simply finite.  Everything in and around us is finite.  Nothing stays the same forever.  And as far as eternal life is concerned?  In my humble opinion eternity has to be a nightmare and I don’t even want to go there.  It’s one of those things imagined when defining our role.  An attempt at least.

Dust to dust, ashes to ashes.

The universe has no consciousness.  It doesn’t care.

At some point, all life ends.  We all die.  Leave the corpse alone and a natural decomposing process takes over and it will continue until all that remains has been reduced to matter.  At which point it once more becomes part of the universe from which all life came.  Atoms absorbed and redistributed.  Not that you would care at that juncture and neither does the universe.  The universe has no awareness and it doesn’t keep score or keeps track.  History and historians are an earthly preoccupation.  Even in our absence the universe will continue to unfold according to its own erratic plans because the forces of energy and momentum never take time off.

Earth is a special place.

We don’t belong in the cold and barren environment that makes up the bulk of the universe.  Exposure for even a split second would be lethal.  Even if alien life existed somewhere within the vastness of the cosmos, they would be surrounded by the same toxic soup as we are.  In previous articles and in my novel—they were like angels—I have discussed how slim the odds are for a similar planet like Earth to exist elsewhere.  It has something to do with odds.  It is difficult enough to win a lottery on Earth with only 5 or 6 numbers to pick.  The cosmic lottery that spawned Earth is a win consisting of hundreds, even thousands of numbers.  Truly astronomical odds (no pun intended, literary license).  It could have happened elsewhere within the billions of lightyears spanning the universe, but for anyone to positively identifying such a miracle is highly unlikely.  The space enthusiasts will continue to float that lure in front of us, because their skepticism and doubt would kill any funding.  It is in their very best and selfish interests to keep the possibilities alive!  Yes, space exploration has given us new technologies, but none of those rockets going up has ever come back with a payload that actually provided a return on investment.  Promises galore of space mining and extracting precious minerals.  The space Stormtroopers are counting on government handouts and financing to keep the rockets going up.  Few are willing to acknowledge that physical space travel using conventional rockets and propulsion is a non-starter.  We don’t have the technology to effectively and safely explore the universe in a meaningful way and to provide a return on investment.

Despite our fascination with unidentified flying objects, alien spacecraft and potential extraterrestrial encounters, it is highly unlikely that we will ever hook up with other intelligent lifeforms in a meaningful way.  I don’t discount sightings and I have never paid much attention to what has been published on the subject.  We have sent out probes and why wouldn’t they—if they exist?  If they have reached earth it would likely be unmanned and functioning on remote through artificial intelligence.  They would be as lost as our probes as we lose touch with them.  Probes would follow preprogrammed instructions, and on the host planet engineers would keep their fingers crossed and hope to reestablish contact.  Our behavior at mission control would mirror theirs.  And why would they send out probes?  If they follow in our intellectual footsteps—technology and intelligence growing in strength and intensity—they would turn out as destructive as we are.  Absorbing energy and momentum at an increased pace and desperate to find a way out.  We’re looking at space and alternative planets as a potential answer, so, why wouldn’t they?

I have explained in previous articles and in my novel Energy & Origin, that intelligent life is not kind to its own species.  With a fair degree of certainty I will state that all superior intelligence is inherently self-destructive.  We will continue to extract and exploit until it all falls apart.  It is nothing something I wish for, but something I fear, based on fact, based on how we act and how we take advantage of the planet and all its resources and lifeforms, to serve our own selfish purposes.  The universe is a daunting, inhospitable place.  Earth would be our safest bet, as in taking better care of the only place we can call home. 

Space.  Nothing resembling a living lifeform would survive in cramped quarters, faced with supply issues and hundreds, even thousands of years of space travel.  Space is daunting and rescuing what is left of planet Earth is daunting, but I would rather face that challenge than pin my hopes on hurtling myself into space with a few other well-meaning souls, embarking on a one-way journey into nowhere.

Feel free to comment or share.  If you have been abducted I don’t want to hear about it.  If you are an alien, welcome home, brother.

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ARE YOU READY FOR SILENCE, THE RIGHT KIND OF SILENCE

 

ARE YOU READY FOR SILENCE?

Spiritual silence is a precious gift.

There are two kinds of silence.  The silence that accompanies complicity, the silence of not speaking up when we should.  It is one of the worst kinds of silence.  But there is also a spiritual silence.  A silence we should embrace more often because it is a silence of meditation and contemplation.  A silence of introspection, of listening.

I want to share with you my experience with spiritual silence and how it has affected my life and work.

For those of you familiar with my work and sometimes quirky approach to a subject I will try not to disappoint.  But why would I provide you with my thoughts (advice if you will!) on silence when you know that I harbor serious misgivings about motivational speakers and TV evangelists and I do believe in that wonderful phrase: Advice, easily given but rarely taken.  Threading on thin ice?  Well, as with all my articles, you get to decide!

A bit of background is in order to justify this transgression, an appropriate reference as I did spent a few years in a seminary contemplating entry into the priesthood, but left years later as a devout agnostic.  No, it was not the silence.  A doubting Thomas makes for a poor Christian soldier.  What it did leave me with was a sense of structure and order I found rewarding and helpful, and the one thing that stuck with me was silence.

The right kind of silence.

