Pointless

a reply to: Psychonautics
Here I thought you were going to tell the story of the broken pencil. Moving on.

The fear of ridicule and losing their comfy paid slavery will prevent all but those with nothing to lose from doing anything. Of course those with nothing to lose are the easiest to ridicule ironically. Par for the course folks.

These lyrics were and ever will be poignant as we continue our decline.

The human, existence
Is failing, resistance
Essential, the future
Written off, the odds are
Astronomically against us
Only moron and genius
Would fight a losing battle
Against the super ego
When giving in is so damn comforting

And so we go, on with our lives
We know the truth, but prefer lies
Lies are simple, simple is bliss
Why go against tradition when we can
Admit defeat, live in decline
Be the victim of our own design
The status quo, built on suspect
Why would anyone stick out their neck?

Fellow members of
Club "We've Got Ours"
I'd like to introduce you to our host
He's got his, and I've got mine
Meet the decline

originally posted by: ketsuko
a reply to: enlightenedservant

If you think there is no violence involved in those changes, then you have not yet learned the term passive-aggressive.

There has been plenty of violence in those changes. Just because it hasn't yet brought out naked blood doesn't mean it isn't or won't come when the backlash begins. You can only push so far before you break something necessary to hold it all together. Trump, as much as I dislike it, is a symptom that that day is coming.

Webster's Dictionary's definition of "passive aggressive"

being, marked by, or displaying behavior characterized by the expression of negative feelings, resentment, and aggression in an unassertive passive way (as through procrastination and stubbornness)

A description of "passive aggressive" from the Mayo Clinic

Passive-aggressive behavior is a pattern of indirectly expressing negative feelings instead of openly addressing them. There's a disconnect between what a passive-aggressive person says and what he or she does.

For example, a passive-aggressive person might appear to agree — perhaps even enthusiastically — with another person's request. Rather than complying with the request, however, he or she might express anger or resentment by failing to follow through or missing deadlines.

Specific signs of passive-aggressive behavior include:

Resentment and opposition to the demands of others
Procrastination and intentional mistakes in response to others' demands
Cynical, sullen or hostile attitude
Frequent complaints about feeling underappreciated or cheated

All of that is non-violent. You sure I'm the one who hasn't yet learned the term?

originally posted by: ketsuko
a reply to: intrptr

As if only praying and donating money is religious help ...

Its not. Sorry if I wasn't clear.

Actually helping is help. Lending a hand to someone wherever you are. Not trying to fix it, them, whatever, just making someones day a little bit easier.

And or behaving towards them the way you want to be treated.

originally posted by: blupblup

Absolutely.

We must always fear evil men. But there is another kind of evil that we must fear the most, and that is the indifference of good men.

a reply to: Psychonautics

What will happen is that the systems own inherent instability will bring it down. You cannot have capitalism based on perpetual growth, it will end at some point. As it destabilizes, there will be civil unrest and then we will go to whatever social equilibrium that results. Not sure what it will look like but it's inevitable.

a reply to: Psychonautics

I'm just curious. But lets assume there was an uprising and the upriser won. Then what would life look like after that compare to how it is now? How would it better or worse? I am curious on what these people envision life after would be like. What can you not do now that you can do in the new system?

a reply to: Psychonautics

Funny...I pretty much said the same thing..word for word...over the weekend in another thread that I started.


Just wait...wait for the "well, why are you sitting here armchair quarterbacking? What do YOU do to fight the MAN?"


It's coming..I can hear them...

a reply to: Psychonautics

Well, why are you sitting here armchair quarterbacking? What do YOU do to fight the MAN?

Just kidding. Kidding! Seriously though, movements happen gradually. I'm reminded of a Ron Paul interview when he was asked if he thought he was making a difference. He replied with something to the effect that 'It's a gradual progress. You're not going to see everything just change drastically overnight, but we have made gradual progress, and things incrementally move forward.' He has made a difference, too. It's just been a gradual one.

Movements happen one person at a time, the same way elections are won. Take it one day at a time. Settle in for the long haul. If you want to make a difference, set goals and make changes in the way you live your life so that you can serve as an example to others of the change that you would like to see.

Get involved politically. You don't have to run for office. Try petition circulating, so that you can learn about the process. Most (if not all) of the cannabis law reforms that have been passed in the last thirty years were a result of the people's initiative process. People got together, wrote up a proposed law, got enough people to sign the form, and voted it in. The people made those changes, because the legislatures couldn't be bothered or were too lukewarm as a body to actually vote them in. You can be a part of that, if you want. You can pick up a gun if you want, but I think you'd be better advised to pick up a clipboard. Or better yet, a gun and a clipboard!

Seriously though, use the clipboard and keyboard liberally. Save the gun for when all other options have failed. Learn how to use it proficiently and responsibly, buy lots of ammo, and keep it clean and free of rust. Educate people. Engage people. Help us tear down the cultural dividing lines.

Also, don't go off half cocked. I think the Oregon occupation provides us a good example in what they did wrong. Poor planning and lack of a clear exit strategy are the most obvious blunders, in my opinion. If you just fly off the handle on a whim, you may well end up in a cell for no good reason. You won't be able to make much of a difference from there. I hope some of this helps. I don't mean to be patronizing, I'm just trying to give good advice.