Picture this: A cool November in the early 21st century... An atmosphere of political unrest is upon us. The dwindling economy and high unemployment presses a growing rift between the rich and poor, while a stagnant Washington fights itself, like a dysfunctional family of circus people. A war we've forgotten the point of runs wild a hemisphere away. A new movement rises. A movement of change, that presses forth in growing numbers, seeking to usurp the powers that be. Soon this movement is on every channel, surfing every air wave, screaming their message loud and proud. When the polls are in, the political climate has shifted and a new party is in charge.
What are we fucking stupid? Don't answer that.
We wade through four terms of Bushes, and after less than 24 months of Obama we're already clamoring for change? I know you're scared. It's a scary fucking place out there. There's wars and terror and sickness. There's pain and sadness and death. There's every fucking terrible goddamn boogeyman and every horrible thing you can think of, and it's banging on your goddamn door.
Of course you're scared. We're all scared. We're alive. A natural response to living is the fear that someday you won't be. I suppose we know that someday we won't be. The fear is that we don't know when, or where, or how. That's some scary shit. We're on the same page. Not knowing when or where or how, or what the fuck will happen when we do shuffle off this mortal coil, that's scary. If you say it's not, you're full of shit. Or you're fucking nuts. Or your in denial. Glen Beck is all three.
I'll tell you this though... you can choose to give in to that fear, to let it control your every thought and action, or you can accept it, understand it, overcome it, and move the fuck on. Yeah, you're going to die. Your parents, your friends, your siblings, your children, their children, are all going to die. Maybe tomorrow, maybe decades from now. Maybe we'll wind up shrink wrapped and live to be 1,000, but someday this experience will be over and we'll move on.
Where? I don't fucking know, and neither do you. Since you don't get much choice in the matter, this is one of those "accept it, understand it, overcome it, and move the fuck on" situations.
But there is one thing I will guarantee you... the answer to fear, is not ignorance. The answer to the dark is not to close our eyes.
"Oh come on, G... What's the harm in being stupid?" Sarah Palin is the harm you ignorant back-water genetic trash.
One stupid person is fine. Even a couple. Dumb and Dumber was hilarious. That said, I don't feel like electing Tweedle-Dee and Tweedle-Dumb to run my country, making decisions that affect the world and everyone in it.
"Now goddamnit you tree-huggin hippy, shut yer goddamn mouth! Everybudy in this har USofA is equal, and I gots a right to my opinion!" Absolutely. You do. This is true. But do not think that the verbal diarreah that spews forth from the cold-sore framed lips on your mouth are the equivalent of someone that is educated, intelligent and aware.
“Anti-intellectualism has been a constant thread winding its way through our political and cultural life, nurtured by the false notion that democracy means that my ignorance is just as good as your knowledge.” — Isaac Asimov
If you believe that there is an invisible man that lives in the clouds, that is fine. If you believe he created a man out of mud and a woman from his rib, that is fine. If you believe that a talking snake tainted all humanity, and when we die we will be told if we've been naughty or nice by the invisible man's dead son, that is also fine. But when you tell me that two intelligent, responsible people that WANT to love and care for a child with no home cannot because those two people fuck each other in the ass, that is not ok. That is ignorance. That is an idea based on nothing save the belief that you should be able to have it. When you no longer confine your ignorance to your own life, and you attempt to forcefully mandate it upon others, we have a problem.
My fear of death is nothing compared to my fear of stupid people in congregation. And you can write that down and put a dash with my name next to it.
I'd like to share a story with you, my brethren. I hope I don't offend any of you "faith-based" believers, but you may want to skip ahead.
There was this rock in the middle of the street that sprouted legs, ran around in circles, and took a shit in the middle of the goddamn sidewalk.
What do you mean that sounds far-fetched? What? Did I see it happen? No, of course not, but I know this guy that did.Well, I don't know him so much as I've heard of him.
Well of course it fucking happened, he wrote it down. Ok, well he didn't write it down so much as this other guy that heard the story wrote it down.
Hmm? No no, it happened a long time ago, but he just got around to writing it down. Oh come one, of course I didn't read what he wrote! It was written in code. You people can be so stupid.
What's that you say? Well see, this other guy deciphered the code. He's a linguist. No no, I don't know him either, but this other guy did and he got a copy, then he read it to me. Why didn't I read it myself? Well...it's really long... I figured if he just summarized with the really good parts I get the gist.
Fuck you fagots! The shitting stone says NO GAY MARRIAGE!
Did you ever notice that in religions where the women and minorities (let's not forget that the Bible not only says that God "okayed" slavery, but that it specifically outlines the terms for buying and selling slaves) the people that "hear God" and write the shit down are usually white guys? Isn't that a funny coincidence?
Wouldn't it be funny if at some point, some historian re-translated the Qur'an and said, "oh shit guys... It turns out, middle-eastern men are supposed to be the infidels, and the holy ones are actually white women." I'm sure that would change everything around.
We build institutions (and religions are institutions) to serve themselves. They must be self-sustaining. Christianity does not exist to praise Christ, it exists to praise Christianity. What if a theologian came along and said, "Hey guys, this part of Genesis that was smudged clarifies that it was actually Adam that talked to the snake and ate the apple, and Eve was trying to stop him. Apparently women were created to be the intelligent, civilized, gender that stops men from killing or fucking or killing and fucking everything in existence."
What are the odds that everything would change to adapt to this new understanding? After all, if there's one thing that religion is known for, it's being flexible, adaptive, and open-minded.
You see, it's not bad to have an idea. It's not even bad to harness that idea and turn it into a word. It's not bad to turn that word into an action, and turn that action into a movement, but we can't forget that the paramount purpose of every movement is to make itself stronger, better and faster. And sometimes that shit gets so much momentum that it builds itself so big it can't hold itself up anymore. Sometimes that takes years, sometimes decades, sometimes centuries, but it will fall.
It will crumble and die, just like you, just like me, and a new movement will come along to replace it. A new idea will grow to rise in it's footstep, and it will pass someday as too. Eternity is like that. The shit keeps stacking, the toilet keeps flushing, and on it's way down, circling the toilet bowl the turd might think, "Fucking queers."
As always, peace, love, and shitting stones for you all.
I remain,
- G