In a world almost bursting with noise and distraction I am an oddity, perhaps at odds with the world would be a better description as I refuse to be a gadget carrying member of society (just one example).  I have also been a lifelong walker and I live a minute walk away from beautiful conservation trails.  A daily routine that I use for contemplation and I absolutely love the silence.  The only noises that intrude are the sounds of nature, varying from a quiet rustling of the leaves to the creaking of the branches in an extreme mid-winter cold.  The permanence of the natural world is inspiring in the face of all the fleeting things that life exposes us to.  There are all kinds of silences.  Silence as in not making any noise.  Silence as in you don’t want to be seen or heard.  Silence as in not making any waves because you’re afraid.  Using silence as a statement.  Silence that intimidates.  So, is there something like an objective state of silence?  A meditative, contemplative state?

A spiritual silence.

How useful is it?

Honesty is important.

If hope is the one thing that you desire the most, there is no doubt in my mind that you will find it.  According to some of my fellow humanitarians hope is a four letter word that we should avoid at all costs because you’ve already admitted defeat.  If you seek answers that satisfy your expectations you can do what some of the worst thesis writers do; only use the variables that suit your narrative.  You will prove your point without a doubt.

Honesty and objectivity walk hand in hand and are the only two things that will withstand the true test of time because it is not based on hope or answers anticipated.  In science an experiment is deemed successful if it produces the same result each and every time.  Objectivity and honesty have to answer to the same scrutiny and expectations.  Therefore you can look upon humanity with hope and optimism fueled by bias, or with objectivity and honesty.  Bad science produces results hoped for, whereas good science is based on fact, on objectivity, and on results that are proven to be correct.  And that is where an objective silence plays an important part.  The right kind of silence if you will.

The screamers in our society fear silence and would ban it if they could.

Our species has a tendency to whitewash our most deplorable intentions, aspirations and activities.  We like to paint ourselves in a positive picture and use that wonderful broom of denial to sweep a lot of ugliness under the carpet.  What remains on the table is what we want to see and hear.

There is no right kind of spiritual silence and it’s the one you prefer that counts.

I have written about the power of silence in previous articles and how powerful silence can be.  In silence we can contemplate our inner most thoughts and we can concentrate on the answers we seek in quiet contemplation.  A lot of people fear silence and act uncomfortably when exposed to it.  On my walks I encounter quite a few people hooked up to their favorite devices, either talking; something that absolutely amazes me as a few decades ago you would have been locked up talking while walking; or listening to music or otherwise engaged in conversation with fellow walkers.  Few are like me and walk in silence.  I prefer to walk alone and in silence.  I try to avoid talkative fellow walkers.  They actually annoy me. 

If you love noise and distraction now is the time to disengage from this article and seek something with lots of pictures and sounds.

Practice makes perfect.

Embracing silence and appreciating its power takes discipline and practice.  In my humble opinion the right kind of silence is missing in our lives.

Silence allows us to appreciate the world around us in all its splendor and nuances because it shuts out all the unnecessary noises and distractions.  Silence brings everything into focus with much greater detail and clarity.  In our daily lives we’re constantly surrounded by noise and images, an endless assault on our senses that only distracts and confuses.

The following may not be for you.  It wasn’t for me either.

There are several monastic orders that incorporate total or partial silence into their orders: the Carthusians, Cistercians and Trappist all take a complete vow of silence and the Benedictines incorporate structured silence for prayer and contemplation.  Most faiths use periods of silence in their services.  Prayer often takes place in silence.  Although I am a devout agnostic there is power in prayer and meditation.  We all use different techniques to put us in the right frame of mind and a lot of faiths use kneeling, prostrating, silence, eyes closed or hands folded, to induce the right kind of atmosphere.  It is not about submission, but about an acknowledgement that we’re surrounded by powers greater than ourselves.  The loudest souls around us are people who’re full of themselves and love to hear the sound of their own voice.  You know who they are.

Put it into practice.

A constructive and objective silence is something you acquire by incorporating its techniques through determined effort.  It takes practice.  It is no different than developing a regimen for a healthy lifestyle through diet and exercise.  I have never been a fan of total silence because I enjoy a good conversation.  However, incorporating silence into you daily routine can be extremely rewarding.  It allows you to open up your mind to the daily challenges we all face, to improve your outlook on life and to obtain a better understanding of others and the world around you.  Silence is golden!

Talkers lie a lot, especially screamers.

There is a reflective honesty in silence that is lacking in conversation.  When we speak we lie a lot.  A good listener, listens in silence because it allows you to pick up on all the nuances in speech, body language and facial expressions.  Reflection is an integral part of silence.  If the path through life appears rocky and strewn with boulders and potholes, we tend to ignore that a lot of those rocks and potholes are of our own construction.  A lot of life’s barriers are self-inflicted.

As a writer, a student of philosophy, history and the humanities I wanted to share my experience of what silence means to me.  Although I live a simple monkish life, total silence has never suited me.  What are your thoughts on silence?  Wouldn’t it be wonderful if in parliament, rather than politicians constantly yelling and berating each other, if a question put to the floor would require five minutes of total silence and contemplation?  Wouldn’t that be refreshing?

Spiritual silence is only effective if you use it wisely and with the right intent.  Turn it into a phony circus and you only delude yourself.

What are your thoughts on silence?

Did you find this useful or will you chuck it on your discard pile with a condescending shrug?  I can imagine the comments.  Bes, is this end-of-life moralizing?  What a pill to get through!  We’re used to you contemplating all the gut wrenching ways with which humanity will extract itself from the planet.  Is this supposed to make up for some of the depressing stuff you write? (Apparently shit is bad word, so my granddaughter tells me).  You actually have one attribute that doesn’t offend and you wanted us to know about it?

Feel free to comment or share.

As far as the usual: purchase Energy & Origin from KDP Amazon.ca

And you can read it in silence in the privacy of your home.