It seems as though we have entered in to a very strange time. What I find the most bizarre about our current political and social environment is that we think that it is somehow…normal and okay.
Well, folks, it is very far from normal or okay. We are so far from normal, in fact, that it’s hard to even find the words.
I just read a very interesting article by Tobias Stone from the UK who is a historian and archeologist. He talked about history repeating itself at this time and in a rather unpleasant way. I fear that his words are rather spot on.
You can read his article here: https://medium.com/@theonlytoby/history-tells-us-what-will-happen-next-with-brexit-trump-a3fefd154714#.5mogi8ice
In this article he talks about history repeating itself. Specifically he goes in to a lot of detail on historic events surrounding the Black Plague, World War I, World War II, and the myriad of issues facing Europe and/or the U.S. at those times.
I would have to agree with this author in that he states that what may seem like a no big deal situation can easily spiral in to a very out of control situation where all of a sudden, at the end of the event, 17 million people lost their lives. He is referring to the start of World War I, when an unknown Austrian Arch Duke was murdered in Bosnia, and next thing you know the War to End All Wars began.
Never before have I seen a presidential campaign devolve in to name calling, bullying, and penis size. Nor have I ever been so disenchanted and disappointed in our current political process.
The one thing humanity has forgotten is if we are constantly brainwashed to live in fear all the time we are easier to divide. Remember that old saying…”divide and conquer?” Yeah, that one.
Now just because I posted an article about the worrisome aspects of the Trump ideology does NOT mean I am a Clinton supporter. I am NOT. I am done with both parties as they are completely disconnected from the rest of us, and one reason for that (and there are many), is the Supreme Court decided a few years ago to allow large corporations, billionaires, and even foreign countries to channel big, big money in to our political process. What does that mean? Well, folks, that means we have become an oligarchy.
So much for a government for the people, and by the people. I am also done with career politicians. No one should go in to politics as a career…it should be to serve and be of service to the greater good of our communities. Not for putting money in their pockets from lobbyists, corporations, or other foreign countries.
I also believe that corruption is rampant in both parties and a lot of the cause of that is what I just mentioned…big money to fuel campaigns full of fear, hate, divisiveness, and utter bullshit. And we just drink it up like a bunch of preschoolers too naive to see the truth.
Everything we see on the news is not real news, as the news media has become a landscape for entertainment which means extreme views get mentioned, facts get skewed, fear and anger get amplified, and on and on and on. Remember that divide and conquer thing? Well…there ya go.
If we stay separate on our “teams” then the Powers That Be are very happy because they will just keep us “divided and conquered”until we become awakened or aware of this very process.
I believe that deep down we all long for the same thing: Happiness, health, peace, and prosperity. The only thing that keeps us separate is what we tell ourselves, and what we tell ourselves is based on labels that get reinforced every single day in our mass and social medias.
So what can we do about it? Look in the mirror. A long time ago I learned that peace begins with me. Nobody can control my thoughts…only I can. So what story are we going to tell ourselves today? Will it be about compassion, love, and kindness…? Or will it be about judging and condemning anything or anyone that might be different than I?
I have worked in a customer oriented business for many years, and I am used to helping people of all kinds. I have every different kind of person walking in to my store from who knows what background(s). I can’t say how many incredible conversations I have had over the years with all kinds of amazing people. I also have this experience when I teach yoga at a very culturally diverse studio.
I can’t control what other people think, say, or do…but what I can do is be a starting point of kindness and compassion.
I wonder what kind of world we would have if all of us tried that? I think it would be completely different than the world we live in now. There is a meditation that I learned in yoga teacher training and it goes like this: May I be happy, may I be healthy, may I be safe, may I be at peace. After going through that a few times we then turned it in to: May YOU be happy, may YOU be healthy, may YOU be safe, and may YOU be at peace.
What if the world stopped hating and fearing for 5 minutes to do this?
May peace be with you.
The Chinwagger 